These Moist Bran Muffins are wholesome and delicious. They’re a more dense muffin than any of the cakey kinds of muffins you’re used to. I love that they’re filling, tender and healthy.

three bran muffins stacked

We’re muffin maniacs around my house. I often try new and different muffin recipes. My son and my husband enjoy having homemade muffins for breakfast, so I try to find those muffin recipes that aren’t exactly like “cake.” My guys are sweets-lovers and would happily eat Cocoa Krispies, a chocolate muffin and chocolate milk for breakfast if I had it around. I don’t. I found this recipe for Moist Bran Muffins in the King Arthur Flour: Whole Grain Baking cookbook.

A nice feature of this recipe is that you make the batter and then let it sit overnight in the fridge. It keeps for up to a week, so you can scoop it up and bake it as needed and have fresh muffins whenever you like.

ingredients displayed for making moist bran muffins

Ingredients needed:

  • boiling water
  • bran cereal (buds instead of flakes)
  • raisins
  • light or dark brown sugar
  • vegetable or canola oil
  • whole wheat flour
  • baking soda, baking powder and salt
  • egg
  • buttermilk
  • orange juice

The recipe calls for bran cereal. I use Bran Buds, and I don’t believe I would use them for anything else but bran muffins. My son said while he watched me make them… “Are you putting dog food in the muffins?” I teased him a bit as I ate a couple of buds, but truly- these little niblets do look a little like something a dog would find appetizing. Not to worry… they’re good in the muffins!

four photos showing how to make moist bran muffins

How to make Moist Bran Muffins:

The complete, printable recipe is at the end of this post.

Pour boiling water over ¾ cup of the bran cereal in a small mixing bowl. Add the raisins, brown sugar and oil. While the bran mixture cools, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl.
 
Beat the egg with the buttermilk and orange juice in a large measuring cup. Add this mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir in the remaining ½ cup bran cereal, then the bran/raisin mixture. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight.
 
The next day, preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a muffin tin or line with papers and coat the papers with nonstick spray.
 
Fill each cup two-thirds full with batter. Bake the muffins until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 23 to 26 minutes for regular-sized muffins (35 to 40 minutes for jumbo muffins).

looking down on several bran muffins

Remove from oven and allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn them out onto a rack to finish cooling, or serve warm, as desired.

If you prefer, you can make 6 jumbo muffins in a 6-cavity muffin tin instead of the 12 regular-sized muffins.

hand holding a bran muffin

These moist bran muffins freeze well. We put them in individual quart-size freezer baggies and take one out each night to defrost for the following morning. They will be just as moist and fresh as the ones that are fresh-from-the-oven.

unwrapped bran muffin

Nutritionally, 1 regular-sized muffin has 5 grams of fiber, 7 grams of fat and 242 calories. My guys give these muffins a double-thumbs-up, and I feel good about not giving them “cake” for breakfast! Enjoy!

bran muffin on its side on wooden cutting board

Favorite Muffin Recipes:

three bran muffins stacked
4 from 4 votes

Moist Bran Muffins

These over-night muffins are easy to make and bake up beautifully. They stay moist too!
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Over-Night Refrigeration: 8 hours
Total: 8 hours 45 minutes
Servings: 12 muffins (1 per serving)
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Ingredients

Instructions 

  • Pour boiling water over ¾ cup of the bran cereal in a small mixing bowl. Add the raisins, brown sugar and oil. While the bran mixture cools, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl.
  • Beat the egg with the buttermilk and orange juice in a large measuring cup. Add this mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir in the remaining ½ cup bran cereal, then the bran/raisin mixture. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight.
  • The next day, preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a muffin tin or line with papers and coat the papers with nonstick spray.
  • Fill each cup two-thirds full with batter. Bake the muffins until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 23 to 26 minutes for regular-sized muffins (35 to 40 minutes for jumbo muffins).
  • Remove from oven and allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn them out onto a rack to finish cooling, or serve warm, as desired.

Notes

  • The batter can be mixed up and held in the refrigerator for up to a week, then scooped and baked as needed, so you can have fresh, warm muffins whenever you like!
  • If you prefer, you can make 6 jumbo muffins instead of the 12 regular sized.

Nutrition

Serving: 1muffin, Calories: 242kcal, Carbohydrates: 45g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 17mg, Sodium: 348mg, Potassium: 296mg, Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 16g, Vitamin A: 183IU, Vitamin C: 7mg, Calcium: 78mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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bran muffins sitting on a cooling rack

 

4 from 4 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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2 Comments

  1. Becky J McHughes says:

    This is a great recipe, will use it again.

  2. Yvonne says:

    I was so happy to find this recipe, as I had a box of bran buds in my pantry. I usually make sure I have all the required ingredients before baking, this time I didn’t.
    Thank you for creating a very delicious moist muffin. With respect to your ingenious recipe, may I offer my substitutions. I replaced the buttermilk with yogurt. Dates in place of raisins. A little less sugar. Apple juice in place of orange juice. And, I baked them after mixing everything together. I needed to have a muffin like right now. They turned out so good, and this will be my go to recipe from now on, hopefully without the substitutions, although I am thinking blueberries LOL