Deep Dark Old Recipe Bran Muffins

I was excited to try this recipe, since it is hard to find the dark bran recipe, and although I wasn’t blown away, they were not a disappointment. I did make some changes: I substituted the buttermilk with plain yogurt, the white sugar for brown, and shortening for margarine (trying to make them even more healthy). I also opted for blueberries rather than the raisins. I loved how moist they were inside, with a nice crust on top, and they expanded really nicely. I did think that the molasses taste was a little strong for me, and I like molasses, but after serving them at my 2 ½ year old’s play date, both the kids and moms really liked the flavour. I think next time I will half the molasses and put some applesauce in and see how it works. Definitely a great, high-fiber snack for kids and adults alike!

I am really enjoying this for the second time - right now! I used spelt bran; let any bran soak for a few minutes in the bowl of wet ingredients so it's nice and moist coming out of the oven. I also used a buttermilk/yogurt combo, and a healthy oil because I hate measuring solid shortening. If you are not a bran muffin purist (mine is in a loaf), I recommend adding an additional cup of dried fruit (apricots, prunes) and nuts. Oh, and I like molasses so I increased to 1/3 cup. Good!

It was nice to find a recipe that didn't call for bran ceral. I am following a low GI diet so I made a few changes and the muffins came out great! First I changed the all-purpose flour to whole wheat flour, I also used 1 cup oat bran and 1 1/2 cups wheat bran, I changed the shortening to heart healthy canola oil and the sugar to splenda. I increased the baking soda to 2 teaspoons and the buttermilk to 1 3/4 cups. I also added 1t of vanilla, 1t of cinnamon, 1/2t ginger, clove, nutmeg. I also added 1/2 cup chopped walnuts. Even though I made so many changes it was a great starter recipe! I will be using it in the future. Thanks!

a great start to a recipe. I solved the dryness problem that was encountered by so many reviewers by substituting one 16-ounce can of pumpkin for the equivalent volume of buttermilk, and they were extremely moist. Also I used oat flour and doubled the molasses and tossed in 1/3 cup of bittersweet chocolate mini-chips. Yummy!

These turned out great! Being on the healthy and frugal side here is the substitution I made instead of using white sugar and molases: I had in the fridge some "fiber bomb"* (I'll post recipe right away) which is dried fruit simmered in plain water until they turn syrupy. I measured the fruit syrup to 3/4 cup and chopped 1/2 cup of the fruit right on the dry ingredients and tossed (or they would drop to the bottoms of the muffins during baking). Healthfully fruity and moistly dark.

OMG! These are the best Bran muffins I've ever made or eaten for that matter. I used black strap molasses and these bad boys are so moist and delicious even my picky husband went bonkers for these. I made a batch with copies of the recipe to hand samples out to family and friends.

Awesome! I used whole wheat, millet and oat flours in place of the all purpose flour. Left out the white sugar (with the raisins, plenty sweet enough for me) and used coconut oil in place of the vegetable shortening. Deep, Dark and Wholesome - love it!

These are, hands down, the best wheat bran muffins i've tried by far. And trust me, I've tried my fair share of bran muffins. I actually used the same amount of mashed banana in place of the shortening, cause I didn't have any shortening. But seriously. These are AMAZING. And healthy! Try it! :)

I have been looking for a recipe like this for a long time and so happy to now have one that is PERFECT! These are exceptional. Rich in bran and good 'ole fashioned wholesomeness. Wow! I like the flavor of molasses so I used brown sugar instead of white and sub'd out 1/2 cup of regular flour for white whole wheat and used coconut oil instead of shortening (same idea they both are solid fats). I made half the recipe and used a lightley greased 8" cake pan then served sliced in wedges. I know I will be making this recipe often. Thanks LorrieT1 for sharing this wonderful recipe.

I doubled the recipe the first time I made it and as I was chopping raisins and remembering how much work it is to bake from scratch, I thought, "boy, these better be worth it." ...and they ARE worth it! I didn't adjust for altitude (because I don't know how), so I don't think they are as high as they should be, but they are moist and delicious with a wee pat of butter, warm out of the oven. Will definitely make these again and I might put in more raisins next time. Thank you for sharing your recipe!

This recipe is terrific. A hearty, good-for-you muffin. I substitute 1/2 cup honey for the sugar and for the flour I use half white, half whole wheat. Then I toss in some chopped walnuts along with the raisins. YUM!

I like the flavor of these muffins. Since we always spread margarine over the top anyways, I did not think that being too dry was an issue.

Not quite enough flavor yet but with some simple adjustments I'm pretty sure this can be a 5 star recipe (less salt, more fruit - apples seem like a good idea, some whole wheat flour). Worth playing with as the bran and molasses combo are exactly what I've been looking for.

