Brown Sugar Cranberry Oat Muffins

Sometimes I get really tired of cereal and oatmeal for breakfast in the mornings. Every now and then I'll get up early enough to make myself something different like scrambled eggs and toast or a fruit smoothie, but most of the time sleep wins over breakfast and I end up grabbing a packet of oatmeal as I run out the door. Why didn't I think of making muffins more often for my grab-and-go breakfast? No idea. But now that the idea finally came to me I'll definitely be making some more often!

I start my work day early and usually leave my house no later than 6:30 every morning. This means I usually eat breakfast around 6:15 and I wait until around 12:30 to eat lunch. 6 hours is a long time to go without a meal! So it's pretty important for me to eat something that will fill me up with maybe a small snack around 10:30 or 11:00. These muffins definitely did the trick! I substituted whole wheat flour for half of the all-purpose and with the oatmeal and cranberries, I only needed one or two to satisfy my hunger. These muffins bake up nice and moist and the tart cranberries pair perfectly with the sweet brown sugar muffin. If you're not a big fan of cranberries, try adding in blueberries instead. I think a blueberry-banana combination would be great!

This recipe makes about 16 muffins - perfect for Neal and I to eat throughout the week. By the way - I found this recipe at the Williams Sonoma website. I had no idea they had such a huge collection of recipes! They might be my new go-to source for new ideas, especially their breakfast collection. Check it out when you get a free minute! (Picture and recipe adapted from Williams Sonoma)

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 2 1/4 cups rolled oats
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 8 Tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled)
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 cup chopped fresh or frozen cranberries

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees.  Line 16 standard muffing cups with paper liners, or butter/oil the cups.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  In another larger bowl, stir together 2 cups of the oats, the sour cream, milk and butter until combined.  Add the eggs, then the brown sugar and stir until combined.  Gently stir the flour mixture into the oat mixture. Fold in the cranberries.

Fill the prepared muffin cups to the rims.  Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup oats evenly over the muffins.  Pour a little water into any empty muffin cups to prevent scorching.  Bake until the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes.  Let the muffins cool about five minutes, then unmold the muffins onto a wire rack and let cool slightly.  Serve warm.