Bran Date Muffins from Linette at Plum Tree Cottage

kiwidutch's Note:

Linette of New Zealand's alpine geothermal town of Hanmer Springs makes the very best Bran Date Muffins.... we swapped some recipes and I have made these for all our Hanmer visitors to rave reviews. If you don't wish to make 20-24 muffins then this mix can be used to make 12 muffins and 1 small loaf. Sultanas can be mixed into the date amount if preferred. Mixture can be made up to 2 days in advance and covered. refridgerated until use. Thanks Linette!

• Total Time: 50 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 40 mins

Ingredients:

Yield: 20 muffins

• 2 ½ cups plain flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 ½ cups unprocessed natural bran
• 1 ½ cups pitted dates (chopped)
• 1 cup vegetable oil (for example -- lite olive)
• 2 ½ cups low-fat milk
• 2 eggs (lightly beaten)

Directions:

1. Pre heat oven to 190 C (375 F).
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda and cinnamon.
3. Stir in the chopped dates, unprocessed bran and sugar.
4. Mix together the lightly beaten eggs, milk and vegetable oil, and then gently stir into the flour, date etc mix until only just combined.
5. Spoon into a muffin pan and bake in a moderate to hot oven (190 C / 375 F) for about 20 minutes or until cooked.

Reviews

[Chef #511730]

Thank you for this great recipe. I added some walnuts to the recipe, and left the dates out of the batter until I spooned it into the muffin tins. Then I put a date in the center of each muffin and they turned out beautifully!!

[Lorrie in Montreal]

Made for Holiday Tag. These are a treat for me as I really liked the texture ,I had to add a handful of chocolate chips to the mix to make my son happy but I felt it was a small price to pay for getting him to eat a healthy snack.

[Jess4Freedom]

These muffins are very good and light, for a bran muffin anyways. I can't stand how some bran muffins are like heavy rocks. I used half dates and half sultanas. I also threw in some well ground flax with the bran. This added a slightly nutty flavor. I will make these again, I think as a loaf next time. I bet this would be great made with dried cranberries too! Made and Reviewed for Please Review My Recipe Tag - Thanks! :)