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How could a healthy double chocolate bran muffin recipe be so good? Find out how easy it is to make these muffins in just a few easy steps. There’s no complicated recipe here — just pure goodness and CHOCOLATE!

chocolate muffins with chocolate chips baked in


Easy Chocolate Bran Muffins

Old to me but new to you! I have made these easy chocolate bran muffins for years and I have learned one thing. They NEVER fail to impress me. You won’t get used to the moist and crumbly deliciousness of these healthy chocolate muffins. Try this bran muffin recipe for breakfast and see how it’ll be your favorite part of the day. 

Why you’ll love this recipe

Aside from this being the easiest bran muffin recipe, these double chocolate muffins are moist and have the perfect amount of sweetness to them. I love a good balance of not too sweet but still sweet enough to satisfy.

These deliciously rich and chocolatey muffins are moist and full of fiber, and protein. Plus these chocolate bran muffins are kid friendly

Ingredients in Double Chocolate Bran Muffins

  • Bran: I’m using Original All Bran Cereal for this muffin recipe, this is an important ingredient and doesn’t have a substitution, unless you find a generic equivalent.
  • Milk: You can use any kind of milk, regular or nondairy, any fat content.
  • Applesauce: This helps the muffins be nice and moist without a ton of added oil.
  • Vegetable oil: I prefer oil in my muffin recipes for a neutral flavor and moist recipe.
  • Cocoa powder: Unsweetened cocoa powder makes it nice and chocolatey (not Dutch process).

Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!

chocolate muffins with chocolate chips baked in

How to make Chocolate Bran Muffins

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners and spray them with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. Place bran cereal and milk in a medium bowl. Make sure all the bran is underneath the milk; set aside to soak at least 10 minutes while mixing the remaining ingredients.
  3. Place sugar, applesauce, oil, egg, salt, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Stir or use a hand mixer to mix until smooth. Stir in cocoa powder.
  4. Add the bran cereal mixture to the sugar mixture along with the flour and stir or mix until combined.
  5. Fill muffin cups then bake for about 20 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool for at least 10 minutes before removing the wrappers.
  6. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. 
chocolate muffins with chocolate chips baked in

Expert Tips + Diet Variations

  • Any kind of milk is okay to use–any fat content, regular milk, or nondairy.
  • You can substitute sugar-free sweetener for the sugar to make these sugar free muffins. (I use equal amounts Swerve Granulated but amount used will differ for other brands)
  • For a more traditional mouth feel, omit applesauce and increase oil to ¼ cup.
  • For a lower-fat muffin, omit the oil and increase applesauce to ¼ cup (will change the texture slightly.)
  • For lower cholesterol, use 2 egg whites in place of the 1 large egg (will slightly change the texture).
  • You can use half and half all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour or substitute all the AP flour with 1:1 Gluten Free flour to make gluten-free muffins.

FAQs

Can you put chocolate chips in bran muffins?

Yes! I love adding some mini chocolate chips to the mix. 

What should the consistency of muffin batter look like?

Should be thick, lumpy, and have no bubbles. It’s ok if your muffin batter is a little dry and you see some flour in there. 

How do you know when muffins are done baking

Poke a toothpick in the muffin and it should come out clean, free of any crumbs or batter. 

Can you freeze bran muffins?

Yes. You can freeze these bran muffins for up to 3 months.

chocolate muffins with chocolate chips baked in

Chocolate Bran Muffins Recipe

4.67 from 3 votes
A skinny chocolate muffin with only 102 calories and 3.5 grams of protein!
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Yield 12 muffins
Serving Size 1 muffin
Diet: Diabetic, Gluten Free, Low Calorie, Low Lactose

Ingredients
 

  • 2 cups (123g) All Bran Cereal
  • 1 ¼ cups milk nondairy, nonfat, or 2%
  • ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons (33g) unsweetened applesauce
  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) vegetable oil
  • 1 large egg
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • ½ cup (40g) unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
  • ¾ cup (93g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup (170g) chocolate chips optional
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Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners and spray them with nonstick cooking spray.
  • Place bran cereal and milk in a medium bowl. Make sure all the bran is underneath the milk; set aside to soak while mixing remaining ingredients.
  • Place sugar, applesauce, oil, egg, salt, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Stir or use a hand mixer to mix until smooth. Stir in coco powder.
  • Add bran cereal mixture to the sugar mixture along with the flour and stir or mix until combined. Stir in chocolate chips if using.
  • Fill muffin cups ¾ full. Bake 18-24 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool at least 10 minutes before removing wrappers or they’ll pull off some of the muffin.
  • Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Recipe Notes

  • Any kind of milk is okay to use – any fat content, regular milk or nondairy.
  • You can substitute sugar-free sweetener for the sugar (I use equal amounts Swerve
  • Granulated amount used will differ for other brands)
  • For a fluffier muffin, omit applesauce and increase oil to ¼ cup.
  • For a lower-fat muffin, omit oil and increase applesauce to ¼ cup (will change the texture slightly.)
  • For lower cholesterol, use 2 egg whites in place of the 1 large egg (will slightly change the texture).
  • You can use half and half all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour or substitute all the AP flour with 1:1 Gluten Free flour to make gluten-free muffins.

