These Carrot Bran Muffins are what is called a breakfast muffin, I suppose, as they aren’t really sweet and loaded with sugar, but a solid tasty muffin that can be a good start to your day. The raisins and molasses are what give it most of the sweetness, and the spices save it from being too bland. You can substitute the oil with applesauce as well, I made them with oil since it’s only half a cup needed but you can cut a lot of calories and fat if you want to by using applesauce. Also – the applesauce adds a great flavour!
Healthy Carrot Muffins
I know we all love a good sweet carrot cake muffin, but you can make a healthier carrot muffin that everyone will enjoy. Now, I’m going to be honest: my daughter asked me to bake her some bran muffins ( which are her favorite, which, of course, they are because picky eater + plain bran = common sense).
She took one look at these carrot muffins and said ” MOM! Why would you ruin a perfectly good bran muffin!!!!!???” and of course, didn’t touch them with a ten foot pole.
I can’t win. I told her to go bake her own, because this was an old recipe from 9 years ago that SHE USED TO EAT WHEN SHE WAS 3 AND NOW SHE THINKS SHE’S PICKY. Ok fine, she’s always been picky, but she used to eat these when she was little. That’s the thing about being a food blogger, you are constantly trying out new recipes so I can honestly say that I haven’t made these carrot muffins for a good 5 years now.
Tips & Tricks for Making Carrot Bran Muffins
- I like to boil my raisins for a couple minutes before putting them in, I put them in a large measuring cup with hot water, and boil them for 2 minutes in the microwave to plump them up. They are SO much better in the muffins this way, plump and juicy, not dry little shriveled things.
- You can absolutely skip the raisins in these muffins because some people are weird and don’t like them. It’s fine, I love you raisin haters anyway.
- Applesauce works like a charm to reduce calories and fat.
- Don’t be scared to throw in a tablespoon of ground hemp seeds!
So go ahead and “ruin” good bran muffins by adding in carrots and spices, these are a great lower sugar muffin to start out your day. As we all know muffins are huge calorie, sugar and fat bombs when they are made commercially and this is a nice change. They are currently frozen individually in my fridge freezer for my son, my current favourite child, as he loves to grab one on his way our the door and eat on the bus to school. They freeze well and are a great start to your day!
Happy baking!
Love,
Karlynn
Carrot Bran Muffins
Ingredients
Bran Mixture
- 1 cup of wheat bran
- 1 cup soured milk or buttermilk
Dry Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups of flour
- 1/2 cup of brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon cloves
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup of oil
- 1 tablespoon of molasses
- 1 1/2 cups of grated carrots
- 1 cup of raisins
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 °F. Line a 12 well muffin tray with paper liners or spray the wells with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Mix your bran with the milk in a bowl and let it sit while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all your dry ingredients and whisk them together.
- Add the wet ingredients to the bran mixture and combine well.
- Add the wet ingredients into the dry and combine until smooth and well mixed.
- Fill the prepared muffin tray with the batter, and fill each to about 3/4 full.
- Bake at 350 degrees until the tops spring back when touched, about 15-20 minutes depending on your oven.
Notes
Nutrition
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Barbara says
Great recipe, my kids and grand kids love these muffins, healthy and yummy. I substituted the flour with almond flour or oat flour. Also used milk to soak the bran. Once I use chopped almond instead of raisins. Next time I make them I will try using half of the sugar and 1/4 cup oil and 1 1/4 cup milk.