The first thing you should know is that as the recipe title implies, this amazing batter can be stored in your refrigerator for up to six weeks. The second thing you should know is that the recipe below is for half an original batch. So, feel free to double this recipe, because we already know it will double beautifully. But, at this time in our lives, unless I am planning to feed 60 people, half the original recipe is still a lot for 2 senior citizens to consume, even if it is over a six-week period! (My story and I’m sticking to it!)

But the most important thing you should know is that this recipe has been around for decades because it produces absolutely delicious muffins. And bran is good for most of us because it is a rich source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals. 

But no, this is not the healthiest bran muffin recipe out there. But I challenge you to find a better tasting bran muffin recipe.

So, if you want to ramp up your breakfast enjoyment, I suggest you add muffins to your list of breakfast favorites. And this muffin recipe is a good one to start with. Easy to build, and even easier to eat.

Well, that’s it for today. Andy’s sister and her husband are coming for breakfast tomorrow morning. And since I have been hungry for maple bars for weeks now, I finally have the excuse to bake up a batch. That’s right. My recipe – Quick and Easy Baked Maple Bars, are baked rather than deep fat fried. And believe it or not, they are even yummier than the ones you get from a bakery.  

So, I will build the dough today and let it sit in my fridge overnight and bake it off just before they arrive. Then slather the bars with maple frosting a few minutes before they are to be served. Yum.

For how to build yeast dough one day, and bake it off the next, read my simple technique below.

So, farewell for now. Keep smiling. Be strong. And as always, peace and love from our home to yours.

3 c. bran cereal (I use Kellog All-Bran Buds)

1 c. boiling water

½ c. vegetable oil

1½ c. granulated sugar

2 lg. eggs

2 c. buttermilk 

2½ c. unbleached all-purpose flour, fluffed

2½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. kosher salt

In a large mixing bowl, pour the boiling water over the bran buds and let the mixture sit for 5 minutes or more.

In a separate bowl, whisk the vegetable oil, granulated sugar, eggs, and buttermilk together.

In yet another bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together.

Using a large wooden or metal spoon, stir the liquid mixture (veggie oil etc.) into the moistened bran until well combined.

Then add the flour mixture, stirring just until combined, being careful not to overmix.

Cover the batter and refrigerate. The batter is best if chilled for at least six hours before the first batch is baked.

To bake, pre-heat your oven to 400-degrees. Grease a muffin tin or line it with paper liners. (I use parchment paper liners. See my recipe for Streusel Topped Blueberry Breakfast Muffins for why.)

Fill the muffin cups about two-thirds full. (Batter should still be cold when you fill the paper liners.) (For filling the paper liners, I use a large ice-cream scoop).

Then bake in the pre-heated oven for 15–20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Remove from oven and allow the muffins to cool before serving. 

This recipe yields about 2½ dozen regular sized muffins.

For 2-day yeast bread:

1. After building the dough, cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise for about 20 to 30 minutes on the counter before sticking it in the fridge. Make sure your mixing bowl gives plenty of room for the dough to expand.
2. The next day, before shaping the dough, allow your dough to regain some warmth on the counter for 40 to 60 minutes and become slightly puffy before shaping it.
3. Then follow the original recipe for the second rise.

So, this recipe is especially for our dear friend Tim C. I served these on a recent trailer trip, and after biting into one Tim indicated that he wanted the recipe. So, I thought, while I was providing him with the recipe, I might as well share it with the world. (Like I wouldn’t do that anyway. But that’s not the point!) I want Tim to feel special, because he is special.

Now, the first thing you should know is that you don’t need a mixer for the muffin part. However, if you are as impatient as I am in mixing cold butter into a flour mixture, using a small food processor is the best way to easily incorporate cold butter into the flour mixture for the streusel topping. So, if truth be told, this recipe is not particularly quick and easy to prepare. But it is definitely worth the effort. And yes of course you can make just the muffin part and forget about the streusel topping. But why would you do that? If you only want a healthy muffin made from sawdust and nary an unhealthy ingredient, this is not the recipe for you. So, go the whole mile and add the topping. Believe me, you will not regret ignoring the angel on your right shoulder for the shear joy of following the little devil on your left shoulder. Now, I’m not suggesting that you ignore your good angel, in fact, most times your angel is by far the better choice. But once in a while, especially when it applies to a treat, we should all cave in and give the little devil his just desserts. (Sorry, I just couldn’t help myself!)

Anyway, just make these muffins. They truly are amazing.

Well, that’s it for now. I just finished posting my last travel report and find myself with absolutely no “must work my tail off” missions in the next week or so. So, I’m going to take it easy and finish reading, for the second time, Louise Penny’s wonderful mystery series starring Chief Inspector Gamache. If you love mystery series as much as I do, and haven’t read these books, you are missing out on not only a wonderful read but also a lesson on how to be a kind, caring, and responsible individual.

From Louise Penny’s “letter” she includes at the beginning of each book, the following has helped me work towards being a better person.

