Apricot-Bran Muffins*

*I also added dried cherry cranberries too, so the official title should be "Apricot-Cherry/Cranberry-Bran Muffins," but whatever.  

2 cup(s) dry oat bran  (I used wheat bran)
¼ cup(s) unpacked brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 medium egg white(s)
1 cup(s) buttermilk (Didn't have any, so I made my own--1Tbsp vinegar into a measuring cup, add milk until 1 cup total.  Just the right amount for this recipe, so I lucked out.  Let it sit for five minutes...Now that I am typing this, I am not even sure I did let it sit long enough.  Oops.)
⅓ cup(s) molasses
½ cup(s) unsweetened applesauce
¾ cup(s) dried apricot halves, finely chopped  (I think I used about 1/2 c of apricots and 1/2 c of dried cherry cranberries--but the measurement could be off--After chopping, the fruit fit into 1 c.)

12 muffins=1pt./muffin

Preheat oven to 450°F (230°C).  (Not recommended in summer heat, nor late in the day...all which I did.)

Spray a 12-muffin tin; set aside.
In a large bowl, mix oat bran, brown sugar and baking powder. Make a well in the center of the mixture.
In another bowl, beat egg whites until foamy. Stir in buttermilk and molasses. Add buttermilk mixture to oat bran mixture and stir just until moistened. (I am sure I stirred too much--the wheat bran was really interesting to work with (my first time), and it was a very new consistency for me.)  Fold in applesauce and apricots.  (And by fold, I plopped everything in, and stirred--probably not the intention, but whatever.)
Spoon batter into muffin tin, filling each cup to the top. Bake until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven and cool 5 minutes. Remove muffins from tin and cool on a wire rack. (It was hard to tell if they were done--I left them in for an additional 2 minutes just to be sure.)

After round 2 of baking even. :(

Yeah...this was a MESS.  Took them out, waited five minutes, tried to extract them from the pan, and they weren't done.  So, I put them back in the oven for 10 more minutes.  Repeat the waiting for five minutes, and took them out--total disaster.  I am pretty sure that they aren't done, but I don't want to waste them, and they don't taste awful--I am just mad they didn't cook right.  They are definitely good-for-you tasting, but in a fruity, grainy kind of way.  I will do more research to see if using wheat bran or mixing too much messed with the results, but I am still not sure if I will make them again. 

Top of muffin...

Not. Done. 

Thank goodness I also made wheat bread.  I am getting GOOD at bread--too bad it sucks for points!

Aahhh....the redeeming baking--awesome whole wheat bread!