Hey to mid November already, woah!
I’m actually loving it, this time between Thanksgiving and Christmas always feels a little warm and fuzzy, like the holidays have begun, even though we’re not quite there yet.
People are starting to put up their Christmas lights and decorations, the snow has blanketed the ground for the foreseeable future, the fireplace is on more often and I am drinking my weight in hot drinks. It seriously gets me in the mood to bake; and if you know me, you know that’s kind of a big deal because I secretly don’t like baking (although it continues to grow on me).
These white chocolate cranberry orange muffins are the perfect way to get the holiday baking rolling. They are a nice little treat for an afternoon snack and make a perfect addition to your kids school lunchboxes.
Why you’ll love this cranberry orange muffin recipe
They are PACKED with orange flavour. With a full 1/3 cup of orange juice and 2 tsp of orange zest, this orange flavour is super prominent. It is sweet, tangy and smells great!
Super flavourful with less sugar. The typical muffin recipe asks for a cup or more of sugar. This recipe calls for only a 1/2 cup of sugar and yields a sweet, tangy muffin. WIth the addition of white chocolate chips, there’s just no need for all that extra sugar.
You can use any cranberry, fresh, frozen or even dried, just use whatever ones you have on hand. I love frozen because they thaw perfectly while being baked but stay together for perfect bursts of tangy cranberry with each bite. Fresh are a close second. If you want to use dried, you can definitely do it, just remember it will yield a sweeter muffin due to the sugars that come out in the dried cranberries.
They can be frozen and do pretty well for up to 3 months, just keep them in the fridge once thawed. They’ll last about 3 days.
Can these be made gluten free
I don’t see why not. I’ve never made these gluten-free but with a good gluten-free flour at a one-to-one ratio, I can’t see it being an issue.
If you decide to give it a try, let me know how it turns out.
Ingredients needed for these muffins
These delicious white chocolate cranberry orange muffins use pretty basic pantry ingredients, (sugar, vanilla, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt) most of which you’ll have on hand. You’ll also need a handful of more special (but easy to find) ingredients like orange juice, greek yogurt and frozen cranberries.
A couple important things on this recipe:
All purpose flour – you can definitely use whole wheat flour here, but I much prefer all-purpose flour in theis recipe.
Eggs – having them at room temperature is actually important for this recipe. They mix more easily, give a silkier smoother texture and a lighter more airy muffin.
Cinnamon – if you’re not a fan of cinnamon, you can omit it. But, it is more about adding depth than flavour in this recipe, so my suggestion is to keep it.
Orange juice & zest – using good quality orange juice yields a much more flavourful muffin that isn’t too sweet here, so it is worth squeezing fresh. It’s the equivalent of about one large navel orange.
Greek yogurt – I love Greek yogurt here, because I love any chance to get some more protein into our kids – but sour cream works really well in this recipe too, so feel free to sub.
Frozen cranberries – as I mentioned before you can use any cranberries for these cranberry orange muffins, but I prefer frozen. They yield the perfect texture and burst of tangy cranberry.
How to make cranberry orange muffins
Cream room temperature butter alone until it’s smooth. Then you’re going to add the sugar until it’s fully combined, light and fluffy.
Add the rest of the wet ingredients one at a time., First the eggs, then the yogurt and vanilla. Lastly the orange juice and zest.
Combine your dry ingredients. Then mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until it’s fully combined. Just be careful not to overmix. You want a light fludffy batter here, not a dense and chewy one.
Scoop into your muffin tin to the top. These muffins don’t rise a ton so you don’t have to worry about them spilling over too much.
These white chocolate cranberry orange muffins are packed with juicy cranberries, tons of orange flavour and sweet white chocolate chips for a holiday twist on a family favourite muffin recipe.
They are super light and airy, not too sweet and bursting with tangy flavours.
If you’re looking for other muffin recipes, you have GOT to try some other recipes like my triple berry oat muffins or my dark chocolate pecan banana mini muffins yum!
White Chocolate Cranberry Orange Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar + 1 tsp
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 2 tsp orange zest
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 11/2 cups frozen cranberries do not thaw
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F and spray your muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with cupcake liners, set aside.
- In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the room temperature butter on high speed until smooth and creamy. Add the 1/2 cup of sugar and beat on high until creamed together, about 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed to make sure all the sugar is incorporated. Next add the eggs, yogurt, and vanilla. Beat on medium speed until the mixture is combined and smooth in texture. Lastly add the orange juice and zest and mix just until combined.
- In a separate bowl, toss your dry ingredients together (flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt). Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined (be careful not to over mix). Next fold in the cranberries and white chocolate chips with a wooden spoon or spatula.
- Spoon the batter into your muffin pan, filling them all the way to the top. Use the remaining tsp of sugar and sprinkle the top of each muffin with a little. Bake at 400F for 8 minutes, then keeping the muffins in the oven, lower the temperature to 350F (and bake for 13-15 more minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let cool and serve. Muffins can be kept in an airtight container on the counter for 2-3 days, or in the fridge for 4-5 days. They can also be frozen.
Notes
Nutrition
If you make these muffins, I’d love to hear all about it. Please comment below, post it on Instagram and tag me @mysweetmess and hashtag #mysweetmess. And if you really love it, please share the link with friends and family.
Other recipes you might enjoy
DARK CHOCOLATE CARAMEL PECAN PRETZELS
OLD FASHIONED PUMPKIN SPICE CAKIES
DARK CHOCOLATE PECAN AND BANANA MINI MUFFINS
Till the next recipe,
Kristen xo
I love cranberries year round and they’re so handy to freeze for later use. These are the kinds of muffins I love, especially when you add white chocolate. Also, thanks for the reminder. This weekend is Christmas lights!
Bernice – we are putting our Christmas lights up this weekend too, hopefully the weather holds up. I’m a big cranberry fan too – they’re just so versatile aren’t they?
Cranberries are lovely with white chocolate! These look irresistible, feeling the holidays coming with these flavors. Lovely recipe!
Thank you, they definitely have that Christmas vibe.
wow what a bright and vibrant muffin! The kid really loves it and has requested this be on next week’s lunch menu!
I’m so glad family enjoys them Nancy, thanks for commenting.
These look so good! Love the flavor combo if white chocolate/orange and cranberry! Do they freeze well?
Thanks so much! They freeze quite well in an airtight container for a month or so.
I know what you mean about ‘the time in between’- I feel exactly the same way 🙂 And these are the perfect muffins for it. In fact, these are like a dream muffin for me….I remember copying down a recipe for a cranberry orange loaf (out of a book at the library and fell in love with in Grade 4) and making it. This reminds me of that recipe, but healthier! Thank you!
Oh I love this Terri, thanks for sharing that. Sounds like you’ve loved food for a long time.
Well, I’ve already got that extra bag of cranberries that I always buy this time of year, and there’s an orange on the countertop. I love that these muffins have a pronounced orange flavor!
Fantastic Jeff, so glad you enjoy the orange flavour – it’s definitely my favourite part.