A hearty and delicious whole wheat bran muffin that is a great grab and go breakfast! Start your day the healthy way with these delicious muffins.
These Whole wheat bran muffins are delicious and easy to grab and go! I also love our hash brown egg cups and tropical green monster smoothie when I’m in a hurry but still want something filling and healthy. 😉
Healthy Bran Muffins That Are Delicious!
It’s been a while since I’ve posted a healthy & hearty recipe here on Life Made Simple. Today I’m changing that. Last week I made some really yummy whole wheat banana pancakes that we LOVED and this week it was these whole wheat bran muffins.
So why are these the best whole wheat bran muffins?! Because they taste amazing and they’re good for you too! Bran muffins are packed with vitamins, minerals, and other important things such as fiber.
These golden beauties are filled with bran, whole wheat flour, low-fat “buttermilk,” Greek yogurt, coconut oil, and fresh fruit. Oh, and did I mention they’re low in sugar? Yep, they’re the whole package.
How to Make Wheat Bran Muffins
To start, you’re going to want to get a small mixing bowl or a 2 cup glass measuring cup to mix the wet ingredients in.
- You’ll need 1 cup of buttermilk, however, to keep these on the lighter side I opted to make my own by combining 1 cup of 1% milk with 1 tbsp. of lemon juice and allowed it to sit for 5 minutes. But you can use store-bought buttermilk if you prefer.
- You can use a plain version of almond milk and for every cup of milk mix in 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. Let it sit for 10 minutes and then use as vegan buttermilk
- Along with the buttermilk, add the yogurt (Greek works great and adds extra protein), egg, oil (I used coconut), brown sugar (for moisture, flavor, and sweetness), and vanilla extract!
Now it’s time to whisk together the dry ingredients in a larger mixing bowl.
- That includes the wheat bran (I used Bob’s Red Mill), flour (I used all whole wheat), baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
- You can use only whole-wheat flour, only all-purpose flour, or a ½ cup whole-wheat flour + ½ cup all-purpose flour. They taste great no matter what you use!
Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix it up.
- Then fold in any fresh fruit, dried fruit or nuts you’d like. I added blueberries, raspberries, and coconut. Yum!
- Some bakers like to coat the berries in flour and then gently fold them in. This holds the moisture a little bit more and prevents them from getting squashed.
- Using frozen fruit won’t change the recipe too much. The high heat of the oven should work just fine to successfully defrost and bake in the muffins.
Once you’ve got the batter mixed up (don’t worry if it’s thick and lumpy, it should be) all you need to do is bake these babies!
- Pop them into a 425-degree oven (yes, it’s really that hot… it’s what gives these muffins their golden crunchy exteriors) for 14-16 minutes. Let ’em cool for a few minutes and then enjoy.
Variations + Storing Tips
Changing it up – here are some ideas…
- Applesauce instead of yogurt.
- Molasses instead of brown sugar
- Variety of fruit: raspberries, blueberries, apples, and peaches
- Coconut
- Chopped pecans
- Dates
How to Store Bran Muffins
Store muffins at room temperature for 3 days in a ziplock bag. If they are collecting too much condensation you can open the bag slightly and allow them to dry out a little bit.
To freeze muffins tightly wrap them in foil and place in a freezer-safe bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Let them thaw in the fridge overnight and then warm in the microwave if need be.
Other healthy breakfast options:
Next time you’re looking for a healthy, easy and delicious muffin recipe, I hope you’ll give this one a try! We loved them and I know you will too!
For more muffin recipes, check out:
Healthy Whole Wheat Bran Muffins Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup buttermilk - or homemade buttermilk*
- 1/2 cup yogurt - Greek or other
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup melted coconut oil - or vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup brown sugar**
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cup wheat bran
- 1 cup whole wheat flour***
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 cup chopped berries - OR dried fruit OR nuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly spray or line one muffin tin, set aside.
- In a small glass measuring cup or bowl, whisk together the "buttermilk", yogurt, egg, oil, brown sugar, and vanilla.
- In a separate mixing bowl whisk together the bran, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Gradually pour in the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. Gently fold in the berries, dried fruit or nuts.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared pan, dividing evenly between the wells. Place in the oven and bake for 14-16 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and spring back when touched. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pans for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
NOTES
**If you like your muffins on the sweeter side, add an additional 1 tbsp. of brown sugar.
***You can use only whole-wheat flour, only all-purpose flour, or a ½ c. whole-wheat flour + ½ c. all-purpose flour. They taste great no matter what you use!
-Any fresh fruit is a great addition to these muffins! We've used raspberries, blueberries, apples and peaches. We also like adding in coconut and chopped pecans.
I was very impressed, following your recipe exactly (used fresh blueberries) they came out of the oven passing the toothpick test 1st time. They look delicious and knowing how healthy they are is a plus. However, with that said, I’m thinking they would be tastier using half whole wheat and half white unbleached flour. Looking forward to trying them for breakfast toasted with cream and perhaps a citrusy or rhubard jam.
I’m so thankful for this useful guide. It’s giving me hope that one can still enjoy food even though one have food restrictions due to illnesses. Thank you ever so much. Keep doing a great job.
We are at an elevation of 6000 feet, what do we change to compensate for the altitude
Hi Patrick, we are not at high altitude and so we can’t test any changes, but here is a resource that should help you: https://blog.wilton.com/high-altitude-baking/
Let us know how it goes.
Sorry I forgot I posted a few weeks ago!
I’ve tried so many healthy bran muffin recipes on line and this is the best by far. Very versatile. You can mix up things (within reason) and they always seem to be tasty. Just sweet enough for us.
Today I subbed 1/4 cup of almond flour for the WW flour and used chopped up frozen cherries. They needed a few extra minutes to cook because the cherries were quite juicy and the almond flour likely didn’t absorb as much liquid as WW flour would.
Bookmarked and using again and again!