Favorite Bran Muffins

I make these constantly - bake them all and freeze them so I can have them whenever. They are from Jane Brody's Good Food Book - my favorite ever cookbook

YIELD: 24 muffins

INGREDIENTS
3 cups shredded bran cereal (e.g. All-Bran, 100% Bran, etc.)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup raisins (I use chocolate chips and chopped pecans - stir them in at the end)
1 cup boiling water
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups buttermilk (or milk and a few TBS lemon juice)
1/4 cup molasses
2 1/4 cups whole-wheat flour 4 teaspoons sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

PREPARATION
1. In a large bowl, combine the cereal, oil, and raisins, and pour the boiling water over them. Set the mixture aside to cool slightly.
2. In a small bowl, combine the eggs, buttermilk, and molasses. Add this to the partly cooled cereal mixture.
3. In another small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the cereal mixture, stirring just enough to moisten the dry ingredients. Cover the batter with plastic wrap, wax paper, or a damp towel, and let it stand for at least 15 minutes, preferably for 1 hour.
4. Preheat the oven to 400. Grease 24 muffin cups, and divide the batter among them filling each cup about three-fourths full. Bake the muffins for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the muffins from the oven, and, when they are slightly cooled, take them out of the tin and place them on a rack to cool completely.

This is from The Pioneer Woman

I've made this and it's delicious - not to thick and heavy.  I think it would be great with some extra veggies - like cauliflower.

Perfect Potato Soup

Prep: 10 Minutes	Level: Easy
Cook: 20 Minutes	Serves: 12

Description

Potato soup...the way I love it! Simple, delicious, and warms your soul.

Ingredients

• 6 slices Thin Bacon, Cut Into 1-inch Pieces
• 1 whole Medium Onion, Diced
• 3 whole Carrots, Scrubbed Clean And Diced
• 3 stalks Celery, Diced
• 6 whole Small Russet Potatoes, Peeled And Diced
• 8 cups Low Sodium Chicken Or Vegetable Broth
• 3 Tablespoons All-purpose Flour
• 1 cup Milk
• 1/2 cup Heavy Cream
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt, More To Taste
• Black Pepper To Taste
• 1/2 teaspoon Cajun Spice Mix
• 1 teaspoon Minced Fresh Parsley
• 1 cup Grated Cheese Of Your Choice

Preparation

Add bacon pieces to a soup pot over medium heat and cook bacon until crisp and fat is rendered. Remove the bacon from the pot and set it aside. Pour off most of the grease, but do not clean the pot.

Return the hot to medium-high heat and add the onions, carrots, and celery. Stir and cook for 2 minutes or so, then add the diced potatoes. Cook for 5 minutes, seasoning with salt, pepper, and Cajun spice.

Pour in the broth and bring it to a gentle boil. Cook for 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are starting to get tender. Whisk together the flour and the milk, then pour into the soup and allow the soup to cook for another 5 minutes.

Remove half to 2/3 the soup and blend in batches in a blender/food process until completely smooth. (***USE CAUTION WHEN BLENDING HOT SOUP; IF POSSIBLE, ALLOW THE SOUP TO COOL BEFORE BLENDING***) Pour it back into the soup pot and stir to combine. Let it heat back up as you taste for seasonings, adding more of what it needs. Stir in cream, then stir in parsley, reserving a little for garnish.

Serve in bowls garnished with parsley, grated cheese and crisp bacon pieces

Flank Steak Marinade

This is the perfect balance salty and a touch of sweet. Recipe from Simple Recipes

Marinade Ingredients

• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Other ingredients

• 2 pounds flank steak 
• 
  
• Cover steak with marinade 2 - 24 hours.