“No one quite appreciates, and recognizes, the light like those who’ve lived in darkness. That awareness is what I try to bring to my books. The duality of our lives. The power of perception. The staggering weight of despair, and the amazement when it is lifted.

The gap between how we appear and how we really feel.

Those are foundations of the Gamache books”

And as always, peace and love to all.         

For the blueberry muffins:

2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour, fluffed

¾ c. granulated sugar

¼ c. brown sugar, packed

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. kosher salt

2 lg. eggs

½ c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

½ c. whole milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 c. (1 pint) fresh blueberries (cut in half if the blueberries are large)

Pre-heat oven to 400-degrees. Prepare a muffin pan with cupcake liners*.

In a mixing bowl, whisk the flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt together.

In another bowl, whisk the eggs until smooth. Add the melted butter, milk, and vanilla. Whisk until combined. Stir the egg mixture into the flour mixture and stir until just combined. (The dough will be lumpy.) Carefully fold in the blueberries.

Fill the prepared muffin cups with batter. Top each muffin with streusel topping, about 1 tablespoon each. (See recipe below.)

Bake the muffins until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with just a few crumbs attached, about 18 to 22 minutes.

Remove from oven and cool on a rack for several minutes before removing from pan. Cool completely and store the muffins in an airtight container. Or freeze them for later use. When ready to eat, nuke just until warm.

For the streusel topping:

¼ c. unbleached all-purpose flour, fluffed

2 T. brown sugar, packed

2 T. granulated sugar

¼ tsp. ground cinnamon

pinch kosher salt

2 T. (¼ stick) cold unsalted butter, cut in 8 pieces

Blend the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt in your food processor. Add the cold butter and pulse until coarse crumbs form. (And of course, you can use a fork or grate the butter if you don’t happen to want to use your food processor. But I’m lazy and I use my small food processor which makes life so much easier.)

*I use muffin and cupcake liners made of parchment paper. I know, they aren’t elegant, but muffins and cupcakes don’t stick to the paper. Frankly, I’m more interested in getting every crumb than pretty paper that sticks to whatever I’m about to put in my mouth!  

I am always looking for new quick bread recipes to take along on trailer trips or when we leave for a few days to visit family, friends, or stay in a condo on the ocean. I enjoy going out for breakfast occasionally, but much prefer to save my eating out experiences to lunches on the road or dinners where I can have a drink and leisurely enjoy my evening meal. Breakfast out simply does not carry the same cachet as having dinner at a restaurant. And frankly, except for the hashbrown potatoes, I can whip up breakfasts faster in our trailer or condo than getting in our truck and driving into whatever town may be close by. And of course, I always like to try new recipes.

For my birthday celebration I made Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe on site) because I truly love a good carrot cake. So, when getting ready to go to a family reunion in Oregon a couple of weeks ago, I decided to continue the “carrot cake” theme and made this bread to take along. And it was well received. Moist and tender with a lovely bit of crunch from the pecans and streusel topping.

So, if you too love carrot cake but feel guilty when you have a big old piece of carrot cake with cream cheese frosting for breakfast, then give this “bread” recipe a try instead. And yes, you might miss the cream cheese frosting. But I promise the streusel topping will make everything OK.

Well, it’s overcast here in Western Washington. And unfortunately, lightning storms are predicted for the Cascade Mountains. Which is always a problem. We already have a terrible wildfire burning close to the village of Stehekin, at the North end of Lake Chelan, in the heart of the North Cascades. And any lightning strike that hits land, especially in summer, is a fire just waiting to happen.

So, wherever you are, please be extra diligent in putting out your campfires, lighting and shutting down your outdoor grills, burning trash, or disposing of your cigarettes, etc. We are all in this together. And natural causes do enough damage without our avoidable assistance.

And sorry for no picture. I was so busy putting things together to take along, I failed to capture this bread on my camera. (Bad Patti!) But next time I make this bread I will rectify my error.

Peace and love to all.    

1¾ c. unbleached all-purpose flour, fluffed

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. fine sea salt

1½ tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground ginger

¼ tsp. ground nutmeg

3 eggs, room temp.

½ c. vegetable oil

⅓ c. sour cream

1 med. apple, peeled and grated

2 c. grated carrot

1 c. light brown sugar packed

1 tsp. vanilla extract

¾ c. finely chopped pecans

Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan or 2 7-inch loaf pans. Line the bottom(s) with parchment paper.

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and ground nutmeg in a medium bowl.  In a large bowl, stir together the eggs, vegetable oil, sour cream, grated apple, grated carrot, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and chopped pecans.

Stir the flour mixture into the carrot mixture just until combined.  Pour into prepared pan(s). Top with streusel mixture.

Bake a 9×5-inch pan in a pre-heated 350-degree oven for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Bake 2 7-inch loaf pans for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Do not overbake. Remove from oven and cool the bread in the pan on a wire rack for 5-7 minutes before removing from pan. (Also remove the parchment paper at this time.)

