Buckwheat Bran Muffins

These muffins are like those sensuous big women with the low, smoky voices and a wink for you if you're lucky.

I have really developed a taste for buckwheat! I have buckwheat hot cereal for breakfast on my coffee days, I keep experimenting with buckwheat pancakes and waffles, and I've been making these muffins... they're quite tasty, really.

Originally I was going for a maple-flavored muffin, so I used maple syrup for sweetener. The maple didn't really stand out in the finished muffin, but I liked it anyway. I didn't want to bother adding something like maple extract that not many people have just lying around or are likely to ever use again. But I kept the maple syrup, because it adds a certain sultry va-va-voom. I also wanted a breakfast-type muffin (you know, fiber and protein and all that), hence the rice bran and buckwheat flour and brown rice flour, nuts and kasha and the like. Voila... it worked out.

These muffins, like most muffins, are pretty versatile. By that, I mean you can add things if you want. Nuts and chopped fruit (diced apple or pear might be good), seeds and such... go for it. Let me know how it is.

BUCKWHEAT BRAN MUFFINS
2/3 cup buckwheat flour
1/3 cup brown rice flour
1/4 cup potato starch
2 tbsp tapioca starch
2 tbsp soy flour
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
3/4 tsp salt
Grated zest from 1 medium orange
6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3/4 cup maple syrup, room temperature
2 large eggs
2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup sour cream
1 cup rice bran
3/4 cup kasha
3/4 cup sliced almonds, crushed lightly



1. Preheat oven to 375°F and prepare sixteen muffin cups by lining or greasing. In a medium bowl, sift together flours, starches, xanthan gum, baking powder, soda, cinnamon, and salt. Add zest and whisk to combine. Set aside.

2. Beat eggs until frothy in a large bowl. Drizzle in melted butter, mixing well to emulsify. Add maple syrup and vanilla and stir to combine.



3. In a smaller bowl or liquid measure, whisk the buttermilk and sour cream together until no longer lumpy. Add to the bowl with the maple syrup and mix well.

4. Add flour mixture, folding gently until barely mixed but still lumpy. Fold in rice bran, kasha, and almonds until no streaks of flour remain and ingredients are moistened, but do not overmix.



5. Fill cups 3/4 full with batter, and smooth the tops with a spatula as best you can. Taste some.



6. Bake on the lower-middle rack for 23-25 minutes, or until they turn deliciously brown around the edges and just begin to pull away from the sides of the pan (if you're using liners, just use the toothpick method). Cool in pan 5 minutes, then remove to eat warm or cool or whatever. Toast them later, whatever.





PROS: warm and husky, exotically spiced yet delicate earthy flavor, delicious crunchy bits, not overly sweet
CONS: a little dense (is that a con?), flavor is mild