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Best Ever Bran Muffins

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This bran muffin recipe is THE best one you will ever make. They are moist, packed full of nutrients and taste amazing.

best bran muffin recipe

Best Bran Muffins

Bran Muffins may not be your top pick of muffins to make, but this recipe will change that forever! I have been making these bran muffins for years and they are by far the best tasting bran muffin I have ever tasted. They are moist, buttery, and sweet and hard to stop eating. This recipe makes a lot of batter, and you can keep it in the fridge for up to two weeks and have fresh muffins whenever you want!

Serve these bran muffins with fruit and milk or yogurt for a complete breakfast.  They are also great as snacks.  This recipe makes a lot and so I always freeze them.  Pop one in the microwave for 20-30 seconds and you have a warm and delicious little muffin that tastes as fresh as the day you made it.  

best ever bran muffins

Healthy Bran Muffin Recipe

One of the main ingredients in these muffins is bran. Bran is the outer portion of a grain and it is rich in fiber, vitamins and omega fats. Because bran has so much fiber, these muffins are packed with fiber which can be really helpful for kids who don’t eat very much or are more picky. Most kids don’t get enough fiber everyday, and these muffins are a delicious way to help your kids (and you!) to get more fiber in your diet.

most delicious bran muffins

Ingredients To Make the Best Bran Muffins

  • Bran Cereal – I recommend using wheat bran in this muffin recipe. I have had the most success with the All-Bran brand of cereal. You can find this cereal at most grocery stores.
  • Butter – A lot muffins call for oil, but butter makes these bran muffins taste soooo good.
  • Applesauce – adds moisture, sweetness and soluble fiber to these muffins.
  • Buttermilk – this adds acidity to your muffin batter which helps tenderize gluten and will create a softer muffin.
  • Add-ins – this recipe is delicious as is, but if you want a little extra some of our favorites are:
    • dried apples
    • freeze dried mangos
    • dried apricots
    • blueberries
healthy bran muffin recipe

Tips for Making the Best Bran Muffins Ever

  1. Soften the bran cereal in boiling water and let it sit while you mix the other ingredients.
  2. Mix dry and wet ingredients separately and then gently fold together. This makes your muffins turn out lighter and more fluffy.
  3. If you don’t have buttermilk, make your own by adding 1 tablespoon lemon juice per cup of buttermilk.
  4. If you don’t want to make all the muffins at once, you can leave the batter in your fridge for up to 2 weeks and make fresh bran muffins everyday in a just a few minutes!
  5. These muffins freeze really well. After they are baked, let them cool and then store in an airtight container for up to 3 months. To reheat, microwave for 30 seconds at a time. Enjoy!
fluffy bran muffin recipe

More Favorite Muffin Recipes

  • Sweet Spinach Muffins – these are a fan favorite loaded with spinach and a deliciously sweet flavor.
  • Healthy Morning Glory Muffins – my healthy remake of these classic cafe Morning Glory Muffins are bursting with flavor!
  • Blueberry Oat Muffins – Warm and tender blueberry muffins with hearty oats and the added nutrition of flax seeds all under a sweet and crunchy oat topping.
  • Breakfast Egg Cups – delicious make-ahead breakfast packed full of protein, veggies and is totally customizable! 
  • Fruit and Veggie Muffins {For Picky Eaters} – moist, fluffy muffins are packed with fruits and veggies and are loved by toddlers, kids and even adults! 
  • Healthy Apple Muffins – whole wheat flour, coconut oil, applesauce and maple syrup these Healthy Apple Muffins will be your new favorite apple recipe
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3.8 from 171 votes

Best Bran Muffins

This bran muffin recipe is THE best one you will ever make. They are moist, packed full of nutrients and taste amazing.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Servings: 48 mini muffins
Calories: 68kcal

Ingredients

Bran Mixture

  • 1 cup water
  • 2 cups All-Bran cereal

Wet Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  • Boil 1 cup of water. Mix boiling water and 2 cups All Bran cereal together in a bowl.  Set aside.
  • In a medium bowl, mix together butter, sugar, applesauce and eggs, and buttermilk.
  • In a separate large bowl, whisk together baking soda, flours, and salt.
  • Fold wet and dry ingredients together and also All-Bran and water mixture.
  • Lastly, add 1 cup of dry All Bran cereal.  Gently fold everything together.
  • Grease a mini-muffin or regular muffin tin and fill each tin 3/4 of the way full of batter.
  • Bake for 10-12 minutes for mini muffins and 14-15 minutes for regular size muffins or until the muffins bounce back.