I've tried 4 bran muffin recipes in the past 4 days and this is our favourite. Moist, great flavour, and healthy bran fiber! I used vegetable oil instead of melted shortening and fresh blueberries instead of the raisins. Thanks for posting! I will be making this again and again.

Excellent! Used 1/2 c applesauce with 1 c plain nonfat yogurt instead of buttermilk. Next time will add nuts. Not dry at all. Also baked as a loaf for 1 hr.

Fast and easy. Found my new bran muffin recipe!! Added dates instead of raisins.

Wonderfully moist. I used brown sugar in place of white and added both pecans and currants

These were just what I was looking for, I used to make a similar muffin but misplaced the recipe. I don't have veg. shortening so used a combination of safflower and coconut oils - I poured in a quarter cup before I realized my mistake, no harm done as far as I can tell. Great recipe, thanks!

Made with the following changes: substituted brown sugar for white, replaced oil with 1/2 cup applesauce, and substituted 3 egg whites for two whole eggs. Plumped raisins in boiling water (rather than chopped). I soaked the bran in the buttermilk for 10 minutes before adding the rest of the wet ingredients, and the muffins were very moist. Next time, I'm going to try reducing the sugar by half. Fantastic!

I love these wonderful moist muffins. Only change was that I substituted veg. oil for the shortening as that is what I had on hand.

I thought these were wonderful. Some reviewers commented that theirs were dry. I didn't think they were dry at all. I did use honey rather than molasses, just because I didn't have any molasses on hand. Maybe that's why they were a little moister? The kids even loved them. These taste a lot like the bran muffins my grandmother made when I was little but not as dense. I will be making these again soon. Maybe real soon if my kids keep eating them!

I made these for breakfast before work this morning. They are easy to make and have a tender moist center and a crusty top. YUMMY!

These were absolutely delicious...followed the recipe and added some cardamom, nutmeg, and allspice to give it a bit of sweet spiciness. They are moist and have great texture. Saved the recipe and will be a favorite in our household. Thanks!

Great recipe! My only changes were to use brown sugar for the white, since I love the flavor blend with the buttermilk. I did not have any molasses, so subbed in real maple syrup. I used 1/4 cup canola oil, so as not to have to melt anything. Also, back in the day that this recipe originated, it is likely that low fat buttermilk did not exist. I used 'Bulgarian' buttermilk--it is not low fat, and gave a very nice crumb. These turned out like a bakery bran muffin. Yes, the fat content is higher, but variety and all things in moderation. This recipe is exactly what I've been looking for. These will become a staple in my freezer.

Really absolutely delicious muffins, so moist too. This will be a new staple recipe for me.

A nice bran muffin. I wished it was a bit sticky though. I thought the molasses might achieve that. Next time i will use whole wheat flour and brown sugar like a few of the others. I will keep this recipe but will go on searching for a gooey moist bran muffin.

These were pretty dry.

used blueberries - tastes better than I expected. With so little sugar and no vanilla called for I was worried they would be bland muffins, not as dark as I expected-no where near the picture. A little dry. Would make again but would soak the bran in the buttermilk to try to make them a little more moist

Not bad, but not great (IMO).

A delicious recipe that is easy to customize to your liking! Here are the changes I made: subbed coconut oil for vegetable shortening subbed crushed bran cereal for bran (couldn't track any down!) subbed dried, sweetened cherries for raisins added roughly chopped walnuts baked in two small loaves instead of muffins These freeze and reheat well, they are delicious and even though they are healthy they taste decadent!

these are fantastic! Only thing I did different was to sub 1/2 vanilla flavored yogurt (Danone) and 1 c milk for the buttermilk (since i did not have buttermilk). Yummy! Will make again for sure!

Delicious! I did not have milk so I took another reviewer's suggestion and replaced it with pumpkin puree. Very moist and wonderful molasses flavor (I used black strap).

Too molassas-ey for me, but the family liked them.

I doubled this recipe and it yielded 33 muffins. I followed the recipe precisely and love that they're dark in color as opposed to other bran muffin recipes I've made. After tasting these, I think a bit less salt would have been just as fine. Next time...

Good, old school bran muffins! 4 yr old said "They taste like REAL muffins!" and I agree - unlike store bought "cake" muffins, they are dry, which we loved. Had no molasses on hand so added a bit of brown sugar, used 1c buttermilk and 1/2c applesauce, and coconut oil instead of shortening. Also used 1c frozen blueberries instead of raisins - added to dry ingredients to prevent colour bleeding. The kids devoured them! Thanks for sharing LorrieT1!

