banana bran muffins

I must admit this was another experiment. I recently bought a box of cracked wheat cereal to try. I followed the directions at the back of the box for making hot cereal, since I was getting a little tired of oatmeal and would like to try something that’s new to me. However, although I must have boiled the cereal for more than ten minutes, I still found the texture a bit tough and grainy for my taste. I finally decided to try to grind it in the blender to make it finer. I usually make oat flour from regular oatmeal this way. Although the wheat grains are tougher and more difficult to grind than oatmeal, I managed to grind them finer enough for the muffins I was planning to make. As I’ve just mentioned, this is just an experiment and although it worked, next time I need to make sure that I get the correct product, which is unprocessed wheat bran. The mashed ripe bananas, aside from adding extra flavor, sweetened the muffins naturally and made them more moist. The combination of whole grains and natural sweeteners in this recipe makes it a healthier choice either for breakfast or tea time. Grease and flour the muffin pan, this recipe makes 12 muffins. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Banana Bran Muffins
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup unprocessed wheat bran
1 tbsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. salt
½ tsp. baking soda (optional)
half cup oatmeal, oat flour or cornmeal ( I used cornmeal )
half cup walnuts, chopped
¼ cup dark brown sugar
half stick or ¼ cup butter, melted
additonal ¼ cup corn oil
2 medium ripe bananas, mashed

Mix the above dry ingredients together in a big bowl, in the order given above, until just combined. The mixture will be lumpy. Then, with a wire whisk, mix the ingredients below, until well blended.

2 large eggs
¾ cup fresh milk
3 tbsps. honey or molasses
1 tsp. vanilla

Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture, and stir with a fork until just blended. Spoon into the muffin tins. Sprinkle with some sugar and extra bran flakes before baking. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until done. These muffins are not very sweet and may be enjoyed with extra butter and jam.