Gluten-free bran muffins recipe. These muffins have the classic taste of traditional bran muffins, but none of the gluten. Even though they’re filled with fibre, they still have a moist, tender crumb. Serve warm with a little butter for a quick breakfast or snack.
There’s something comforting about a classic bran muffin served warm and topped with a little butter. When I first went gluten free, I didn’t think that bran muffins would be an option for me anymore, but with the help of a combination of oat bran and ground flaxseed to replace the wheat bran, I’ve come to learn that good gluten-free bran muffins are very much still possible!
Filled with fibre, they’re great for a quick breakfast or a snack any time of day. I like to eat them warm with a little butter on top!
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Ingredients
- oat bran, certified gluten free
- ground flaxseed
- buttermilk
- gluten-free flour, all-purpose blend
- baking powder
- salt
- cinnamon
- eggs
- brown sugar
- granulated sugar
- vegetable or canola oil
- vanilla extract
- turbinado (raw) sugar, optional
See recipe card for quantities.
Ingredient Notes
Oat bran: If you want your muffins to be gluten free, make sure your oat bran is certified gluten free. During processing, oats are often contaminated with gluten-containing grains (wheat, barley, rye); therefore, it’s important to make sure you’re only using certified gluten-free oats. Certified gluten-free oats are harvested, stored, transported and processed in dedicated gluten-free facilities and tested for purity. For more information on adding oats to your gluten-free diet, please refer to the Canadian Celiac Association's Oats Statement.
Gluten-free all-purpose flour blend: Use a blend that contains xanthan gum, so the muffins have enough structure and stability. Make sure your blend doesn’t contain any ingredients with strong flavours, such as bean flour. Refer to baking with gluten-free flour for more information.
Buttermilk: Real buttermilk is best, but if you don’t have any on hand you can add 1 ½ tablespoons of white or apple cider vinegar to a liquid measuring cup and then add enough milk to measure 1 ½ cups. Stir and let stand for 5 minutes before using.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a muffin tin with 12 paper liners or grease with vegetable oil.
- Stir together the oat bran, ground flaxseed and buttermilk in a bowl and set aside for 5 minutes.
- In large bowl, combine the gluten-free flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
- In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, granulated sugar, vegetable oil and vanilla.
- Add egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until well combined. Stir in the buttermilk mixture.
- Divide the batter equally among the 12 muffin cups.
- Optional: Top each muffin with a pinch of raw sugar.
- Bake for about 23 – 25 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. Let cool slightly in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Top Tips for Perfect Gluten-Free Bran Muffins
- Mix well – if you’re used to making muffins with wheat flour, you probably fear over mixing your muffin batter. But with gluten-free muffins, you don’t have to worry about over mixing the same way. If anything, the real risk is under mixing. Gluten-free flours don’t absorb liquids as quickly as wheat flour, so you need to give your batter a really good stir to make sure everything is really incorporated. And since there’s no gluten, you don’t have to worry about overworking the gluten strands which is what can make traditional muffins tough. If anything, gluten-free muffins benefit from the added structure a well-mixed batter provides.
- Serve warm – I find these muffins are best served warm and topped with a little butter. Reheat in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 10 minutes.
Substitutions
Make it dairy free: replace the buttermilk with a non-dairy buttermilk substitute. For a non-dairy buttermilk substitute, stir together 1 cup of plain non-dairy yogurt, ½ cup of non-dairy milk and ½ teaspoon of white or apple cider vinegar, and let sit for 5 minutes before using. I've had good success using plain coconut milk yogurt and almond milk.
Storage
Baked muffins: 2 – 3 days in an air-tight container at room temperature. Reheat in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 10 minutes.
Freeze: the baked muffins also freeze well – store well wrapped in a freezer safe bag or container for up to 1 month. To serve, thaw in a microwave for 20 seconds on high, and then warm in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 10 minutes.
Recipe Card
Gluten-Free Bran Muffins
Ingredients
- ¾ cup oat bran, certified gluten free
- ¾ cup ground flaxseed
- 1½ cups buttermilk, see note
- 1½ cups gluten-free flour, all-purpose blend (see note)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 eggs
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup vegetable or canola oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- turbinado (raw) sugar, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a muffin tin with 12 paper liners or grease with vegetable oil.
- Stir together the oat bran, ground flaxseed, and buttermilk in a bowl and set aside for 5 minutes.
- In large bowl, combine the gluten-free flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
- In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, granulated sugar, vegetable oil, and vanilla.
- Add egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until well combined. Stir in the buttermilk mixture.
- Divide the batter equally among the 12 muffin cups.
- Optional: Top each muffin with a pinch of raw sugar.
- Bake for about 23 – 25 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. Let cool slightly in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Mix well – if you’re used to making muffins with wheat flour, you probably fear overmixing your muffin batter. But with gluten-free muffins, you don’t have to worry about overmixing the same way. If anything, the real risk is undermixing. Gluten-free flours don’t absorb liquids as quickly as wheat flour, so you need to give your batter a really good stir to make sure everything is really incorporated. And since there’s no gluten, you don’t have to worry about overworking the gluten strands which is what can make traditional muffins tough. If anything, gluten-free muffins benefit from the added structure a well-mixed batter provides.
- Serve warm – I find these muffins are best served warm and topped with a little butter. Reheat in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 10 minutes.
- Make it dairy free: replace the buttermilk with a non-dairy buttermilk substitute and use dairy-free chocolate chips. For a non-dairy buttermilk substitute, stir together 1 cup of plain non-dairy yogurt, ½ cup of non-dairy milk and ½ teaspoon of white or apple cider vinegar, and let sit for 5 minutes before using. I've had good success using plain coconut milk yogurt and almond milk.
- Baked muffins: 2 – 3 days in an air-tight container at room temperature. Reheat in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 10 minutes.
- Freeze: the baked muffins also freeze well – store well wrapped in a freezer safe bag or container for up to 1 month. To serve, thaw in a microwave for 20 seconds on high, and then warm in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 10 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutritional information shown is an estimate only.
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Kathy says
Very yummy
I added raisins
bakeinbalance says
Thanks Kathy! So glad you like them!