I am not much of a cook or a baker, for that matter, but I recently had results from a blood test that my cholesterol is high, so I turned to my mother-in-law.
“I seem to remember you made Papa muffins to help Jerry reduce his cholesterol,” I said.
“Yes, he’s the only person I know who reduced his cholesterol through diet,” she replied.
“Can I have the recipe?” Minga (that’s her grandma name) sent me a text with a picture of her recipe card.
Papa died in 2004, so it’d been a while since she had made his muffins, but my daughters all remember them fondly as a treat when they stayed at Minga and Papa’s house.
My first attempt was severely lacking. Once I found the Oat Bran cereal, I wasn’t sure what package meant. Was it like oatmeal that can be bought in individual packets? Thank goodness, Minga is only a text away for consultation.
“No, package means the whole box.”
The liquid to dry parts seemed uneven to me, but I followed the recipe. The muffins were dry and crumbly and difficult to eat.
Around the holiday season, I love pumpkin flavor, so I wondered how they would taste with pumpkin rather than bananas. Moister? I hoped.
A batch around Thanksgiving was good with the added pumpkin, but it wasn’t until Christmas Eve that I perfected the recipe. I only added 1 cup of flour, rather than 2 cups.
Today, New Year’s Eve, the batch is even better. I cut down on cooking time and added vanilla to the wet part. Yum! Yum!
Papa muffins will be a traditional holiday treat!
Recipe for Perfect Papa Pumpkin Muffins
1 box oat bran cereal
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 T baking powder
1 T baking soda
1 t cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar (I used organic cane sugar)
pinch of saltMix together
4 eggs
2 cups skim milk
1/3 cup oil
4 heavy squirts of honey
2 ripe bananas or 1 can pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon vanillaMix wet parts and add to dry. Stir. Do not beat.
Line and spray muffin tins.
Bake at 400 degrees for 16 minutes or until brown.Makes 24-28 muffins.
Anne Simon and Margaret Simon
Reflections on the Teche 
We’re both writing baking posts today. However, your recipe is much healthier than mine. Kudos for perfecting a family recipe! It will be remembered for holidays to come.
Oh, this is lovely! Did you see Amy LV’s recent post about bread? It made me think that I’d go through my recipe books of handed-down recipes for writing prompts. Sorry about the blood test. BTDT…and now on the meds. I took up swimming and it’s helped a lot!
I always think about the way writing is like baking when I read baking posts about changing and adapting recipes. And because I’m also needing to lower my cholesterol and blood sugar, I’m snagging your recipe. The best part of this is the obvious love between you and your mother-in-law.
I love the connections that abound in recipes. I’m sorry to hear about the high cholesterol though. Mine was high several years ago and I reduced it with some hard core dietary changes. It’s fine now 🙂 (yay!) but it probably wouldn’t hurt to try Papa’s muffins–especially now that you’ve perfected them.
Thanks for sharing your special recipe. My daughter has been collecting and creating her grandma’s (my mom’s) recipes since she moved out in May. It’s so nice to share the memories…and the food!
Happy New Year!
Let this be evidence that each generation can improve on the last! Mina >
Yum. And can’t wait to try your recipe !!!
Happy New Year, Margaret !
Wishing you and your family the best 2020 !!!
What a literal slice of life-! Helpful, practical … and those muffins look amazing. Pumpkin and vanilla – yes, gotta try that. ❤
I love your revisionist approach! Made my mouth water.