Raisin Walnut Bran Muffins

Hello, muffins.

Last weekend, in between waiting for the split peas to cook down, I made bran muffins from The Joy of Vegan Baking.  I added some walnuts.  I wished I had molasses and not just piles of agave.  I wished I had giant, fresh blueberries instead of the recommended raisins.  But then I ate a muffin.  And then I ate a couple more.

Bran muffins are another one of those things that I hadn't had until going vegan.  My family tends to be "anti veg" and "anti healthy."  After I went vegan, my white grandma informed me that "if it's not made with real butter, it's not worth it."  I didn't really know what to say.  That visit also entailed a lot of "our family eats meat," comments.  I don't know what they were trying to tell me.  But if it was that I'm out of the family, that's fine.  I guess they won't get any muffins!

What I'm really trying to find and/or create is a recipe replicating a fabulous "omega" muffin piled with flax and raw sugar and blueberries and walnuts and possibly cranberries that I had at a fabulous coffee shop in Appleton, Wisconsin.  This coffee shop was rad, and its name was equally rad: Brewed Awakenings.  Its organic coffees were never watery, and its selection of vegan baked goods was diverse and delicious.  This recipe is a good start.

Here's hoping these muffins freeze well.  I need one and some coffee please.