Recipe Nutrition

Serving: 1muffin | Calories: 138kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 92mg | Potassium: 314mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 242IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 123mg | Iron: 3mg
Nutritional information not guaranteed to be accurate
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American

Muffin Recipes We Love

Last Updated on February 14, 2023



Dorothy Kern

Welcome to Crazy for Crust, where I share recipes that are sometimes crazy, often with a crust, and always served with a slice of life.

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95 Comments

  1. Hi! These look amazing and I am looking forward to trying them, but I have a question. In the pictures the muffins have chocolate chips but the recipe doesn’t? How much chocolate chips would you add to this? Thanks!

  2. What do you think about using oatmeal instead of Bran Flakes in the chocolate skinny muffins?? Do you think it would work? I just do not like the texture of bran flakes, unless you grind them….maybe I should have read the directions first!!

    1. Once they’re soaked, the flakes get soft, so they break up into the muffin. But oatmeal might be a good sub – I’d use regular oatmeal, not quick cooking. Let me know if they work!

  3. Quick question. I’m on a no “processed” food program so I can’t have the bran cereal. Do you think I could do a flaxseed or maybe even bran flour instead? Or does it have to be the bran cereal?

    1. I think the cereal gives it the body. You can try a flour or flaxseed, but I’m not sure how they will turn out. You’d probably need less milk (since the milk is to soften the cereal). If you try it, let me know how it works out!

  4. By the way, for those trying to watch what you eat, download a free food tracking app. I use My FitnEss Pal. If youre eating anything with a bar code, you can just scan it. If youre making your own recipe, you can add the nutrition profile for each ingredient. It works great and will really help you as it not only monitors calories but protein, fat , carbs, fiber etc. You put in your current weight and your goal and it will also give you a rough target to reach every day. What I did is just eat normally for a couple weeks but log everything. I thought I was eating ‘healthy’ with protein cereal…but unbeknownst to me I was eating many servings and starting out the day with 800 or more calories. YIKES. yes, things like Kashi may say they have protein, but they also have sugar and carbs and almost no one eats one serving. Youll be surprised what you put in your mouth every day when you start logging – and become accountable. You can see where youre falling off the wagon. Try eating healthier , measuring your portions when you can, having healthy snacks and youll be surprised. I saw results immediately and have lost 20 pounds already without ANY exercise. Just modifying what Im eating and Im not sacrificing anything and Im not hungry

  5. Cant say Ive tried t his yet and probably wont because I have a feeling theyre going to taste like All Bran fiber…plus I dont want to buy an entire box just to use a little bit. But if youre trying to eat more protein in the morning, 3g of a carb muffin isnt going to do the trick. Try a protein shake – either homemade or EAS Carb Control makes good ones with only 100 calories and 17 g of protein with no like 1g or less of sugar – comes in chocolate, strawberry, vanilla. Quest Protein Bars are another great choice…They come in a variety of flavors from breakfast friendly banana nut muffin to sweets like chocolate chip cookie dought, white chocolate berry and apple pie…and lunch like peanut butter and jelly. These are probably the healthiest bars out there…They are all 200 calories or less, have about 20g of protein with 17 grams of fiber. How many of these muffins would you need to eat? Otherwise, egg white omelettes are the way to go – if you must buy something like Egg Beaters…They have a SW flavor that adds onions and peppers or you can add fresh veggies like mushrooms or spinach…Or make a fritatta and then youll have a few portions for the next few days…Very simple too. If you must bake some treats, try almond meal/flour to avoid the carbs. Do you need treats? Sure. Do you have fun baking and coming up recipes? It sounds like you do. But lets be real…If youre trying to make serious changes to your diiet and youre really trying to boost your workouts with nutrition and eat more protein, a 3g muffin with chocolate chips isnt going to cut it. The full nutritional profile for the recipe isnt listed, but the options above are going to be quick and give you a much bigger boost – and fill you up more in the AM. You can easily eat 200 or fewer calories with the items above and get a lot more protein so youre not starving by lunchtime. Even if you want to eat one of the higher protein oatmeals in the morning, mix in a little whey protein power for a boost – you can use chocolate there too

  6. So I’m trying to lose weight for our cruise this summer. Breakfast is the worst meal for me. I either eat cereal and I’m hungry like 30 minutes later or I eat 3 (homemade, but small) biscuits which does keep me full longer but not very nutritious. I am not a big protein fan, and I hate eggs! Ugh! If I don’t stay fully eat junk! So I’m going to try these…

  7. I made the muffins, but I used regular almond milk (30 calorie per serving kind) and I didn’t have the bran, so I used vanilla lean protien powder…still only 102 calories and amazing! Thanks for this recipe…I was trying to use things I had in the house, so I had to alter, but I bet yours are better…I much prefer chocolate almond milk!!! 🙂

  8. hahaha, I’m laughing so hard at your… “ammendments… to your typical daily meals. So would’ve done that!

  9. Oh thank you for this! I laughed right out loud at the bit about checking your body fat. I went Paleo last week and was semi-furious about gaining a tiny bit after all was said an done. Of course there was that huge slap of Costco chocolate cake that I had last night… and the donuts on Saturday morning… Paleo smaleo! Anyways, these muffins look great – I’ll have to buy bran cereal when I’m at the grocery store next.