"M" Muffins

   Boy, have I got a recipe for you! I love these little babies, packed as they are with incredibly healthy ingredients and great taste, too. Of course, I will allow the possibility that they may be an acquired taste. "Can't taste any sugar in them,"says my other half. "Their taste is totally noncommittal" grumbles he, but I beg to differ with him. You might, too, but you'll never know until you try. The recipe makes two dozen muffins, so although they are a little more work to prepare, one session in the kitchen gives you more for your money, since they freeze well. Hubby and I also argue about the name for them. I like "magical" and he prefers "medicinal;" but I think he's saying that with tongue-in-cheek. Anyway, here goes.


Preheat the oven to 375 degrees fahrenheit. Grease 24 muffin cups, or spray with non-stick whatever, or line with paper cups.

*1 & 1/2 c. oat bran * 1 c. wheat bran *1 c. ground flaxseed (yellow or brown, makes no difference) *1 c. whole wheat flour *1 tbsp. baking powder *1/2 tsp salt *1 c. brown sugar (no need to pack, unless you have the same sweet tooth my husband does)

(You can use a coffee grinder to grind the flaxseed.) Measure all the above into a large mixing bowl. Mix together with a fork.

*1 & 1/2 c. raisins, or currants

Use the fork to stir the raisins into the dry mix, being sure to coat them all. Set this aside.

*2 oranges, medium to large, washed, peeled, & seeded if necessary
Put these in a blender or food processor first and whirl them around a little to chop them coarsely.

*1 c buttermilk *1/2 cup oil (I use olive oil, you use your favourite) * 2 eggs *1 tsp baking soda

Add the wet ingredients to the oranges in the blender and mix them well. Pour the orange mix into the dry ingredients. Stir until well mixed, but do not beat.
Divide the batter evenly among the 24 muffin cups. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until they're golden brown and/or a toothpick in the centre comes out clean.
Let them cool 10 minutes in the pan before you take them out, then enjoy some healthy eating.

Because of the high fibre content, these are muffins to drink with -water, juice, tea, something- since their fibre is the soluble type. The flax seeds need to be ground because the whole seeds simply pass through your system undigested. You want to be able to access their alpha-linolenic acid content as well as their lignans. The jury is still out on whether or not these offer protection against certain cancers, but there have been some trials that showed some damn interesting results. There is no deliberation necessary over the benefits of the bran and the wholewheat. If you have left over flaxseed, ground or not, store it in the fridge. You can also sprinkle a tsp over any other breakfast cereal, yoghurt or cottage cheese.