Gingery Cran-Bran Muffins

B vitamins and folate promote your baby’s cell, brain, and neural tube development, and the fiber helps your digestion.

THESE healthy muffins make a great breakfast or snack. The cranberries, ginger, and walnuts are all optional—work with what you have in your pantry and what you like to eat. If you can’t find All-Bran cereal, any cereal with a high bran content will work. No buttermilk in the fridge? Make your own by adding 1 tablespoon of cider vinegar to 1 cup of milk. Vegan? Use your favorite nondairy milk made into buttermilk and omit the egg. These muffins will keep in the fridge for five days and they freeze beautifully.

MAKES 15 REGULAR MUFFINS OR 52 MINI MUFFINS

Cooking spray (optional)

Bran or similar cereal

1 cup boiling water

¼ cup canola oil or melted unsalted butter

¾ cup sugar

1 cup buttermilk

1 large egg

1¼ cups all-purpose flour

1¼ teaspoons baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground ginger

½ cup dried cranberries or chopped dried apricots (optional)

½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)

⅓ cup chopped candied ginger (optional)

• Preheat the oven to 400°F. Spray the muffin wells with cooking spray or line with muffin liners.

• Place the cereal in a small bowl and pour the boiling water over it—do not stir. Set aside.

• Combine the canola oil and sugar in a large bowl and whisk together. Add the buttermilk and egg and whisk again. Add the flour, baking soda, salt, and ground ginger, and whisk just until well combined. Add the cereal mixture and mix with a spoon, then add the dried cranberries, walnuts, and/or candied ginger, if using, and mix just until combined. (The batter will be quite thick.) Let the batter sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.

• Stir the batter, then divide evenly among the prepared muffin wells. Bake until a tester inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean: about 20 minutes for regular muffins, about 12 minutes for mini muffins. Transfer the muffins to a wire rack to cool.

Meal ideas

• Protein, such as natural nut butter or eggs

• Reduced-fat milk or yogurt (Mango-Chia Smoothie, here)

• Fresh fruit

Meal ideas and tips for diabetes

• Opt for making mini muffins or reduce your portion size.

• Protein, such as natural nut butter or eggs

• Reduced-fat milk or unsweetened reduced-fat yogurt, 1 CARB

1 regular bran muffin: Calories: 205 cals; Protein: 5 g; Carbohydrates: 35 g; Fat: 7 g; Fiber: 6 g; Sodium: 60 mg; B₆: 1 mg; B₁₂: 3 mcg; Niacin: 4 mg; Riboflavin: 0.3 mg; Thiamine: 0.3 mg; Folate: 213 mcg; Manganese: 1 mg; 2 CARBS

1 mini bran muffin: Calories: 59 cals; Protein: 1 g; Carbohydrates: 10 g; Fat: 2 g; Fiber: 2 g; Sodium: 17 mg; B₁₂: 0.8 mcg; 1 CARB