These muffins are my favorite thing.  Waaaay back in the day, I used to be a travel agent, and I worked in close proximity to a little bakery called The Pastry Cafe.   They had the most amazing bran muffins in the entire world.  They were so soft and moist and delicious and they were drenched in this honey butter mixture.   I ate so many of those muffins.

When the bakery closed, I almost cried real tears.  I spent the next two years perfecting the recipe in an attempt to duplicate them.  These are super close.

Not exactly a healthy breakfast, but a delicious one, and of course with the bran, we can at least pretend we’re being healthy.

1 1/4 cups wheat or oat bran
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon honey
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup golden raisins (optional)

Topping:

1/4 C brown sugar
1/4 C melted butter
2 T honey

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease a 12 cup muffin tin, or line with paper muffin liners. In a small bowl, mix together the wheat bran and buttermilk. Set aside to soak until thickened, about 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to blend together the brown sugar, vegetable oil, egg and honey. Stir in the bran mixture. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir into the batter until just moistened. Mix in raisins. Spoon batter into muffin cups, filling 3/4 full.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until the tops spring back when lightly pressed.  Mix topping ingredients together and spoon over tops of muffins.  Let them sit till just warm.