banana bran and apricot muffins

It's Sunday morning and I have the house to myself while the boys are at their swimming lessons with Daddy. I enjoy a cup of coffee, a bowl of steel cut oats, the silence (bliss!) then I roll up my sleeves for a week's worth of baking. First up! Muffins...

One of my favourite cookbook authors is Rose Reisman. She has a knack for creating delicious meals and baked goods that are not only mouth watering, but nutritious and good for you. I continuously use two of her cookbooks, The Complete Light Kitchen and Family Favourites, and I have never been dissappointed.

I have my favourite muffin recipes that I make time after time, but I am also an adventurer when it comes to baking. I love tweaking recipes and making them my own and this recipe is a great example of that.  Here I have taken Rose's Bran, Banana and Raisin muffins and changed a few things. A little more flour, an addition of brown sugar and a substitution of dried apricots for raisins. The end result is a moist, deep flavoured muffin with a chewy top, which my kids really love.

Banana Bran and Apricot Muffins
Prep Time: 15 minutes/Total Time: 45 minutes. Makes 12 muffins.
Adapted from Rose Reisman's recipe from The Complete Light Kitchen.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 tablespoons fancy molasses
1 large egg
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 large ripe banana, mashed well (to yield 1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup low fat plain yogurt
1/3 cup buttermilk (or skim milk)
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots (I use scissors to "chop"...much easier!)
1/2 cup wheat bran
*3/4 cup all-purpose flour
*1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch salt

* make sure you measure correctly by spooning the flour into your measuring cup
 
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line muffin tin with 12 paper liners.
 
In a large bowl, combine oil, molasses, egg, sugars, banana, vanilla, yogurt, buttermilk and apricots. Mix well. Set aside.
 
In  medium bowl, combine wheat bran, flours, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon untl just combined. Do not over mux.

Spoon into muffin cups until almost full. Make sure to scoop from the bottom of the bowl so each muffin gets a good amount of apricots.

Bake 20 - 25 muffins until tops are firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the ceter of a muffin comes out clean. Enjoy!