Berry Flax Bran Muffins Recipe

I got a new cookbook a while ago: Quinoa 365: The Everyday Superfood by Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming. And since I'd found quinoa flour at HomeSense I made Berry Flax Bran Muffins from this cookbook.

I'm very happy with them. They're healthy - full of good things - and they're not very sweet, which is my personal preference. It's not that I don't have a sweet tooth but I don't like my sweet things TOO sweet, that's all. These muffins are less like cake and more like something that feels right for breakfast or a healthy snack. They're quite moist after being in an airtight container for most of the day. A bonus was that I was able to use raspberries right from Mom's backyard. Thanks, Mom. I like knowing where my food came from and how it's been treated.

Kevin likes to take a muffin to work every morning. These will be good for him. I'll make these muffins again. And again. With various other fruits.

Raspberry Flax Bran Muffins

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup cooking oil

1/4 cup fancy molasses

2 large eggs, beaten

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup ground flax (I grind my own)

1 and 1/4 cup wheat bran

1/2 cup quinoa flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 and 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 cup frozen raspberries

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. line a 12 cup muffin pan with paper liners (I had enough dough for a whole tray of mini muffins, too.)

2. Blend sugar and oil in a large bowl until smooth. Add molasses and beaten eggs and mix thoroughly. Stir in buttermilk, then the flax and bran. Set the mixture aside.

3. Combine the flours, baking powder, salt and soda in a medium bowl. Gently toss the berries in the dry mixture.

4. Fold the dry mixture into the wet. Combine but don't overmix.

5. Fill muffin liners about 3/4 full.

7. Bake on the centre rack for 16-20 minutes (mine took exactly 16 minutes) or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.

8. Cool for a few minutes before removing from pans and then cool completely on a rack.

These will keep for a week in the fridge or for a month in the freezer. I can assure you that they won't last long in our freezer.