Mom's Bran Muffins

Red Velvet Cupcake Murder

DO NOT preheat oven yet--this batter bakes better when it's chilled.

## Ingredients

* 1 cup water
* 1 cup raisins ***(I used golden raisins)***
* 2 cups bran flakes ***(you'll use 4 cups in all)\****
* 1 cup brown sugar ***(pack it down when you measure it)***
* 1/2 ***(1 stick, 8 ounces, 1/4 pound)*** salted butter, softened
* 3 large eggs
* 2 teaspoons baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon cinnamon
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 3 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour ***(pack it down when you measure it)***
* 2 cups buttermilk ***(I've used whipping cream when I didn't have buttermilk on hand and it worked just fine)***
* 2 cups quick cooking oatmeal ***(I used Quaker Quick 1-Minute)***
* 2 cups bran flakes ***(this completes the 4 cup total)\****

## Directions

* Measure out the cup of water and bring it to a boil. You can do this in the microwave ***(1 minute on HIGH in a microwave-safe container is hot enough for this recipe),*** or on the stovetop in a saucepan.
* While you're waiting for the water to boil, measure out a cup of raisins and put them in the bottom of a medium-size mixing bowl.
* Measure 2 cups of bran flakes and put them on top of the raisins.
* When the water has heated, pour it over the bran flakes and raisins in the bowl and stir it around a bit. Try to keep those raisins in the bottom where they'll be covered by the hot water. They need to plump up a bit.
* Set the mixture aside on the counter to cool while you mix up the muffin batter.

**Hannah's 1st Note: This is so much easier with an electric mixer.**

* Measure out the cup of brown sugar, packing it down in the cup when you measure it. Place the brown sugar in the bottom of a larger mixing bowl. ***(This will be your work bowl.)***
* Add the softened butter. ***(The butter should be at room temperature unless, of course, you're working in a drafty kitchen in the middle of a cold Minnesota winter. In that case, you'll have to soften it a bit more!)***
* Mix the brown sugar and butter together thoroughly.
* Add the eggs, one by one, beating after each addition.
* Mix in the baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla extract.
* Feel the sides of the bowl you set aside with the bran flakes and raisin mixture. If it's not so hot it'll cook the eggs, add it to your work bowl now. Mix it in thoroughly.
* Measure out the flour, packing it down in the cup when you measure it.
* Get out the 2 cups of buttermilk ***(or whipping cream if you used that)***.
* Add about a third of the flour to your bowl and mix that in.
* Add about a third of the buttermilk to your bowl and mix that in.
* Add half of the flour you have left and mix it in.
* Now add about half of the buttermilk you have left and mix that in.
* Add the rest of the flour. Mix well.
* Add the rest of the buttermilk. Mix well.

***Hannah's 2nd Note: You may have to mix in the final 2 ingredients by hand, especially if your bowl is getting too full for  your mixer.***

* Measure the 2 cups of quick-cooking oatmeal and mix that in.
* Measure the final 2 cups of bran flakes and mix them in.
* Give the bowl a final stir and cover it with plastic wrap. Refrigerate your batter for at least 2 hours before you bake Mom's Bran Muffins. ***(Overnight is fine, too. It's even preferable. Everyone like a warm muffin for breakfast.***
* When you want to bake, preheat the oven to 375 F degrees, rack in the middle position.
* While your oven is heating to the proper temperature, prepare your muffin pans.
* You can either spray your muffin cups with Pam ***(or another nonstick cooking spray)*** or line them with cupcake papers. Both methods work just fine.
* These muffins don't rise very much so fill your muffin cups 3/4 ***(three-quarters)*** full.

**Hannah's 3rd Note: Lisa and I use a 2-Tablespoon scooper to fill our muffin cups down at The Cookie Jar. It's neater than trying to spoon muffin batter into the cups.**

* Bake you muffins at 375 degrees F. for 20 minutes.

**Hannah's 4th Note: You can bake these muffins one pan at a time if you like. As long as you keep the muffin batter tightly covered in the refrigerator, it will be fine for up to 6 weeks (that's right, SIX whole weeks!)**

* Cool your muffins in the muffin pan for at least 20 minutes. Just set the whole pan on a wire rack or on a cold stove burner. At the end of that time, you can take them out of the muffin cups and let them cool completely on a wire rack. They're delicious warm, or cold.

**Hannah's 5th Note: If you'd rather make jumbo muffins, bake those for 30 minutes at 375 degrees F.**

* ***A Word of Caution: Everyone says that bran muffins are good for digestive health. This appears to be true because if you eat too many of these for breakfast, you'll be spending a lot of time in the little room with the porcelain fixtures!***