How to Make Your Mother's Muffins--13 Ways

If you grew up with your mother or grandmother making wonderful refrigerator muffins, welcome home.  These are those muffins, but they're easier and quicker than ever with a wonderful bran muffin mix.

Plus we have instructions for thirteen varieties that you can quickly make--like cranberry orange and banana nut.  Plus you'll get more ideas, suggestions from our customers.

And they're no longer refrigerator muffins. only don't store the batter in the refrigerator. Bake em, freeze em. nuke 'em. Next week's muffins are as good as this week's.

Great muffins! Convenient. Your family will love them.

Thirteen ways to make bran muffins your family will love!

Make only the muffins you love! Start with a loveable muffin, a muffin that's delicious, good for you, and will rise up and look good.

Add water and look what you can make!

1. To make Banana Bran Muffins: Replace the water with 3 cups of mashed bananas, 2 teaspoons of banana flavor, and 1 1/2 tablespoons of water.

2. To make Banana Nut Muffins: Make as above and add 3/4 cup chopped walnuts.

3. To make Cranberry Nut Muffins: Add 3/4 cup dried cranberries plus 3/4 cup nuts.

4. To make Raisin Bran Muffins: Add one cup of golden or dark raisins.

5. To make Date Nut Muffins: Add 3/4 cup dried date pieces plus 3/4 cup nuts.

6. To make Raisin Nut Muffins: Add one cup of raisins plus 3/4 cup nuts.

7. To make Cranberry Orange Muffins: Add 1 cup dried cranberries plus two tablespoons of fresh orange zest.

8. To make Cinnamon Chip Muffins: Add one cup of cinnamon chips plus one teaspoon of your best ground cinnamon.

9. To make Chocolate Chip Muffins: Add one cup of chocolate chips plus one teaspoon of vanilla extract.

10. To make Pina Colada Muffins: Add 3/4 cup dry shredded coconut, 3/4 cup well-drained pineapple chunks, and one teaspoon butter rum flavor.

11. To make Ginger Pear Muffins: Add one cup of dried pears plus one teaspoon of ground ginger.

12. To make Caramel Pear Muffins: Add one cup of dried pears and two teaspoons of caramel flavor.

13. To make Candied Ginger Muffins: Add one cup of candied ginger pieces.

You get the idea. Add similar quantities of your favorite "add-ins," one cup of a single ingredient or 1 1/2 cup of a combination. For wet ingredients like grated apples, carrots, or zucchini, you'll have to experiment, but it will be something similar to the banana muffins above.

We have tried dried cranberries, walnuts, cinnamon chips, and candied ginger, one cup each time. The candied ginger was excellent, but it does give them some "pop." Next up is dried apricots. We have a wonderful apricot flavor. I'll add a teaspoon or two of that.

As we developed these 13 recipe ideas, we made dozens upon dozens of muffins. What did we do with this mountain of muffins?  We put them in plastic bags and frozen them. Six months later, I was still raiding the freezer and pulling a couple muffins out or grabbing a bag of a dozen and putting them in the camper to take with as we explored the mountains of the West.

We enjoyed every one of those muffins.

Dennis Weaver

17 Tips and Suggestions from Our Customers

• "I prefer to make 6 jumbo-sized muffins instead of 12 smaller muffins, and they bake all the way through, unlike some other mixes."--Chris Earls
• "Tons of raisins. I added chopped walnuts, and that will be my go-to breakfast."  Judy M 
• "I decrease the water and add applesauce and cinnamon. My hubby's favorite."  
  Deborah B 
• "I make mini loaves of the Cinnamon Raisin Bran mix, so my husband has one nearly every day."  Debra E
• "I like the idea that you can make only 6 at a time instead of a dozen."  Virginia Moeller
• "Try bread pudding!"  Skip Willis (I assume Skip is tearing his leftover muffins into chunks and using them in place of bread.)
• "Love these!! I added diced apples to mine and reduced the water by 1/3 cup. Came out perfect!"  Amy Castelletti
• "I make a batch and put them in my freezer for those mornings I'm running late." Sherry
• I make these twice a week, sometimes with raisins, sometimes with dried cranberries. Connie Sneed
• "Love this product. I add blueberries, raspberries, cinnamon, and mango."  rick leavitt 
• "This is a wonderful mix. I added craisins and pecans, they were delicious."   Frances Billings 
• "These make up with all kinds of adders, apricots, or blueberries, even zucchini."  Cherie ODonnell 
• "Added walnuts and raisins - awesome! (I think shredded carrots would be a great ingredient to add and will try this variation too!),"  KathleenCar 
• "I made the batter and filled the cups up halfway. Then I placed jam in the middle and topped it with the remaining batter."  Cathy S. 

 

 Irving Creek, Medicine Lodge drainage, Idaho, looking toward the continental divide. Photo by Merri Ann Weaver