A nice muffin to go with your morning coffee, or tea.I used coconut milk(lactose) and Kelloggs all Bran, did not add raisins to these and I found the molasses flavor a bit strong, but i will make these again. Thank you for the recipe.

Dry even w a cup of applesauce. Low rise. Taste good. Won’t make them twice. Since they are made with buttermilk and soda I see no reason they could not be the six week type bran muffins.

Wholesome and delicious. Heavy and satisfying. Full of goodness to keep you going.

This recipe made the best bran muffins, by far, that have ever come out of my kitchen! I followed the recipe exactly, with the one small exception of soaking the raisins in a little hot water cause I like 'em juicy. The muffins are super moist, loaded with flavor, and have a huge amt. of bran in them. If you're a bran muffin lover, look no further than this recipe. They are perfect! Thanks, Lorri, for sharing your recipe!

Added 2 smashed bananas and a teaspoon vanilla.

Easy to make. I got rave reviews from the social group that tried them. They freeze well.

These muffins turned out great! Not having any shortening I used the same amount of coconut oil (melted). I also substituted craisins for the plain raisins which added an amazing flavour. I will definitely make these again.

I did increase the molasses bit and omit the sugar and add vanilla but otherwise I thought this recipe was really delicious. I do not like my muffin sweet at all hence the omissions. This is one of the best muffin recipes I have found in quite a while.

perfect,delious

Great base recipe. I made it vegan. Tweaks-veg oil instead of shortening, almond milk, ground flax seed as egg substitute,a dash of pumpkin pie seasoning, tsp of vanilla & maple syrup...only used brown sugar instead of white

Very nice. I like the dark look of these muffins. I was reluctant to use the molasses as I once overdid it in a cake - the result was too overpowering. These were great!

I was looking for a bran morning glory muffin but couldn't find one so I changed this recipe. I used brown sugar instead of white, I added 1/4c shredded coconut, 1c grated carrots and a 1/4c pumpkin seeds. I used 1 tsp each of baking soda and baking powder and added a 1/4c of milk. They turned out great!

Made these and subbed in a few ingredients just because of what we had on hand. Used almond milk for the buttermilk, used canola oil and added a few tablespoons of applesauce as I needed to use it up. These muffins are great! Didn't take long and quick clean up. I am sure this recipe can be customized to people's preferences as long as you keep the wet / dry ratio somewhat in tact. I will be making these again as I am pretty sure the batch I made won't last long. Also, I filled the muffin tins pretty high because I wanted larger muffins...they puffed up well but didn't run into each other so 12 it is for me moving forward. Thank you for a great old school muffin recipe!

I added 1 cup each craisins & chopped pecans. For flavor I spiced this up with 1 tsp. Cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. Nutmeg, 1/8 tsp. Allspice. Turned out excellent- moist. Will make again!!

Has a big fan rating with my firends

This was my second time making these terrific, rich in fiber muffins. First time, used all ingredients but substituted raisins for shredded carrots and added chopped walnuts. Also changed bran to rolled oats. They were delicious! Second time, added chopped almonds, shredded carrots instead of raisins, and shredded coconut. Also increased white sugar from 1/2 cup to 1 cup; we seem to like our muffins more to the sweeter side. Rolled oats instead of bran. Whatever you choose to add is great...been looking for a muffin that has more oats than flour. Even looks like a muffin you'd buy in a bakery. Thank you!!

perfect! Reminds me of the bran muffins my mom used to make when I was a child. Definitely a keeper and will be. Ads regularly in our home! :)

I live this recipe. It has the richness from the molasses that I haven't found in many other recipes! I made it as is and it turned out great.

Really awesome muffins. Will definitely make them again. Used dried cranberries instead of raisins, wonderful way to get your fiber.

I have been looking for a good bran muffin in the stores for a long time, well after making these I will look no longer. Best bran muffins EVER!!! I made mine in my jumbo muffin pan and baked for 30 minutes.

I substituted flaxseed for bran because I had a lot, and 2 cups of blueberries because I didn’t want raisins. They’re super moist and not very sweet. Good recipe!

I liked these. I gave 4 stars, only because I made a few changes based on what I had. I used whole wheat flour instead of all purpose flour, canola oil instead of vegetable shortening and brown sugar instead of white (just because I prefer baked goods with brown sugar). I also added some cinnamon because I like cinnamon in everything. They definitely don't puff up but I hadn't really expected them too. They're not too sweet, just enough for a breakfast muffin so I don't feel like I'm eating cake first thing in the morning. I forgot to chop my dried fruit (dried berries and golden raisins) and I wish I did so the fruit would have been more evenly distributed between my muffins. But this recipe is something I will definitely try again, I think they would also be good with some chopped pecans and I did like the suggestion of using pumpkin puree in them!

