Name: The Best Bran Muffins
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: Makes 12 small muffins or 6 jumbo muffins
Ingredients: 1 1/4 cups bleached all-purpose flour; 1/4 cup whole-wheat flour; 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 3/4 teaspoon table salt; 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon; 3/4 teaspoon ground allspice; 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg; 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened; 1/2 cup dark brown sugar plus 2 additional tablespoons; 2 large eggs; 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 3 tablespoons unsulphured molasses; 1/4 cup sour cream; 1 cup buttermilk plus 3 additional tablespoons; 1 1/2 cups wheat bran; 1 cup raisins

Why This Recipe Works

We wanted a classic bran muffin recipe that gave us the deep taste of bran with a moist, tender texture. We found that the ratio of wheat bran to flour had to be right: Too much bran produced a dry, crumbly muffin; too little and we didn’t really have a bran muffin anymore. For our bran muffin recipe, the right proportion of bran to flour turned out to be 1 to 1. To develop the flavor of our now nicely textured muffin, we added vanilla, warm spices, and molasses to our bran muffin recipe.

Before You Begin

Wheat bran is available at health foods stores or in boxes, labeled Quaker Unprocessed Bran, in supermarkets.

Instructions

Adjust oven rack to lower middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg in medium bowl; set aside.

Beat butter in large bowl of electric mixer or with handheld mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add brown sugar, increase speed to medium-high, and beat until combined and fluffy, about 1 minute longer. Add eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly before adding the next. Beat in vanilla, molasses, and sour cream until thoroughly combined and creamy, about 1 minute longer. Reduce speed to low; beat in buttermilk and half the flour mixture until combined, about 1 minute. Beat in remaining flour mixture until incorporated and slightly curdled looking, about 1 minute longer, scraping sides of bowl as necessary. Stir in bran and raisins.

Spray a twelve mold muffin tin (each mold measuring 1/2 cup) or a six mold muffin tin (each mold measuring one cup) with cooking spray or coat lightly with butter; divide batter evenly among molds using spoon or ice cream scoop. Bake until a toothpick inserted into center withdraws cleanly or with a few moist particles adhering to it, about 25 minutes. Set on wire rack to cool slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove muffins from tin and serve warm.