A fellow food blogger, Ashley from Ashley’s Cooking Adventures, is expecting a baby next month! I was excited to join in a virtual baby shower for her and post a brunch recipe, but I unfortunately I was sick all last week and wasn’t able to prepare anything. This post is dedicated to her, and what better day than Mother’s Day to dedicate a post to a mother-to-be. I remember the Mother’s Day when I was pregnant with my first child. I was visiting my parents on Vancouver Island so I could spend the day with my own mother. On the way back home, I saw they were giving chocolates to all the mothers as we boarded the ferry and I was surprised when the ticket agent gave one to me. “You’re a mother too,” she said to me with a smile. A mother! It seemed like such a foreign term to me. I hadn’t really thought of myself as a mother yet, but the more I thought about it the more I realized that it was true. Even though I hadn’t yet met the little baby growing inside me, I already worried incessantly about him and would do anything to protect him from harm. Here I am 6 years later with two kids and I essentially feel the same as I did then. I still worry and I’m still fiercely protective of my little ones, and I’m sure I’ll continue to be even when they aren’t so little anymore.
Mother’s Day 2006- My Mom and Me, 5 months pregnant with Cole. |
Now how does this relate to bran muffins? It doesn’t really. I can’t think of a good segue for that one, except to say that muffins in general have been a popular item in my household since having children. I’ve baked them for visitors who came to see the new baby, I’ve baked them for myself when I was too busy nursing babies or chasing toddlers to sit for a proper meal, I’ve baked them for countless playdates and get-togethers with other moms, and I still bake them all the time for snacks and school lunches. They are the perfect food for moms with busy families. These particular muffins are my current favourites. One of the ladies at our daycare gave me the recipe. She baked them with the kids and they apparently loved them. I gave them a try and I must say that even though I usually don’t love bran muffins that much, these are so moist and delicious. Best of all, they’re a healthy snack that the kids will actually eat!
The Best Bran Muffins
2 cups all-bran cereal
2/3 cup boiling water
1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 tbsp ground flax seed
1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries
2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup fancy molasses
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk
Preheat oven to 425F. Grease or line a 12-cup muffin tin.
In a large bowl, pour boiling water over bran cereal. Let sit until cooled.
In another bowl, combine flour, flax, raisins, baking soda and salt.
In a measuring cup, whisk together oil, molasses, and egg with a fork. Add to cooled cereal along with buttermilk. Mix well, then add to dry ingredients, stirring until just combined.
Pour batter evenly into each muffin cup and bake for 15 minutes.
*Recipe can be doubled or tripled, and batter refrigerated for later use.
Happy Mother’s Day to Ashley and all the mothers out there who take such good care of their kids. I hope you all had a wonderful day today. My day was very lovely; Tony actually made dinner all by himself tonight, so that was definitely the highlight of my day! What was your favourite part of Mother’s Day this year?