[julbug]

Thank you so much for posting this. I've been meaning to pull out my favorite muffin recipe and do a few batches (some to freeze) for quite a while now. Now that school's getting ready to start again, I really need to get on the ball, not to mention, I need to have my freezer stocked for Sprout's arrival anyway!

These Honey Bran Muffins are so good warm with butter (known as Earth Balance in our house) and very good for you.

1 cup 100% Bran Cereal (you know, the kind you would never eat by itself cause it looks like dehydrated rabbit food?)
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar (or your favorite granulated sweetener)
1 tsp baking soda
2 egg whites, lightly beaten (okay, I converted this recipe, so I use egg replacer, you can also use pureed fruit or experiment without it because of the prunes already substituting for butter below)
1/3 cup honey
1 (2 1/2 oz) jar of baby food prunes (this is purely for convenience, you could always puree your own prunes)
3 tbsp molasses
1 cup buttermilk (to substitute, I add 1 tsp. of white vinegar or 1 tsp. of lemon juice per 1 cup of soymilk as a substitute for buttermilk, I find that vinegar thickens it more, but since you are not using soy, any rice, oat or nut milk would work as well. It would be fun to play around with nut milk flavors and see how that tweaks the muffins' taste)
1/2 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 375. Mix all dry ingredients (cereal, flour, sugar, & baking soda) in a mixing bowl. Form a small well in the center of this mixture. In a small bowl, combine wet ingredients: egg replacer, honey, prune puree, molasses and buttermilk substitute. Pour the wet mixture into the well formed in the middle of the dry mixture. Stir just until moistened evenly. Fold in raisins.

Spray or grease six large muffin cups (or use liners). Spoon batter evenly into cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until they pass the toothpick test. Cool for 5 minutes in pan then remove to a cooling rack. For best results, enjoy warm!