banana carrot bran muffinsI had made a batch of banana muffins recently, and a batch of carrot-bran muffins, and I realized I wanted a hybrid of both (because why not). I wanted to add actual bran, but also liked the idea of adding oatmeal. And so here you are. You’ll notice that there’s no nutrition information. If you’re curious about why this is, stay tuned for my post on Wednesday. This recipe was originally published in The Seattle Times with the article “Have you made friends with fiber: Why you should.”

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Coconutty Banana-Carrot Bran Muffins

Prep

Cook

Total

Yield 12 Muffins

This recipe makes a muffin that is dense without being heavy, and very moist and flavorful. While the whole-wheat pastry flour packs fiber of its own, I’ve bumped it up with the addition of oat bran and whole oats.

Ingredients

  • 2 large eggs
  • ½ cup (2.5 ounces) packed brown sugar
  • 1 cup mashed very ripe banana (about 2 bananas)
  • ¾ cup (6 ounces) buttermilk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup (2 ounces) rolled oats (regular or quick cooking, not instant or thick)
  • 1/2 cup (2 ounces) oat bran
  • ½ cup (4 ounces) coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled
  • 1 cup (4.25 ounces) whole-wheat pastry flour
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground cardamom (you could substitute ground ginger)
  • 1 cup finely grated carrot
  • ½ cup + 2 tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease 12 muffin cups, or use paper liners.
  2. Whisk eggs and brown sugar in a medium bowl until smooth. Whisk in the mashed banana, buttermilk, vanilla, oats, bran and coconut oil.
  3. Whisk whole-wheat pastry flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cardamom in a large bowl. Make a well in the dry ingredients, add the wet ingredients and stir with a sturdy rubber spatula until just combined. Fold in the grated carrot and ½ cup shredded coconut until just combined.
  4. Scoop the batter into the muffin cups; the batter will fill them. Sprinkle with the 2 tablespoons shredded coconut.
  5. Bake the muffins until the tops are golden brown and spring back when you touch them lightly, 25-30 minutes. Remove to a wire rack and let them cool for about 5 minutes before turning them out onto the rack (loosening the edges if you opted for greasing instead of papers) to cool a bit more before serving.

Notes

Tip: I’ve used whole-wheat pastry flour for years as a replacement for all-purpose flour for all of my baking, and it always works beautifully. Look for oat bran in the baking section or with the hot cereals.

Courses Breakfast

Cuisine American