The Muffin Manual: 25 Easy Muffins You Can Make with a Mix

These are not ordinary muffins. And this is not an ordinary collection.

Every one of these 25 extraordinary muffins starts with Mom's Best Honey Bran Muffin Mix. No digging sugar, salt, and cinnamon out of the cupboard. No starting from scratch. Just a mix, a few inspired additions, and 20 minutes. Quick, easy, and foolproof — every time.

Once you catch the vision, you've found a goldmine. Piña Colada on Sunday morning. Peanut Butter Chocolate after school. Cranberry Orange for the holidays. Twenty-five muffins your family will request by name — all from one remarkable mix.

See the bran muffin mix here.

1. Banana Bran Muffins

These banana bran muffins are perfectly flavored, moist, and ready in minutes — all starting with Mom's Best Honey Bran Muffin Mix. The riper your bananas, the more flavor you'll get.

What you'll add:

3 cups mashed ripe bananas

2 teaspoons banana flavor

1½ tablespoons water

Follow the directions on the bag, replacing the water with the ingredients above. Continue with the package directions.

Tip: The combination of ripe bananas and banana flavor makes these extraordinary — don't skip the banana flavor. 

2. Blueberry Lemon Muffins

Bright lemon and juicy blueberries in a tender bran muffin — a classic combination that disappears fast.

Again, start with our Mom's Best Honey Bran Muffins.  But you've never had blueberry muffins like these. Blueberry and lemon is a classic combination. Lemon pie is a favorite, but most lemon flavors don't taste like lemon pie.  They're "tinny". So, we brought the lemon pie to the muffins. These blueberry lemon muffins are extraordinary.

Add two tablespoons of dry lemon pie filling to the mix and stir to distribute the lemon filling.  Mix according to package instructions, but add another two tablespoons of water. After mixing the batter, gently fold in 2/3's cup of fresh blueberries.

3. Cranberry Orange Muffins:

Cranberry orange muffins are marvelous. To make craisins, the producers soak the cranberries in sugar water to sweeten them before drying them.

Cranberries and orange is a wonderful combination, but it takes a little extra to get the two flavors to balance. We use a little orange flavor for balance. And the zest--all the orange flavor is in the orange-colored outer layer of peel. So, lightly remove the outer layer, leaving the pithy inner layer. 

To make cranberry orange muffins, add one cup of craisins, 2 teaspoons of orange zest, and a teaspoon of orange flavor.

4. Banana Nut Muffins:

Everything you love about banana nut bread but in a tender bran muffin.

Make as in number 1 above and add chopped walnuts.  As with the earlier banana muffins, make sure the bananas are soft and ripe.  Again, the banana flavor improves the muffins 

What you'll add:

• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 3 cups mashed ripe bananas
• 2 teaspoons banana flavor
• 1½ tablespoons water

Follow the directions on the bag, replacing the water with the ingredients above. Continue with the package directions.

5. Cranberry Nut Muffins:

Dried cranberries and toasted nuts in every bite — a hearty, satisfying muffin that feels like a treat.

This is a cousin to the cranberry orange muffins above. If you like, you can add the orange above and make these cranberry orange nut muffins.  

Add 3/4 cup dried cranberries plus 3/4 cup nuts. Then continue with the package directions.

6. Raisin Muffins:

Old-fashioned, warm, and comforting — a classic raisin bran muffin that tastes like it came from grandma's kitchen.

We have a finished mix for Cinnamon Raisin Bran Muffins. You can use that or add your own raisins. 

To make these, simply add one cup of golden or dark raisins. If you like cinnamon, certainly add that too. The quality of the cinnamon matters. We use a better grade of Korintje Cassia cinnamon, which is more flavorful than grocery store cinnamon. See our cinnamon with a buyer's guide to cinnamon here.

7. Date Nut Muffins:

Rich date pieces and crunchy nuts in a honey bran muffin — naturally sweet, deeply satisfying, and completely foolproof.

