Healthy Breakfast Muffins with Bran and Dates

Published: March 21, 2020. Last Updated: June 18, 2024 by: Ginny McMeans

Healthy Breakfast Muffins are egg free and easy. The dates bring a wonderful sweetness and these little gems are so good even without a topping. There's plenty of fiber in these vegan bran muffins so dive in!

Close-up of an open bran muffin sitting on top of a full muffin.

Everybody needs a good healthy Bran Muffin Recipe! These are sort of, like, 'in disguise' and no one will know they are such healthy muffins. Just call them breakfast muffins and you'll be 'In Like Flynn'.

That's going to be my new mission. Use bran more often and promote it. Unite the nations! Make everybody happy! These muffins will be my first step.

I also love the sweetness that dates bring to recipes. These little gems are so good when they are served warm with or without any sort of topping. I like mine plain.

They are just delicious as you are sipping your morning beverage. In my world it's coffee.

A Bowlful of vegan bran muffins with cracked tops after baking.

Table of Contents

Chef's tips

There's sort of a trick to dicing dates. You use scissors!

Dates like to stick together but cutting them gives you the best control for size and they don't make a sticky clump like they do in a food processor but you can sure use a food processor just crumble the pieces apart after processing.

Also, use a bran bud type of cereal - not flakes. This gives the muffins more texture. You can even make half of the muffins and keep the batter in the fridge for up to 2 weeks if you would like to make two smaller batches.

If you only have flake bran cereal in your cupboard you can use it but don't soak beforehand.

And ... the finished healthy breakfast muffins freeze perfectly too.

Holding a baked muffin in front of a bowlful of muffins with dates scarttered around.

Ingredients

Bran buds - are firm and actually hard little buds but soften up with liquid and give the muffins a great texture.
Boiling water - softens up those bran buds.
Flaxseed meal - to make the substitute eggs.
Extra virgin olive oil - adds lots of flavor and moisture.
Coconut sugar - is a healthier choice over refined sugar and gives a wonderful mapley taste.
Dairy-free milk of your choice - for a necessary wet ingredient.
Whole wheat flour - gives these muffins more nutrition and fiber.
Baking soda - is a leavening agent.
Baking powder - is also a leavening agent that mixes well with baking soda.
Salt - is just a wonderful seasoning.
Dates - are another texture that adds a lot of healthy sweetness to your breakfast.

A muffin almost filling out the whole photo and sitting on others.

Instructions

Lightly grease 12 muffins ti n and set aside - if you don't have paper muffin cups. If you do place the paper muffin cups inside the muffin tin.
Soak the bran buds in boiling water. Let stand to cool.
Mix 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal with 6 tablespoons water and set aside. It will gel with sitting and become great egg substitutes.
In a large bowl add the soy milk, oil and sugar then mix well.

Soaking bran buds and a bowl of milk, sugar and egg substitutes.

Stir in the prepared egg mixture.
Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and mix well.

Mixing the dry ingredients with the liquid mixture and then stirring well with a wooden spoon.

Pour in the bran mixture and mix to just combine.
Fold in the diced dates.

Adding bran cereal and dates to the mixture for a final batter.

Spoon into the prepared muffin cups. The cups will be full.
Bake at 355 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. Watch closely at the 20 minute mark.
Transfer muffins to a cooling rack and let cool.
Look how nice and fat these vegan bran muffins are!

Long angle of big fat baked vegan bran muffins still in their muffin tins.

Morning Muffins

Irish Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins will give you lots of energy with this protein rich breakfast.
A fruit that isn't used much is apricots but these Vegan Apricot Muffins will bring that fruity taste back into the present.

Square photo of one muffin broken open to see all the textures.

📋 Recipe