Nutrition

Calories: 68kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 11mg | Sodium: 113mg | Potassium: 64mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 125IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 29mg | Iron: 1mg
Keyword : bran, bran muffins

www.superhealthykids.com

Natalie Monson

I'm a registered dietitian, mom of 4, avid lover of food and strong promoter of healthy habits. Here you will find lots of delicious recipes full of fruits and veggies, tips for getting your kids to eat better and become intuitive eaters and lots of resources for feeding your family.

Learn More about Natalie

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107 Comments

I will definitely have to try these, I have a 3 year old daughter that sounds like Sophie. She is constantly on the move and does not like to sit and eat a large portion. I have been trying to set out lots of healthy snacks during the day and evening so I love your ideas.

You could try it, but the consistency will likely not be the same. The FiberOne cereal I have had is more solid – less mushy – if you will. I think it would make your muffins more gummy. The All Bran dissolves really well and makes the consistency of the muffin more smooth. If you try it, let me know how it turns out!

Why not use bran flakes?

I’m surprised you use a microwave.
Microwaves are bad, we use a toaster oven to heat things up….

Love it, my kids eat those for lunch too:-) but because I live in Utah i have to live them in the oven 7 more minutes.

Thank you! I did the first batch at 350 and it just took twice as long but they still came out great! Love your recipes. The bean soup is on the menu for this week and I’m making the chicken nuggets right now!

Hi Sian,
there is definitely nothing wrong with your toddler eating these! They will be filling enough, so over-eating usually isn’t an issue.
Good luck!

Thanks! will be trying them asap as I love any ideas to get some healthy snacks into my son to fill the gaps.

I also have a superb recipe for a moist , sweet banana loaf that uses no sugar and contains nuts, fruit and whole grain – more than happy to share if your interested 🙂

How do you think these would turn out if you crushed the All Bran? My kids have issues with “chunky” stuff!

The All Bran actually almost ‘melts’ into the batter. It really isn’t chunky at all. If you are worried about it, then add all of the All-Bran together in step 2 instead of leaving some of it out to add at the end. The boiling water almost dissolves it into a paste. Sounds gross – ha. But these muffins are SO good!

Please clarify… The recipe calls for 2 cups of All Bran, which you mix with water in step 2. Then in step 7, you say to add 1 cup of All Bran. Is that an additional 1 cup (3 cups total)?
Can’t wait to try this!

Yep that is right! If you look at the bottom of the recipe, there is an additional 1 cup of all-bran in the ingredients. The reason you add the other in later is it enhances the texture.

These look lovely – I do have a question. Some of your recipes have a PRINT button that lets me print a tidy copy of the recipe. Some dont. Is there some way to print just the recipe and not the entire post?

Hi Cheryl! It’s true. We’ve cycled through about 5 different blogging platforms since starting this blog, so some of our posts have different formats. Recipes like this one, I just have to highlight the text and choose to print selection only. Hope that helps!

Hi,
I love your recipes and tried quite a few. I will try these over the weekend. I also wanted to know how long they would last in the freezer and do you think I can use the raisin bran cereal to make it?

Thanks!

If they are in an air-tight container they will last up to 3 months. You could try raisin bran cereal, but I think they will have a slightly different flavor and definitely a different texture.

Hello just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The words in your post seem to be
running off the screen in Safari. I’m not sure if this is a formatting issue or something to do with internet browser compatibility but I thought I’d post to
let you know. The design and style look great though!
Hope you get the problem solved soon. Thanks

These sound perfect for my 2 year old! I just have a question, it might be a silly one. I live in Australia so apple sauce isn’t a common ingredient here, I’ve never bought it before. Could I make apple sauce simply by stewing some apples and blending them to use in this recipe? Or would that not work and I need to track some down in the supermarket? Thanks 🙂

My 10 month old daughter loves her finger food and I’m thinking of making these for her but would I be able to omit the sugar and applesauce and substitute with mashed bananas?

You can definitely try it! There will definitely be a change in the texture and flavor of the original recipe, but they would probably still be delicious! And your daughter will never know the difference 🙂

I am a little weary to add a full cup of sugar into the mix, is there possibly a healthier alternative to the sugar that could still give them a delicious taste? Honey maybe?
Thanks!

If you replace with honey, just turn the temp down by about 25 degrees, as honey browns faster than regular sugar. You can also cut the sugar in half and see how your family likes it!

can you give me a gluten free version of this recipe? I’m new into the world of being gluten free and all my “experiments” with gf options have been a disaster so far 🙁

We have a gluten free category, and also a gluten free meal plan that may be a good option for you. I’m not sure tweaking this recipe to be gluten free would turn out very good.

You can substitute honey, but it will make your muffin a little darker and give it a different flavor. Yes you can substitute brown sugar without really any difference except a slight flavor change.

