Carrot Bran Muffins

This post may contain affiliate links. See my privacy policy for details.

These Carrot Bran Muffins are what is called a breakfast muffin, I suppose, as they aren’t really sweet and loaded with sugar, but a solid tasty muffin that can be a good start to your day. The raisins and molasses are what give it most of the sweetness, and the spices save it from being too bland. You can substitute the oil with applesauce as well, I made them with oil since it’s only half a cup needed but you can cut a lot of calories and fat if you want to by using applesauce. Also – the applesauce adds a great flavour!

Healthy Carrot Muffins

I know, we all love a good sweet carrot cake muffin, but you can make a healthier carrot muffin that everyone will enjoy.  Now I’m going to be honest, my daughter asked to me bake her up some bran muffins ( which are her favourite, which of course they are because picky eater + plain bran = common sense.)

She took one look at these carrot muffins and said ” MOM! Why would you ruin a perfectly good bran muffin!!!!!???” and of course, didn’t touch them with a ten foot pole.

I can’t win. I told her to go bake her own, because this was an old recipe from 9 years ago that SHE USED TO EAT WHEN SHE WAS 3 AND NOW SHE THINKS SHE’S PICKY. Ok fine, she’s always been picky, but she used to eat these when she was little. That’s the thing about being a food blogger, you are constantly trying out new recipes so I can honestly say that I haven’t made these carrot muffins for a good 5 years now.

Tips & Tricks for Making Carrot Bran Muffins

• I like to boil my raisins for a couple minutes before putting them in, I put them in a large measuring cup with hot water, and boil them for 2 minutes in the microwave to plump them up. They are SO much better in the muffins this way, plump and juicy, not dry little shriveled things.
• You can absolutely skip the raisins in these muffins because some people are weird and don’t like them. It’s fine, I love you raisin haters anyway.
• Applesauce works like a charm to reduce calories and fat.
• Don’t be scared to throw in a tablespoon of ground hemp seeds!

So go ahead and “ruin” good bran muffins by adding in carrots and spices, these are a great lower sugar muffin to start out your day. As we all know muffins are huge calorie, sugar and fat bombs when they are made commercially and this is a nice change. They are currently frozen individually in my fridge freezer for my son, my current favourite child, as he loves to grab one on his way our the door and eat on the bus to school. They freeze well and are a great start to your day!

Happy baking!

Love,

Karlynn

Don’t forget to PIN THIS RECIPE to your Baking board and remember to FOLLOW ME ON PINTEREST!

Learn to cook like the Kitchen Magpie

Flapper Pie and a Blue Prairie Sky

A Modern Baker’s Guide to Old-Fashioned Desserts

Learn More

The Prairie Table

Suppers, Potlucks & Socials: Crowd-Pleasing Recipes to Bring People Together

Learn More

Carrot Bran Muffins

Tasty and healthy carrot bran muffins, a perfect breakfast muffin with lower sugar than most, protein and fiber! A great start to your day! 

5 from 1 vote

Review Save RecipePrint

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cook Time

15 minutes

Course

Breakfast

Cuisine

American

Servings

12

Calories

256

Author

Karlynn Johnston

Keywords

bran muffins

Ingredients

Bran Mixture

• 1 cup of wheat bran
• 1 cup soured milk or buttermilk

Dry Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups of flour
• 1/2 cup of brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp of cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp salt

Wet Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of oil
• 1 tbsp of molasses
• 1 1/2 cups of grated carrots
• 1 cup of raisins

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 °F. Line a 12 well muffin tray with paper liners or spray the wells with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Mix your bran with the milk in a bowl and let it sit while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine all your dry ingredients and whisk them together.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the bran mixture and combine well.
5. Add the wet ingredients into the dry and combine until smooth and well mixed.
6. Bake at 350 degrees until the tops spring back when touched, about 15-20 minutes depending on your oven.

Recipe Notes

I like to boil my raisins for a couple minutes before putting them in, I put them in a large measuring cup with hot water, and boil them for 2 minutes in the microwave to plump them up. They are SO much better in the muffins this way, plump and juicy, not dry little shriveled things

Nutrition Information

Serving: 12g, Calories: 256kcal, Carbohydrates: 37g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 11g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 29mg, Sodium: 199mg, Potassium: 351mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 11g, Vitamin A: 54.9%, Vitamin C: 1.9%, Calcium: 7.8%, Iron: 10.8%

All calories and info are based on a third party calculator and are only an estimate. Actual nutritional info will vary with brands used, your measuring methods, portion sizes and more.

Made this recipe?

Share a photo of what you made on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thekitchenmagpie or hashtag it #thekitchenmagpie.

Please rate this recipe in the comments below to help out your fellow cooks!