Big Bran Muffins with Raisins and Dates

Name: Big Bran Muffins with Raisins and Dates
Yield: Makes about 20 muffins
Ingredients: 2 1/2 cups, unbleached all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons, (see illustrations below); 4 1/2 teaspoons, baking soda; 1 tablespoon, baking powder; 2 teaspoons, ground cinnamon; 1/8 teaspoon, table salt; 3/4 cup, vegetable oil; 2 teaspoons, honey; 1/4 cup, molasses; 1 cup, light brown sugar plus 2 tablespoons, packed firm; 1 teaspoon, vanilla extract; 3/4 teaspoon, maple extract; 1 1/2 teaspoons, butter extract (or flavoring); 3 , large eggs, lightly beaten; 2 cups, buttermilk; 1 cup, toasted wheat germ; 1 cup, wheat bran (not the cereal); 1/2 cup, whole dates, plumped with scalding water, drained, and coarsely chopped; 1 cup, dark raisins, plumped with scalding water and drained

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Appears in Cook's Illustrated September/October 1993

Desserts or Baked Goods

Fruit

Breakfast & Brunch

Quick Breads

Learn the secrets of making dramatic, high-capped muffins that stay tender.

SERVESMakes about 20 muffins

TIME1¼ hours

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

We discovered the secret to a muffin recipe that gave us dramatic, high-capped muffins that stay tender: the quick-bread method of mixing. This meant whisking the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients separately before combining them in o...

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