They aren't as moist as I would like them. I followed the recipe but they are too dry. I wouldn't make them again.

This is the second time I have made these . This time I used brown sugar instead of white and added dried cranberries and raw sunflower seeds as well as raisins. Very moist! Will make them again

Very good recipe! I made changes such as I used yogurt instead of buttermilk, I used half applesauce and half butter for oil, I didn't use molasses, I used raw sugar to sweeten and I used blueberries instead of raisins. Next time I want to add more blueberries. It was sweet enough for me. I don't like real sweet things. I will do this recipe again and tweak until it's just perfect for me.

These were fabulous! Did a little tinkering for fun experimenting. I added extra molasses and orange zest and cinnamon and half cup more of buttermilk. Awesome! They were very light and moist. Thanks so much for this recipe. It will be handed down for generations to come!

They are fabulous.I made them in a muffin top pan, cut the recipe in half and got 6 "tops" plus two additional I made in custard cups. Reminds me of the bran toasties that were available years ago which I loved. So I toasted lightly, put a little butter on top and enjoyed! I did reduce the baking time by 5 minutes so baked for 15 minutes. Cooled thoroughly in pan then on rack. Vital steps to be sure.

I had to tweak the recipe a bit. Substitute buttermilk, vegetable oil and I used sprouted wheat flour. There wasnt much of a rise but they were AWESOME! Some might not find them sweet enough but they are perfect in my book!

I used a 1/2 cup of yogurt and almost

So, so good! Exactly the recipe I’ve been trying to find my entire adult life!

I made these as directed, the bran cereal is a little dry and hard in the muffin. I plan to soak the bran cereal in buttermilk first then mix with the other ingredients next time.

Its so good I made it about three times in one week and Everyone loved them. Recipe changes I made were - I added lots of cinnamon for extra flavor and 2 teaspoons of vanilla essence for more complexity in the flavor. The second time I added a cup of oats as well and it still turned out amazing and the third time I added 2 cups of finely grated carrots and chopped nuts instead of raisins which made the best muffins my family has had in years. This recipe is very forgiving and very easy to work with and it allows you to personalize it in whichever way you like. Im keeping it as my go to for dark muffins.

Absolutely loved these! Like others I switched out the white sugar for brown. Since I don't use buttermilk, I used clabbered milk. Worked out great..I also added 1 tsp each vanilla and cinnamon, and 1/2 tsp each cloves, and nutmeg. My partner usually can't stand bran muffins but she loved these! Definitely a keeper... will add photo later

Really great flavor but could've been a tad moister. However I did alter the recipe a bit to try to make less dry after reading some of the reviews. Used 1/4 cup melted butter instead of shortening, used oat and wheat bran, a little more molasses and chopped dates. Perhaps I just baked them a little too long or the dates may have been a but dry. I will definitely make again and use soaked raisins and watch the baking time closely. But still got lots of compliments on these and love the old time flavor and texture.

I love this recipe! I make giant muffins the recipe is perfect for 6 giant muffins. I just add 5 minutes to the bake time. I also add some spices for a little extra flavor. Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Delicious!

I love these muffins.

Made 17, baked for 14 minutes in my oven and used 1/2 sugar, 1/2 Splenda and veg oil. Very good, kids loved as well 3 each with Splenda and applesauce, 4 as written 1/2 recipe 8

I made a few changes. I used fat free sour cream instead of buttermilk, found them a dryer than I expected, this may be the reason I used brown sugar instead of white. Also used dates and walnuts, no raisans.

I'm so happy -- these are the bran muffins I've been dreaming about for years, but could never find. I did make a couple of changes, only so that I wouldn't have to run to the store. I used whole wheat flour, and came up short so rounded it out with a little ground almond meal. Used coconut oil instead of melted shortening. The whole wheat flour didn't make them heavy. They were great. Thank you, thank you, Lorrie T!!! By the way, heart-healthy people -- go ahead and use buttermilk! It's not like you're drinking a cup and half of the stuff -- it's spread out over many muffins and gives them such great texture and flavor.

I followed recipe exactly and used a food scale and the metric measurements. I loved the flavor and the amount of sweetness was just right! But they were really dry and didn't rise very much. :( Next time, I will add grated carrots or canned pumpkin or maybe more buttermilk.

I made mine with dark chocolate chips

Excellent recipe. Moist and great tasting. I followed the suggestions of using brown sugar and coconut oil for a slightly healthier recipe. I soaked my bran in the buttermilk for 10 minutes. And I also soaked my raisins first to plump them- no chopping required and I used a full cup of them-delish!! Definitely a recipe I will continue to use. Thanks for sharing!!!