My second attempt at finding a great bran muffin is from one of my favorite sources, The Cheese Board in Berkeley. They’re known for their fabulous cheese counter (it has pretty much every cheese imaginable), but they’ve also got great baked goods. We weren’t disappointed, these are much better than the last ones. The addition of molasses gives them that deep, earthy flavor I love and buttermilk makes them moist. My only issue with them is that I don’t particularly like the walnuts and raisins, but they can be left out. I added them because Larry requested the muffins, so he gets the final say in nuts and raisins. If you’re interested in the recipe, it can be found online here.

• Bran Muffins (The Cheese Board: Collective Works, p. 52)