Raisin Bran Muffins
A favorite cereal in a breakfast muffin? As Ina Garten might say, “How great is that?”
Now you all know we don’t claim to be a health nut (in fact, far from it), but for some reason Raisin Bran has always been a favorite cereal of ours. Something about those slightly sweetened flakes and sugary raisins is just reliable breakfast deliciousness. Nevermind that the word bran is actually in the name of the cereal, it has never deterred us from enjoying it. So a bran muffin that gets its bran from Raisin Bran? It might be the only bran muffin you’ll ever find us endorsing. So you know these must be faaaaabulous for us to be sharing them. And they are. How fun, right? Cereal in a muffin. Love it.
One of a standby things about these muffins is that they get even better the longer you let the batter sit before baking. Now, we need to give a head nod to our Chief Culinary Consultant on this because we have differing opinions about a standby way to eat cereal. Me? We use just enough milk and eat it immediately so that the cereal is still crisp. We loathe soggy cereal. But he, on the other hand, covers the cereal with milk and lets it sit on the counter for a good 15 minutes so that it gets nice and soggy. Well, in this recipe, he definitely has the winning technique. The longer you let the batter sit, the softer the cereal in it becomes, and thus, more integrated into the muffins it is. Which increases the yum factor. If you bake the muffins right away, make sure to let the batter sit out on the counter for about 45 minutes before baking. If you want to wait, you can store the batter in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, and it will get even better as it sits.
Score: Soggy Cereal – 1, the kitchen – 0
P.S. We think this would be fantastic to try with something like Cinnamon Toast Crunch as well!
Two years ago: Cheesecake Truffles
Raisin Bran Muffins
Yield: 12 muffins These rich sweet muffins were made for snacking!- 1½ cups (187.5 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon (0.25 teaspoon) salt
- ⅓ cup (66.67 g) granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2½ cups (147.5 g) Raisin Bran cereal
- ⅓ cup (72.67 ml) vegetable oil
- 1 egg
- 1¼ cups (300 ml) buttermilk
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) vanilla extract
- 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with liners, or spray with non-stick cooking spray.
- 2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and sugars. Stir in the cereal; set aside.
- 3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, egg, buttermilk and vanilla extract.
- 4. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, and stir until completely combined. Allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for at least 45 minutes (this allows the cereal to soften in the batter). If you don't want to use immediately, you can refrigerate in an airtight container for up to three days.
- 5. When ready to bake, divide the batter between the 12 muffin tins. Sprinkle the tops with granulated sugar.
- 6. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days, and then in refrigerator for up to another week.
- Yield: 12 muffins
- Prep: 15 minutes
- Cook: 20 minutes
- Total: 35 minutes
Ingredients
- 1½ cups ( 187.5 g ) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon ( 0.5 teaspoon ) baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon ( 0.25 teaspoon ) salt
- ⅓ cup ( 66.67 g ) granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2½ cups ( 147.5 g ) Raisin Bran cereal
- ⅓ cup ( 72.67 ml ) vegetable oil
- 1 egg
- 1¼ cups ( 300 ml ) buttermilk
- ½ teaspoon ( 0.5 teaspoon ) vanilla extract
Method
- 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with liners, or spray with non-stick cooking spray.
- 2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and sugars. Stir in the cereal; set aside.
- 3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, egg, buttermilk and vanilla extract.
- 4. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, and stir until completely combined. Allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for at least 45 minutes (this allows the cereal to soften in the batter). If you don't want to use immediately, you can refrigerate in an airtight container for up to three days.
- 5. When ready to bake, divide the batter between the 12 muffin tins. Sprinkle the tops with granulated sugar.
- 6. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days, and then in refrigerator for up to another week.
