Peanut Butter Bran Muffins

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I wasn’t sure how things were going to go with these.  I got brave and decided to swap out some of the flour for wheat germ (as my current obsession dictates) and I added some vanilla, and what I ended up with, to my delight, was not only a light airy delicious peanut butter muffin that’s healthy, but something the kids liked too! The ultimate trifecta: delicious, healthy, and kid-approved.

The only thing that went wrong was that the camera was jimmy-jammed for the first part of the process and I ended up with some stages of the baking documented in a blur. I did what I could to sharpen things up but a blur is a blur is a blur and it stymied me until I put down the whisk and simply refused to move forward until it was fixed. From then on, things were much clearer. I’ll have to look for the metaphor in that one.

Oh and the other fascinating thing about this recipe is the description that accompanied it:

PEANUT BUTTER BRAN MUFFINS This recipe came from an estate sale. I obtained it when I purchased the family collection from the Hartford Estate in Mesquite Texas in 1991.

Intriguing. No?

All right, time for some blurry photos. I started with 2/3 cup of whole wheat white flour, 1/3 cup of wheat germ, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and brown sugar. Blurry!

blurry dry ingredients

I whisked, but I don’t think a blurry shot of it is going to be particularly helpful, and it will shame me.

In another bowl I combined a beaten with milk and oil, which is when things started to come into focus at last.

egg oil and milk

I added the bran, peanut butter, and honey, and threw in a half teaspoon of vanilla.

added bran, peanut butter, honey

I stirred well, then (in a step actually missing from the directions, but overwhelmingly obvious), I poured that into the flour bowl and mixed just until incorporated, then let it sit for 5 minutes, as instructed.

batter, mixed

I scooped the batter into muffins cups, and popped them into the oven without snapping a picture, because I forgot. Sorry.

I started checking them 15 minutes in, and they were done at 18. They smelled great.

muffins in tin

After about five minutes in the pan, they were moved to a wire rack to finish cooling.

muffins on rack

Juliet came by, drawn in by the smell. “Do those have peanut butter in them?” I chose not to mention the wheat germ or the bran, and said yes. “Can I have one?”

Knowing her history, I cut her a small piece of one, expecting (at best) that she’d at least pretend it was palatable. Instead she asked for the rest of the muffin, and Nathaniel came by and gobbled one up, and then I tried one, and we were all very, very happy. (Dave was busy elsewhere or he would have joined the peanut butter party.)

The next day, when I took them to the windowsill to get some better shots of them, Juliet asked to pose with them. She did a great job, too, reflecting her newfound love of something that’s actually good for her.

muffins

Juliet with muffins

muffins

Woohoo! A gorgeous girl with delicious muffins. And behind her, the lush greenery supplied by a weekend full of non-stop rain. Worth it, I suppose. And so are the muffins. Light, airy, peanut buttery, and full of good healthy ingredients. A mere 4 P+ on Weight Watchers, which is amazing because most peanut butter muffins come in a lot higher. But most of all, these taste fantastic.

PEANUT BUTTER BRAN MUFFINS RECIPE (original)

My version of Peanut Butter Bran Muffins (adapted from Group Recipes)

(serves 12)

ingredients:

2/3 cup whole wheat white flour
1/3 cup wheat germ
1/3 cup (scant) brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup 1% milk
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup wheat bran
1/3 cup Skippy Natural Creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

directions:

Heat oven to 425 degrees, which you will reduce later, and grease or line 12 muffin cups.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, wheat germ, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.

In another bowl, whisk the egg with the milk and oil. Then add the bran, peanut butter, honey, and vanilla, and stir well.

Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry and stir just until combined, then let stand for five minutes.

Once five minutes have passed, scoop the batter into muffin cups, dividing as evenly as possible. Put into the oven and reduce temperature to 400 degrees. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean or with crumbs.

Give them five minutes in the pan, then move to a wire rack to finish cooling.  Feed to children. Eat some yourself.

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