Two Things on a Sunday Afternoon

1.  Bran Muffins ~ Home Schooling starts back up for our son and me tomorrow.  And it's my very. last. year.  He is a Senior, the baby of the family, and this is my 23rd year of full time homeschooling...so I have very mixed feelings.  Sad.  But glad I get to do this for one more year.  It's been a grand, wonderful, fulfilling journey.

It's always nice to have muffins ready to go for the new school year, and these are my very favorite.  Moist and easy, plus they make a ton.  You can even keep the unbaked batter in the refrigerator up to 6 weeks, and have warm muffins in a snap.

This recipe comes from my friend Debbie, and has been around for years.  You can also make some substitutions with the recipe, which is always nice.  Here are the ingredients I use:

1 cup boiling water
1 cup Bran flakes (or Raisin Bran Flakes)
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup honey
2 eggs
2 cups buttermilk (or make sour milk by adding 2 Tablespoons white vinegar to  2 scant cups regular milk)
2 1/2 cups flour (I use 1 cup whole wheat flour in this mixture)
3 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 more cups of Bran Flakes (or Raisin Bran Flakes)
chocolate chips and/or nuts to top dress muffins

I made the batter Saturday (use the directions in the original recipe) and refrigerated it.  This afternoon I baked it after top dressing each with some mini chocolate chips and pecans, making a dozen nice muffins and 8 mini loaves.  They rise up so nice and are sooooo moist and wonderful.

I froze the mini loaves for next week.  Husband and I love a little something sweet first thing in the morning with our coffee.

  .Warm right out of the oven

So good I ate two!  Shhhh....  :) 

2.  Making Lesson Plans ~ Sat down today and wrote up the work we will accomplish the first day.  Since it is still mid-August and hot, I lit a candle, drank some coffee with the fan blowing on me (haha!) and pretended it was Fall.  That's when school should start, in my book.  :)

Curriculum  for this year, along with several classes at the local high school.  How can this be the last time I will ever buy homeschool curriculum for my children?

Well, muffins and coffee will make my back-to-school morning pleasant and tasty.  Hope you give them a try soon, too!  

Blessings,
Donna