To make these, add 3/4 cup dried date pieces plus 3/4 cup nuts. The easy way to cut your dates is with your kitchen shears. Take a paper towel and rub a little vegetable oil on the blades to keep the pieces from sticking to the shears.

After cutting your dates, add a teaspoon of flour to a small bowl and dust your date pieces in the flour, giving them just enough of a coating that they distribute evenly in your batter rather than clumping together.

8. Raisin Nut Muffins:

Plump raisins and toasted nuts in a tender honey bran muffin — simple, hearty, and impossible to stop at one.

Simply add one cup of raisins plus 3/4 cup nuts to your mix. Follow the rest of the directions on the package.

9. Cinnamon Chip Muffins:

Warm burst of cinnamon in every bite. This is a step above simply adding cinnamon to the recipe. It's the muffin that makes the whole house smell like a bakery.

Simply add one cup of cinnamon chips plus one teaspoon of your best ground cinnamon. Doubling down on the cinnamon, ground cinnamon plus cinnamon chips is perfect.

10. Chocolate Chip Muffins:

Tender honey bran muffin studded with chocolate chips and a hint of vanilla — this is the one the kids will always request.

Add one cup of chocolate chips plus one teaspoon vanilla extract. I prefer milk chocolate, but either will work.

11. Pina Colada Muffins:

Coconut, pineapple, and a hint of butter rum — a tropical escape in a muffin that will stop everyone in their tracks.

Add 3/4 cup dry shredded coconut, 3/4 cup well-drained pineapple chunks, and one teaspoon butter rum flavor.

12. Ginger Pear Muffins:

Dried pears and warm ground ginger in a honey bran muffin — unexpected, sophisticated, and absolutely extraordinary.

Add one cup of dried pears plus one teaspoon of ground ginger.

13. Caramel Pear Muffins:

Sweet dried pears and rich caramel flavor — a muffin so good your neighbors will ask for the recipe.

To make these muffins, add one cup of dried pears and two teaspoons of caramel flavor. (See also instructions for making caramel whipped cream.)

14. Candied Ginger Muffins:

Bold, spicy candied ginger pieces throughout — a grown-up muffin with serious personality. 

We discovered this candied ginger and were smitten. We've used it extensively in cookies, cakes, and yes--muffins. It's fabulous and simple to use,

Simply, add one cup of candied ginger pieces to your mix.

15. Apple Cinnamon Muffins:

 Fresh grated apple, warm cinnamon, and melty cinnamon chips — the taste of fall in every bite, any time of year.

Replace the water with grated apples. Add a teaspoon of cinnamon and 3/4 cup of cinnamon chips. Add a tablespoon or two of water if needed.

16. Carrot Cake Muffins:

Freshly grated carrots, cinnamon, and nutmeg — all the flavor of carrot cake in a quick, foolproof muffin.

We're smitten with carrot cake too. The secret to carrot cake is to grind your own carrots. The ground carrots you buy in the store are too coarse.  You want the carrots fine enough that they cook soft and disappear into the cake.

We add cinnamon chips, canned pineapple, or ginger pieces to our carrot cake.  The same add-ins work with muffins.

Add 1 1/2 cups grated carrots and reduce the water by 1/4 cup, since carrots are about 80% water. Add a teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg.

17. Coconut Mango Muffins: 

Tropical mango and toasted coconut with a hint of lime — a sunny, unexpected muffin that feels like a vacation.

These muffins were inspired by a wonderful skillet cobbler mix we have- yes, we love our coconut mango skillet cobbler. (In muffins, the mango is much like fresh peaches.)

Add 1/4 cup shredded coconut to the mix. Add 2/3's cup diced fresh mango pieces, drained well. Add a little lime zest or a quarter teaspoon of coconut extract.

18. Fresh Peach Pineapple Muffins:

Juicy peaches and sweet pineapple in a tender bran muffin — summer in every bite, ready in 20 minutes.

Add 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon to the mix. Reduce the amount of water by two tablespoons. Add 2/3's cup of diced fresh peaches and 1/3 cup canned pineapple pieces, both drained. 

