Bran Muffins (Peggy Taylor)

I remember my mom making this recipe when I was little. It must have been all the rage in the 70's, but I haven't heard of anyone preparing this in recent years. I'm curious to see if these are as delicious as I remember. I also recall thinking how cool it was to have the batter in the fridge and be able to bake fresh muffins whenever we wanted.

All Bran and Bran Flakes are not a staple in our house, so this recipe required a trip to the grocery store (for the buttermilk as well). Other than that, it's super easy to prepare; it just requires a really, really, really big bowl. My largest mixing bowl just barely held the batter, so I had to transfer it to our huge plastic popcorn bowl in order to add the cereals. A large stock pot could work as well.

Freshly mixed, the batter is a little on the soupy side, so I covered the bowl with plastic wrap to sit overnight, and I'll make the first batch of muffins in the morning.

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Yep, the batter thickened up overnight as the cereal absorbed the liquid. I gave it a good stir, then made 30 muffins, which smelled wonderful as they baked. I can tell you they look and smell just as I remember, and they have a moist, soft, springy texture.

But here's the thing: I can't eat these muffins right now, so I can't tell you how they taste. I've never been one to follow a restrictive diet for any stretch of time, but my husband and I are headed to the Caribbean beaches of Costa Rica in less than two months, and I don't want the sight of me in a bikini to scare away small children and animals. I am being so good about following this diet, I won't even allow myself a taste of off-limits treats. I'm hardcore, baby.

The upside is that, according to this recipe, the batter keeps in the fridge for up to six weeks, and by then I'll be done with the diet so I can do my own taste test and report back wth the results.

For now, though, I have to rely on the opinion of others, which so far is excellent. I took the first batch, still warm, to share at a breakfast meeting, and everyone who tried them said they were delicious. My husband, daughter, brother, niece, and nephew all liked them, too.

I'm estimating that I used about half of the batter to make the 30 muffins. However, I overfilled the muffin cups a little, and could have stretched it to three dozen. I recommend filling the cups no more than half-full.

I poured the rest of the batter into jars to store in the fridge. I'll keep a tally and update the number when I finish it off in a few weeks, but I'd guess the recipe is enough for around 6 dozen muffins - a very good value compared to the cost and simplicity of the ingredients!

This is a fantastic recipe for feeding a crowd, and/or for having freshly baked muffins in 20 minutes whenever you like.

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Bran Muffins
from Peggy Taylor

2 cups boiling water
5 tsp baking soda
1 cup oil
4 cups sugar
4 beaten eggs
5 cups sifted flour
4 cups All-Bran cereal
2 cups Bran Flakes
1 qt buttermilk
1 tsp salt

[You will need a very large bowl or stock pot.]

Mix boiling water and soda. Cool.
Cream sugar and oil. Add eggs, then other ingredients.

[Cover and refrigerate overnight, then stir well in the morning.]

Grease and flour muffin tins or use paper liners. [Fill muffin cups no more than half full.]
Bake for 20 minutes at 400°.

Batter keeps for 6 weeks.
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