Oatmeal Prune Muffins

Almost 30 years ago, I bought a cookbook specializing in muffins to send to my daughter-in-law in St. Louis for her birthday.  Before it left my hands, I copied down a lot of the recipes to try some day.  I’m just now getting around to this one.

• Servings: 12
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• 1 cup water
• 1-1/2 cups chopped, pitted dried prunes
• 2/3 cup uncooked old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup Canola oil
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/4 tsp. grated orange peel*

*I always keep small containers of orange, lemon and lime peel in the freezer.  Just a few minutes of thawing time will give enough for the small amounts needed in cooking and it tastes like fresh grated peel.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Grease or line with paper or silicone 12 muffin cups.

In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil; remove from heat.  Stir in prunes and oats; let stand 20 minutes.

While mixture is cooling, in a large bowl whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.

Stir oil, beaten eggs, vanilla and orange peel into prune mixture in saucepan.  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients; add prune mixture and stir just to combine.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups; bake @ 400 degrees F for  20 to 25 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in center of one muffin comes out clean.

Remove muffin tin to wire rack.  Cool 5 minutes before removing muffins from cups (I like to remove the silicone cups from the muffin pan right away).

Remove muffins from pan or silicone liners to rack to cool.

Makes 12 muffins

After muffins are cool, store in an airtight container like this 45-year-old Tupperware piece.

Muffins also freeze well.

These muffins are a  very good combination of tasty and healthy.

Oat Bran Sour Cream Muffins

I started out with a recipe from Joy the Baker, one of my favorite food bloggers, but made quite a few changes.  I switched out some of the high fat items and used oat bran rather than wheat bran.  Please note that this is not bran cereal, but oat bran such as we used to buy in health food stores and now is available in most groceries.  Joy said that her version improved after a couple of days and mine did, too.  Carefully packed on the kitchen counter, they will be delicious up to 5 days.  This is a nice breakfast muffin – not too sweet and full of healthy ingredients.

• Servings: 12
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• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup light sour cream
• 1/4 cup molasses*
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 cup oat bran (not cold bran cereal)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F

Grease/flour 12 muffin cups or insert paper or silicone liners.

In a medium bowl, place the oil, light brown sugar, egg and molasses.

*I used some pure natural cane molasses from Amish Country (Holmes County, Ohio) because I like its slight sorghum flavor.  Something like Grandma’s Molasses would also be good.

Whisk these ingredients until smooth.  Whisk in the baking soda and salt.  Stir in the oat bran and flour just until dry ingredients are absorbed.  Gently stir in the raisins and nuts.

Divide batter between 12 muffin cups.  Bake @ 400 degrees F for approximately 15 minutes – until tops are golden brown and a tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Remove pan to rack to cool.  I like the silicone liners now that I’ve discovered letting the muffins cool in the liners for 5-10 minutes makes it easy to pop them out of the liners.

Allow muffins to cool completely on a wire rack.  Then store in a tightly covered container for up to 5 days.

Really tasty with a cup of morning coffee.

The next picture has nothing whatsoever to do with oat bran muffins, but I collect vintage linen and scottie items and had to share  this gift from my oldest daughter.  I love the ladies in the background enjoying their card game while poor hubby is coping with feeding the baby – a revolutionary idea back in the 1930-40s.

Favorite Granola

I found this recipe in a library book back in 2001.   I enjoy it as my morning cereal especially when the weather is warm.  It’s very filling and satisfying with some healthy ingredients.

• Servings: 8 cups
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• 3/4 cup honey
• 1/2 cup peanut oil
• 7 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1-1/2 cups wheat bran
• 1/2 cup wheat germ

I use a huge vintage graniteware pan that is about the equivalent of two 9×9″ pans.  Spray pans with non-stick spray.

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

In a small saucepan, heat honey and oil over medium heat for about 4 minutes.

In a large bowl mix oats, wheat bran and wheat germ.  Drizzle the honey/oil mixture over and mix well.

Spread mixture in sprayed pans about 3/4″ thick.

Bake uncovered in 250 degree F oven for one hour, stirring about every 20 minutes.  Note:  Use a pan with sides to avoid having cereal crumbs all over the oven when you stir.

Cool granola, then spoon into one-quart containers.  Refrigerate if not used within 2 weeks.

Makes approximately two quarts of granola (8 cups).

I like to add some walnuts and dried fruit with each serving along with some good cold milk.