Cranberry Muffins
Get ready for the holidays with these mouthwatering cranberry muffins. Made with fresh or frozen cranberries and a sweet orange glaze, they’re a festive treat!
These cranberry muffins tick all the boxes for flavor, texture, and ease of preparation. Sour cream gives them a soft texture and adds flavor, while the cinnamon and cardamom add warmth and enhance the orange flavors. They are wonderful, fragrant muffins that are especially nice for the holidays. Cranberries are seasonal, but you can probably find them frozen year-round. You can also buy a few extra bags in the late fall and freeze them for future bakes.
Why You’ll Love These Muffins
Festive and flavorful. The muffins are bursting with tart cranberries, warm spices, and sweet orange glaze — perfect for the holidays.
Soft and moist texture. Sour cream adds richness and tenderness to the crumb, giving the muffins a bakery-style finish.
Make-ahead friendly. They store and freeze well, so you can prepare them in advance for brunches or gift boxes.
Easy to adapt. Customize with different nuts, spices, or flavorings to suit your preferences or pantry.
Ingredient Notes
- Cranberries: Fresh or thawed frozen cranberries work well. Pat them dry to prevent excess moisture in the batter.
- Flour: Use regular all-purpose flour for structure and softness.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar keeps them classic and bright. For extra depth, replace part with brown sugar.
- Oranges: You’ll need zest and juice from 2 oranges — one for the batter and a bit for the glaze.
- Cinnamon and Cardamom: These warming spices complement the cranberry and orange beautifully. You can substitute a spice blend if desired.
- Pecans: Use fresh, chopped pecans and toast them for better flavor. Walnuts are a fine alternative.
Steps to Make Cranberry Muffins
- Whisk together the dry ingredients, including flour, spices, leaveners, and salt. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar until smooth, then beat in the eggs, sour cream, vanilla, and orange zest.
- Mix in the dry ingredients and orange juice just until combined, then fold in the cranberries and pecans by hand.
- Spoon the batter into muffin cups and bake at high heat for 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature and finish baking until golden and cooked through.
- Let the muffins cool completely before drizzling with the simple orange glaze.
Ingredients
- Cranberries: Use fresh cranberries or frozen cranberries that have been thawed and patted with paper towels to remove excess moisture.
- Flour: All-purpose works best in this recipe.
- Sugar: I use granulated, but use a mixture of granulated and brown sugar if you like.
- Oranges: Zest and juice 2 oranges. You’ll use about 1 tablespoon of zest for the batter and 1 teaspoon for the glaze. And you’ll need 6 or 7 tablespoons of juice—4 for the batter and 2 to 3 for the glaze.
- Cinnamon: Adds warmth to the flavors.
- Cardamom: Adds warmth and mild citrus flavor.
- Pecans: Use chopped pecans, and check to make sure they are not old. Rancid nuts will ruin your muffins. Toast them in a dry skillet for extra nutty flavor.
Variations
- Spices: Replace the cardamom with extra cinnamon or use a blend like pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice.
- Orange: Skip the orange, and add more spice flavor, or add 1/2 teaspoon of almond flavoring along with the vanilla.
- Nuts: Use walnuts instead of pecans.
- Topping: Top the muffins with a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar just before baking.
How to Store and Reheat
Refrigerate: Store the cooled muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or refrigerate for up to 5 days.
Freeze: Freeze the muffins in a single layer, then transfer to freezer bags or containers. Label and store for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature or gently warm before serving.
To Reheat: Warm muffins in a 300°F oven for 8 to 10 minutes, or microwave individual muffins for about 15 to 20 seconds until just warm.
Cranberry Muffins
Ingredients
Muffins
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/2 cup sour cream, full fat
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, (220 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons orange juice
- 1 1/2 cups cranberries , fresh or frozen, thawed and patted dry
- 1/2 cup pecans, toasted chopped
Glaze
- 1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 2 to 3 tablespoons orange juice, or enough for desired consistency
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400 F and line a muffin tin with parchment paper liners.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and cardamom in a bowl; whisk to blend.
- Combine the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer for 2 to 3 minutes or until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, then the sour cream and vanilla. Add the orange zest, dry ingredients, and 4 tablespoons of orange juice with the mixer on low. Mix just until combined. Use a spatula to fold in the cranberries and pecans.
- Fill greased or parchment paper-lined muffin cups until full. Bake in the preheated oven for 5 minutes, then reduce to 350 F and continue baking for 18 to 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.
- Remove the muffins from the pan to a rack to cool completely.
- Combine the glaze ingredients and drizzle over the muffins.
Nutrition
Disclaimer:
Our nutritional information is based on a third-party application that analyzes the ingredients list to determine the values. The information is meant to be helpful, but should be considered an estimate. Values may differ depending on measurements, brands, serving variations, and database availability.
