Julie Clark
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Cranberry Orange Muffins
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Combine two classic fruit flavors! Cranberry Orange Muffins can be frozen as unbaked batter or as baked muffins for a quick breakfast muffin.
Great to be back at Tastes of Lizzy T’s today. I am Sherri, the youngest sister in the trio over at Made From Pinterest. I just recently sent my oldest sister Debbie a text that read: “You awful woman! Those White Chocolate Cranberry Blondies you told me I HAD to make are going to torture me until I get rid of them at the choral concert tonight. Ate too much batter, ate too much frosting, ate two tiny pieces and I CAN’T STOP THINKING ABOUT THEM!
I really can’t stop thinking about them. They came to mind again when I was making Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake, one of my daughter’s all time favorite breakfasts. So I have combined the flavor of orange and cranberry from the blondies with the recipe for breakfast cake and came up with these uh-mazing Cranberry Orange Muffins.
Only when I tasted the batter before baking (Because all good bakers do, right? You just have to lick the beater.), I realized something was wrong. They were salty. I had accidentally put twice the amount of salt the recipe calls for. So, I did what any sensible baker would do, and doubled the recipe. It was more than we could eat, and I was trying to think of a way to have them again (Because now the batter tasted incredible!).
I spooned the batter into paper muffin cups, froze half, and baked the other half. Now when I want a muffin for breakfast, I pop the frozen muffin dough into the muffin tin, put it in the preheated oven and bake for 5 – 10 minutes longer than usual. Love it! Fresh muffins, no prep, no mess. With school out for winter break, these will be a perfect special breakfast that will let you relax and enjoy you time with your kiddos!
Cranberry Orange Muffins
Cranberry Orange Muffins with dried cranberries, orange zest and buttermilk. Make a double batch & freeze the batter to bake up fresh muffins any time!
Servings 15 muffins
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 16 minutes
Total Time 26 minutes
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 tsp orange zest
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup fresh buttermilk - if buttermilk is closer to the sell by date and thick may need as much as another half cup.
- 2 cups dried cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Cream butter with orange zest and ¾ cup of sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
- Add the flour mixture to the batter a little at a time, alternating with the buttermilk. Be careful to not overmix.
- Fold in cranberries.
- Grease a muffin tin or with butter or spray paper muffin cups with non stick spray. Spoon batter into cups ¾ full. Sprinkle muffins with remaining tablespoons of sugar.
- Bake for 5 minutes at 425 degrees. Lower the oven temperature (without opening the oven door) to 375 degrees and bake for an additional 10-12 minutes, or until the a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
Baking for as long as 10 minutes more might be necessary.
Nutrition
Calories: 170kcal
Not a bad recipe. The cranberries are just the right amount giving the muffins a nice tart pop without overtaking them. I really like the sugar crunch on top. I did have an issue with the consistency of them. They feel like there is too much flour. Making them kind of lump up in your mouth. But, since they are tasty, a little extra chewing time isn’t always horrible.
I had a ginormous bag of Craisins from Costco just sitting around (seriously, who can eat that many cranberries?!). This recipe was so easy and good! Followed it to a “t” except instead of buttermilk, I used lactose free 3.25% fat milk with the juice from the orange added as the acid to curdle it. Love that they’re dessert and breakfast! Thanks so much for the recipe!
I’ve made these a couple times now. Exactly by recipe. Delicious!!
I added a tablespoon of frozen orange juice.
Did you use plain flour? Al ways get confused when a recipe calls for baking powder and salt.
These are fabulous! On my first attempt I thought the batter tasted too salty so I added 1/4 cup Vermont maple syrup and another one fourth cup of flour. and in an act of pure decadence I made a confectioner’s sugar and orange juice concentrate glaze and dipped the tops lightly when they came out of the oven. My friend slapped my hand as we both reached for the last one. I look forward to seeing more of your recipes thanks
Hi, Good morning,
Quick question, dried orange zest found in the spice section, or fresh from the source, chopped by hand? Thank you and Have a very Merry Christmas/Happy Hanukka!
Just made these muffins and they were delicious! I made them dairy free by making a few substitutions…I used oil instead of butter and orange juice instead of buttermilk. So good, thanks for a great recipe.