Once old enough to understand the concept behind New Year’s Resolutions, I never really liked them. To me, “resolution” carries a negative connotation and sounds like something I have to do, instead of what the New Year really represents: an opportunity to reflect and improve certain areas of life.
So when the calendar flips to January 1, I prefer to set New Year’s Goals. That sounds a little more optimistic and achievable, don’t you think? They generally vary from year to year, depending on how the previous 365 days panned out. I’ve aimed to write in a journal every evening, finish cooking my way through the alphabet, and even gave up desserts (and successfully made it through the entire year!).
This year, my New Year’s Goal is…
To find balance. Particularly the work-life variety! As someone who’s self-employed and works from home, that line quickly turns gray and fuzzy, especially when my full-time job is running this blog, which means lots of time baking and doing things I love! But I inherited my dad’s workaholic tendencies, so I spend seven days a week—including nights and weekends—writing posts, editing photos, and responding to comments and emails.
It’s all incredibly rewarding, but at the same time, I still need to relearn how to take time off! I realized over the holidays that I don’t have many hobbies anymore, seeing as I turned my main hobby into my full-time job. As a result, I spent most of Christmas afternoon testing a new hobby by using crayons to carefully shade in sections of an adult coloring book my mom gave me with really intricate designs. (If you follow my @AmyBakesHealthy Snapchat, you saw the final result—and the one I colored two days later, too!)
In addition to taking time off to find better work-life balance, I also want to get more sleep. Ever since I was little, I’ve needed a full 8-10 hours per night to function at my best, but over the past few months, I’ve been going off of only 6 or 7 hours each day and subsidizing with extra caffeine.
As much as I love coffee… I value my sleep a little more!
And these Chocolate Chip Strawberry Bran Muffins are just the thing to help me sneak in a few extra minutes each day! Instead of spending time cooking eggs or oatmeal and washing the dishes, I can pop one or two of these in the microwave and start nibbling on my breakfast in mere seconds. And any morning that begins with chocolate-filled muffins as tender as cupcakes is bound to be a good day!
Let’s start with one of the most important ingredients: oat bran. Generally, bran muffins have a bad reputation for being dry or crumbly, but these are the exact opposite! They’re the moistest, most tender bran muffins you’ll ever eat, and it’s all thanks to my secret trick…
You’ll soak the oat bran in a combination of milk, Greek yogurt, and vanilla while mixing together the other ingredients. This gives the bran time to soften and absorb the moisture, similar to how overnight oat recipes work, and will make your muffins really tender.
And if you’ve been around my blog for a while, you know how much I adore Greek yogurt! It’s my favorite ingredient in healthier baking because it adds the same moisture as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your baked goodies a little protein boost, too.
These healthier muffins are sweetened with two main ingredients: maple syrup and molasses. When it comes to maple syrup, be sure to buy the good stuff! Avoid pancake syrups or faux sugar-free syrups. Both of those include corn syrup or artificial ingredients, which we’re trying to avoid. Pure maple syrup generally comes in a glass bottle or large squat jug, and the only ingredient on the label should be “maple syrup.”
Molasses is thick and dark brown, with a consistency similar to honey. It provides the iconic bran muffin flavor (as well as the familiar taste in gingerbread baked goodies!), so don’t try to substitute anything for it! Molasses is very inexpensive, and you can find it on the baking aisle near the other liquid sweeteners, as well as online.
And now for the best parts… The strawberries and chocolate chips! I turned to frozen unsweetened strawberries for this recipe so I could easily make it year-round without spending an arm and a leg on fresh berries at the grocery store during the winter. However, if you feel like baking this recipe during the summertime, fresh would easily work just as well!
You’ll use mini chocolate chips for these bran muffins. Their smaller size ensures that practically every bite contains a morsel of chocolate! I almost always buy Ghirardelli mini chips because they melt much better than the ones in the iconic yellow bags. (I think they taste better, too!) For the prettiest presentation, save a few to press into the tops of the muffins just before baking.
Don’t they look cute?
Happy New Year—and happy baking!
| Chocolate Chip Strawberry Bran Muffins | | Print |
- 1 ½ cups (180g) oat bran (measured like this and gluten-free if necessary)
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- ½ cup (120mL) nonfat milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup (120g) whole wheat or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp (14g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 large egg white, room temperature
- ¼ cup (60mL) pure maple syrup
- ¼ cup (60mL) molasses
- 1 cup (140g) frozen strawberries, barely thawed and diced
- 2 tbsp (28g) miniature chocolate chips, divided
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and lightly coat 12 muffin cups with nonstick spray.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the oat bran, Greek yogurt, milk, and vanilla. Let the mixture rest for at least 10 minutes while preparing the remaining ingredients.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a third bowl, whisk together the coconut oil and egg white. Stir in the maple syrup and molasses. Add the oat bran mixture, stirring until fully incorporated. Add the flour mixture, stirring until just incorporated. Fold in the strawberries and 1 ½ tablespoons of chocolate chips.
- Evenly divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups, and gently press the remaining chocolate chips into the tops. Bake at 350°F for 20-23 minutes or until the tops feel firm to the touch. Cool in the muffin cups for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack.
Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.
Honey or agave may be substituted for the maple syrup. Do not substitute pancake syrup because it will not produce the same taste or texture. I also don't recommend substituting anything for the molasses; it’s required to produce the iconic bran muffin flavor.
Fresh strawberries may be substituted for the frozen. The baking time may be slightly reduced.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
No problem, I figured they were out of date (pearl couscous is the same as oat bran? lol 😉 ). I’ll be purchasing the oat bran soon and let you know the muffins go! Thanks again for your help, and have a great weekend 🙂
I rolled my eyes a bit when I saw that too, Addie! At least the text part of the product page said oat bran, rather than pearl couscous?… Crazy Amazon!! 😉 I hope you have a wonderful weekend too, and I’m really excited to hear what you and your family think of these muffins!!
Hi Amy
I’m from Colombia and I learning English, so you will forgive me my spelling mistakes… I just want to tell you that your recipes are amazing and your instructions and your notes are very understandable and very useful… thank you very much for your recipes and your time
You’re just the sweetest, Alexandra!! It means the world to me that you’re enjoying my recipes and find all of my notes so helpful. Thank you for taking the time to let me know — you just made my entire day! 🙂 (And your English is wonderful! Don’t sell yourself short! ♡)