Fiber! Fiber! Get your fiber! These muffins are full of fiber, but even better they are full of flavor. My doctor handed me a recipe for bran muffins when I was pregnant with my first child. I like bran cereal so I thought the muffins tasted okay, but it wasn't the best and my husband definitely wouldn't eat them. Fast forward to my all new and improved coconut bran muffins and even my plain bran hating husband thinks they are tasty. The key is the coconut oil. It provides a subtle coconut flavor to the muffins that gives it a new and improved taste. Who knew bran muffins could be so delicious?
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups 100% all bran cereal
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1 egg
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
1. In a medium sized mixing bowl soak wheat bran and buttermilk for about 10 minutes until it gets all soggy.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray a muffin pan with nonstick spray.
3. Add all other ingredients to the soggy wheat bran. Stir thoroughly. This mixture will be very thick.
4. Divide the batter equally among the 12 muffin holes, pressing the dough in lightly.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes. Remove from the pan and cool on a wire rack.
Coconut oil is gaining in both popularity and availability. Once only available at health food stores, you can now find it all over the place, sometimes even in your big chain grocery store. Coconut oil is the oil that comes from the meat or flesh of coconuts. It can be used in place of other oils, but be careful because it does have a coconut flavor that could alter your finished product. In the above recipe the coconut flavor is definitely there.
There are many claimed health benefits to coconut oil consumption. It can help our bodies fight viruses and bacteria. It is good for thyroid health. It can help regulate blood sugar. It helps with digestion. Apparently it can also help reduce abdominal fat! Ya. Seriously, now I'm thinking I may need to eat a jar of coconut oil with a spoon, but I'm pretty sure that isn't how it works.
Give coconut oil a try. You might be surprised!
