Gluten Free Bran Muffins Recipe

Closeup of a single baked muffin in a paper liner on a wire cooling rack, with a crumb-topped surface and a broken section revealing the interior, with other whole muffins in above and to the side.

5 from 6 votes

These gluten free bran muffins are tender and satisfying, with the rich taste of honey and molasses. Made with a blend of gluten free flour and chewy oat bran.

Prep Time15

Cook Time19

resting time20

Total Time54

Course: Breakfast, Muffins

Cuisine: American

Keyword: buttermilk, gluten free bran muffins, gluten free flour, oat bran

Servings: muffins

Author: Nicole Hunn

Equipment

Stand mixer with paddle attachment or handheld mixer

Ingredients

1 ½ cups all purpose gluten free flour blend (See Recipe Notes)
1 teaspoon xanthan gum if your blend already contains it, use only 1/2 teaspoon (or 3/4 teaspoon if using BRM)
1 ⅓ cups oat bran (See Recipe Notes)
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk at room temperature
4 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons unsulphured molasses
2 eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup packed light brown sugar for sprinkling on top (optional)

Customary - Metric

Instructions

Grease or line a standard 12-cup muffin tin and set it aside.
In a medium size bowl, whisk the flour, xanthan gum, oat bran, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to combine well. Set the bowl aside.
In a 4-cup measuring cup or medium-size bowl, whisk the buttermilk, honey, molasses, eggs and vanilla until well-combined.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a large mixing bowl with a handheld mixer, beat the butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).
Add the dry ingredients in 3 batches and the buttermilk mixture in 2 batches to the mixing bowl, alternating between the them, and beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.
The batter will be thick but not stiff. Let it rest at room temperature in the mixing bowl for 20 minutes.
While the batter is resting, preheat your oven to 400°F.
Fill the prepared muffin cups all the way full with the batter after resting. Try to pile the batter toward the center of each well.
Sprinkle the top of the batter in each muffin lightly with the (optional) brown sugar.
Place the pan in the center of the preheated oven and bake for 7 minutes.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and continue to bake for another 12 minutes, or until a tester placed in the center of a middle muffin comes out mostly clean. The center may still feel a bit too soft when pressed, so the toothpick test is more reliable here. Do not overbake or the edges and bottoms will burn.
Remove the muffins from the tin as soon as you’re able to handle them without burning your fingers. If you leave the muffins in the tin for too long, the muffins may shrink and separate from the liners.
Transfer the muffins to a wire rack to cool to room temperature before serving.

Notes

For the flour blend

My favorite gluten free flour blends are Better Batter's original blend gluten free flour and Nicole's Best multipurpose blend. Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten Free Baking Flour should also work, but you'll need to add an additional 3/4 teaspoons xanthan gum to the muffin dry ingredients (instead of the additional 1/2 teaspoon you'll add to Better Batter) or the muffins may be crumbly.

To make your own blend using one of my “mock” recipes, please see the all purpose gluten free flour blends page.

For the oat bran

I use Bob’s Red Mill gluten free oat bran cereal for this recipe, since it’s what is most widely available. I used to use rice bran, but I can no longer find it anywhere.

Nutrition