Cranberry Orange Muffins

The moist, fluffy interior cake of this muffin has a sweet, buttery, orange flavor that combines so well with the fresh cranberries. If you love Orange Cranberry Bread you'll love these jumbo, bakery style muffins.

Ingredients

Before starting this recipe, you'll want to verify that you have the following ingredients:

• All-purpose, unbleached flour - Makes up the fluffy "cake" part of this muffin.
• Sugar - You'll need conventional granulated white sugar to make these muffins.
• Baking powder - Helps these muffins to rise in combination with the baking soda.
• Baking soda - Helps these muffins to rise in combination with the baking powder.
• Salt - Helps to enhance the flavor of these muffins and balance the sweetness.
• Orange - You'll need a healthy-skinned, fresh orange for the juice& zest. This gives the cake the delicious orange flavor.
• Egg - Binds ingredients and helps these to rise up.
• Buttermilk - Adds moisture to these muffins. *see notes below in recipe card to make your own.
• Butter - Unsalted, melted, butter adds moisture to these muffins.
• Cranberries - These taste best with whole, fresh cranberries. They will naturally burst in the batter when baking.

Equipment and Supplies Needed

We used the following equipment and supplies to make this recipe. Items that are optional or can be substituted will be noted.

• Jumbo Muffin Pan - Consider using a lightly colored baking sheet to prevent a dark ring around your muffin tops. I have since changed pans myself since mine was dark. Lighter pans will also not burn your baked good very quickly which is always a plus!
• Muffin Tin Liners - I buy white jumbo muffin tin liners at Walmart for around $1! They are perfect for baking jumbo muffins and peel off easily.
• Measuring cups & spoons - to measure ingredients out.
• Whisk - To combine dry ingredients.
• Wooden spoon - These combine nicely with just a good ole' fashioned wooden spoon-- no hand mixers needed!
• Citrus juicer & zester - Used to remove the juice & yummy skin zest from your orange(s).
• Ice cream scooper - Helps to scoop the batter neatly into the muffin pan liners.

This recipe is easy to make if you know the right tips and tricks! Here are my tips for ensuring your Cranberry Orange Muffins come out perfectly.

Cranberries

You do not need to precook, or chop your cranberries before baking. Despite the tartness of a whole, plain, cranberry, there is no need to precook them before adding them to this bread batter. Simply add them to the batter whole and they will burst while baking.

Homemade Buttermilk

Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to ⅔ cup of whole milk. Allow to sit for for 5-10 minutes.

If you want to store your Orange Cranberry Muffins, just follow these easy steps.

Freezer

• You can freeze cranberry orange loaf once it is fully cooled. Wrap in aluminum foil and then place it in an airtight freezer bag. If you can use a food saver that would work even better. As with most baked goods, this will last up to 3 months in a deep freezer.

Room Temperature

These muffins will last for up to 4 days at room temperature for best taste. Store them in a cool, dry, place in an airtight container.

Follow the recipe below to make Cranberry Orange Muffins! This recipe makes 6 Jumbo Muffins, but you can adjust the recipe card for other serving sizes.