Hi Natalie, I’m allergic to apples so what could I replace the applesauce with? I have many kids in the school run so these will be great to grab and go xx

Hi, how much salt should we use? The ingredient list only states “1/2.” Is that half a tablespoon, teaspoon or cup? Thanks!

Great recipe, thank you! I used All Bran Buds as that’s all I had on hand, and they turned out great. Added a bit of banana too.
I’m sure this will help keep things moving for my 2 year old!

These are amazing!! Thanks for sharing this! My whole family loves them! They are so yummy hot out of the oven with melted butter on top. Mmmmm….

No recipe with 1 CUP SUGAR is healthy. Sugar is addictive and bad for the gut. Especially children shouldn’t have ANY in their diet. Can’t you use dates/rasins paste? You just can’t advertise it as “healthy breakfast choice”!!!!

We are a very moderate site and believe that small amounts of sugar in children’s diets are ok. We try to be very balanced in our approach with children. Our goal is to get kids to develop healthy habits by focusing on the things they should be eating, rather than focusing on what they should not be eating. This recipe makes A LOT of muffins and so the amount in each muffin is very small.

I cut down the sugar by half. I felt like one cup was too much. They turned out great. And I added a handful of raisins too.
Thank you!

I absolutely love this recipe!!! I add fruit to the recipe and it really adds a lot to these awesome muffins!

I was so happy to see the nutritional value with it as well. Would you be able to tell me what the saturated fat amount is please?

These muffins look delicious! This is not in any way a criticism (I’m just curious), but you highlight the high amount of fiber in these muffins, but when I looked at the nutritional facts, it states that it has only 1g of fiber per serving. This doesn’t sound like much. Am I missing something?

This recipe looks lovely and I was just wondering if there is anything you could substitute for the applesauce because I want to make it even healthier

5 stars
Surprisingly good! I added a few chocolate chips to add a little bit of sweetness. Husband and kids loved them!

5 stars
I substituted 3/4 cup of maple syrup for the 1 cup sugar and I added raisins. Don’t be put off by the amount of sugar. This recipe makes a whopping 4 pans of mini muffins. Considering most recipes half this size call for the same amount of sugar, it’s very reasonable. I do not like an overly sweet muffin and I found these to be perfect. They were a big hit with my toddler too! Thanks for the great recipe!

The ingredients call for 5/2 tsp baking soda and 3/2 cup whole wheat flour. What are the correct amounts for these 2 ingredients? I am going to make these for my grandson and I need to make sure I have the correct measurements.
Thanks!!

Hi Lisa, sorry for the confusion! We made some big updates to our site over the weekend and it caused some technical issues with our recipes. Everything should be patched up now and the recipe amounts should look normal. Thanks for your patience!

Yummy. For me made 24 muffins as I like to fill the muffin tins almost to the top. Since my grandson is constipated often, I replaced that cup of water with warm prune juice. I think it worked out well!

Hi Melanie! Yes, you can use all purpose flour in these muffins if you like. We prefer the whole wheat flour because it adds a lot of fiber and nutrients to the muffins. But either will work.

5 stars
I made these but tweaked them a bit . 🙂
I replaced the flour with half coconut flour & half almond flour.
I replaced half the sugar with powdered stevia & last but not least I added 3/4 chocolate chips & chopped pecans.

5 stars
Wow!!!
Forget the kids , I’m keeping this recipe for myself …. suffering from chronic acid reflux I can’t get to eat many foods
This is absolutely light and delicious !!!! Thank you a million times super healthy kids ?

I used oat bran instead of all bran, maple sugar instead of sugar, and almond flour instead of all-purpose flour. They were very tasty and I’ll be making them regularly for my toddler (and me).

Hi Michele, I like to store them in the fridge and use them up within about four days. They also freeze great, if you’re interested in longer-term storage. Just toss them into a zip-top freezer bag.

Hi Ronel, yes! That’s correct. The 2 cups of All Bran get mixed with water for the batter, and the 1-cup portion gets stirred in dry. Let me know if you still have questions.

5 stars
Love your site. This recipe is another win!
Can you tell me if the nutrition facts are for a full size muffin or for a mini muffin? Thanks!

I’m so glad you like it – this is definitely one of my favorite muffin recipes! The nutrition info is for a mini muffin.

5 stars
I have been making this recipe for YEARS! Starting when my teenagers were pretty young (and as of yet not turned off by the idea of bran). I’m all about fiber – gotta keep the colon healthy – and as little sugar, white flour & butter as possible. The recipe is a win-win! TY!

Hi there,
I have Bob’s Red Mill Wheat Bran. Would you recommend trying this recipe with that? Would i skip the boiling water step?

We still recommend soaking the wheat bran- but you could use 1 cup of the buttermilk for that. 🙂