Bran Muffins (my sugarless version)

I find it crazy funny that most people think store-bought (and most homemade) bran muffins are healthy. Most are loaded with refined or fake sugars and don't contain much fiber. This recipes contains whole wheat flour but still produces a light, fluffy muffin. Plus they have no sugar!  The sweetness comes from the fruit.  There are so many variations you can try. I've replaced all of the whole wheat flour with oat bran, used butter instead of coconut oil, varied the dried fruits between raisins, dates, and prunes, and the best of all, added cocoa (1/4- 1/2 cup) or unsweetened chocolate (2-3 oz). This makes a pretty good chocolate cake if you let it sit overnight for the chocolate flavor to fully develop.

Bran Muffins
Yield: About 12 muffins

INGREDIENTS
2 cups dried fruit (I usually use 1.5 cups dates, 0.5 cup prunes)
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup virgin coconut oil (or melted butter/ghee)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup whole wheat flour (soaked, sprouted in Nourishing Traditions fashion)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Prepare a muffin pan with paper liners.

Pour boiling water, coconut oil, vanilla, and eggs into a blender. Process and slowly incorporate dried fruit. I prefer to not have bits of fruit in my muffins so I blend into a really thick, smooth paste. You can leave it chunky if you like. Once the mixture is at your preferred consistency, pour it out (or spoon it out) into a large bowl and add in dry ingredients, mixing throughout. When done, scoop batter info muffins cups, filling about 3/4 full.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool completely.

I like these with a schmear of plain cream cheese or when making the chocolate version, a dollop of marshmallow creme frosting and sprinkled coconut.