Streusel:

2 T. melted unsalted butter

½ c. brown sugar, packed

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

½ c. unbleached all-purpose flour

½ c. finely chopped pecans

Blend the butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Add the flour and nuts, mix until crumbly. Place the mixture on top of bread dough and bake as instructed above.

I’m sure I’ve mentioned my addiction to maple bars somewhere along the line in one of my stream-of-consciousness introductions to a recipe. But if not, let me state unequivocally – I LOVE MAPLE BARS. And have since 4^th grade when right across the street from our hilltop grade school in Bothell, Washington (can’t remember the real name of the school) was a small convenience store that sold among other things, maple bars. (I actually have no idea what other items were sold in the store because I was mainly interested in the maple bars. I do have a vague recollection that there were candy bars and ice cream bars available too. But if there was anything else that didn’t resemble something sweet that a kid could put in their mouth, I’m not at all sure what that would be!) And if I recall correctly, the maple bars were a great whacking 5 cents. So, as often as I could, I availed myself of those scrumptious treats. And I have adored them ever since.

Now don’t get me wrong. I have literally gone years without a maple bar coming anywhere near my mouth. But as I’ve gotten to the stage of life when my remaining years are far less than the exceedingly large number of years I’ve already experienced, I’ve come to the conclusion that denying myself the pleasure of a maple bar now and then is ridiculous. Thus, my decision to learn to build my own maple bars in the privacy of my own kitchen!

The first thing I wanted to perfect was the dough for a fabulous donut like base for the frosting. And then of course, figure out how to make the maple frosting just like it’s made in bakeries. And believe me, I’ve tried making maple frosting several times throughout the years. And although the previous tries were OK, they were not what my 9-year-old mouth remembered. Until today, that is!  

And truly I don’t remember where I originally found the bones for the frosting recipe. But I messed with the original recipe a bit, and by golly, the kid buried deep within me, was doing cartwheels right in our living room after the first bite. OK, mental cartwheels, but if I were still 9 years old, it would be the real thing!

So, if you too or someone you love has a maple bar addiction, let me introduce you to this quick and easy recipe. The dough is baked not deep fried, so there is a bit of redemption in that regard. However, the frosting is sinfully sweet and has absolutely no healthy redeeming qualities. It is just pure heaven. And definitely should be classified as a guilty pleasure.

Well, that’s it for today. It’s still off and on drizzling outside so I can’t work off any of the calories I took in while savoring today’s maple bar. But hopefully tomorrow I will be able to do more hacking and slashing of shrubs that have become an impediment to anyone wanting to get to our front door or onto our deck. Mainly because my plan is to have another maple bar tomorrow morning along with my over easy egg.

And as always, peace and love to all.  

¾ c. whole milk

3 T. unsalted butter

2 T. granulated sugar  

1 tsp. kosher salt

2 T. warm water  

1 pkg. or 1 scant T. instant dry yeast  

1 lg. egg

2½ c. unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more as required

Scald the milk in a small saucepan. Remove from heat and add the butter, granulated sugar, and salt. Stir together and cool to just slightly warm.

In the bowl of your stand mixer add the yeast to the warm water. Add the cooled milk mixture and the egg. Stir together using the dough hook.

Add the flour and knead until the dough is soft and elastic. (You will probably need a good bit more flour. You want the dough to pull away from the sides of the mixing bowl, but still leave a bit stuck to the very bottom of the mixing bowl. The dough will be soft to the touch but not at all tacky. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour.

Punch down and pat out into a 1″ thick square on a floured surface.

Cut into 8-10 rectangles and let rise again covered for about 30 minutes on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

Bake in a pre-heated 425-degree oven for 7-8 minutes or until light golden brown. Do not overbake.

Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before spreading with the Maple Frosting. Then cool the frosted bars completely before eating or storing in your fridge or freezer.

Please note: I start making the frosting as soon as the bars are out of the oven. If you prepare the frosting too far ahead of time, it will be too hard to spread nicely and evenly on the cooling bars.

MAPLE FROSTING

¼ c. unsalted butter

½ c. brown sugar, packed

3 T. whole milk

1 T. corn syrup

2 tsp. good maple extract

2 c.  powdered sugar

In a small saucepan, melt the butter, then whisk in the brown sugar. When the brown sugar starts to dissolve whisk in the milk and simmer for about 3 minutes over medium heat, stirring continuously until the brown sugar is completely dissolved.

Remove from heat and whisk in the corn syrup and maple extract. Then whisk in the powdered sugar until the frosting is smooth and free of powdered sugar lumps.

Using a large spoon, ladle frosting onto each warm bar.

Warning: Work quickly or the frosting will start to set up before you get to the last bar. (Take my word for this!)

Please note: This makes a lot of frosting. You may not need all of it. If so, refrigerate the remaining frosting and see what kind of inventive use you can come up with for the rest.