19. Rhubarb and Walnuts Muffins:

Tart rhubarb coated in brown sugar and folded with walnuts — a springtime classic that's anything but ordinary.

This is a classic combination that makes very good muffins. You will need 3/4's cup of chopped rhubarb, aboout 1/2-inch sized pieces. Place 1/4 cup brown sugar in a bowl and stir the rhubarb pieces through the brown sugar until the rhubarb is coated.  Add 1/2-cup chopped walnuts to the mix and then mix the batter per directions. Gently stir the sugar-coated rhubarb into the batter. Bake per the instructions.

20. Coconut Pineapple Muffins:

Sweet pineapple and coconut in a tender honey bran muffin — light, tropical, and completely irresistible.

This is just like the mango muffins. If you're using canned pineapple-- chunks or crushed--make sure it's well-drained.

21. Chunky Peanut Butter Muffins:

Rich peanut butter, crunchy peanuts, and a drizzle of honey — a satisfying muffin that eats like a meal.

Add one-half cup of chunky peanut butter and 1/4 cup chopped peanuts to the mix, along with a tablespoon of honey. Peanut butter soaks up a lot of liquid, so you'll need an extra 1/4 cup of milk or water to keep them moist.

22. Peanut Butter Chocolate Muffins:

Creamy peanut butter and melty chocolate chips in a honey bran muffin — the after-school legend your kids will beg for.

Make like Chunky Peanut Butter Muffins but eliminate the chopped peanuts and add 2/3's cup semi-sweet chocolate chips.

23. Cranberry Chocolate Muffins:

Tart dried cranberries and rich chocolate chips — a sophisticated combination that works for breakfast or dessert.

Add 1/2 cup dried cranberries to the mix, plus 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips.  Simple.

24. Cherry Chunk Muffins: 

Chopped cherries and toasted pecans in a tender honey bran muffin — a bakery-worthy muffin from a five-minute mix.

Add 1/2 cup chopped dried or drained cherries plus 1/2 cup walnuts or pecans. Follow package directions.

25. Apricot Orange Muffins

Dried apricots are just tart enough to catch your attention in good bran muffin. The orange makes it a fine marriage.

Toss 2/3's cups of finely chopped dried apricots with a tablespoon of flour. (The flour keeps the apricots from sinking.) Add the zest from one small orange along with aa teaspoon of vanilla.  Follow the rest of the directions.

How to Create Your Own

To create your own, add similar quantities of your favorite "add-ins," such as dried cranberries, walnuts, cinnamon chips, and candied ginger, one cup of a single ingredient or 1 1/2 cups of a combination. For wet ingredients like grated apples, carrots, or zucchini, reduce the water in the instructions.  Fruits and vegetables have more water than you may think--carrots are 80% water and zucchini is 93%.

 

Look what others say!

Most people love the ability to add fruit, nuts, and more to their muffins. Start with any of these. 

"These are so good I wanted to eat the cup liner! I added some frozen blueberries and HOLY MUFFINS, these were so good. Moist with just the right amount of sweet to it. Thank you, Prepared Pantry!"  Kelly Chester

"This is wonderful mix. I added craisins and pecans, they were delicious. The mix makes big tall muffins. I love it." Frances Billings 

"My best bran muffins ever... What a great mix . . .. These make up with all kinds of adders, apricots, or blueberries even zucchini. They freeze and reheat for a perfect breakfast with my coffee and yogurt...you don’t HAVE to tell anyone it is such a simple mix....thanks Prepared Pantry." Cherie O'Donnell 

"These muffins are delicious and hearty. But as you can see in the other reviews, these muffins are a blank canvas to customize however you want. Add nuts, dried fruit, or enjoy them just the way they are!" Jennifer McHenry

"I grew up on my mother's bran muffins, made with "that breakfast cereal " that everyone used to make bran muffins back in the day. They were super good, but kind of a pain to make. This mix makes the BEST bran muffins I've ever eaten, better even than my old favorites. I keep this mix on hand all the time, and make the muffins a couple of times per month. They're fabulous!"  LanaM