Orange Cranberry Sauce Muffins
Orange Cranberry Sauce Muffins are moist, tender, and full of a zippy, sweet combination of orange and cranberry flavor. Then, they’re topped with a sweet orange glaze. They’re the perfect treat for the holiday season.
We love keeping all kinds of treats on hand throughout the holiday season, and muffins are a particular favorite. After all, if visitors don’t eat them all, we do! These delicious cranberry and orange muffins are loaded with classic holiday flavor, and they’re so easy to make. You can’t beat that!
Table of contents
❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Simple Ingredients: All it takes to make these muffins is cranberry sauce and basic baking ingredients.
- Easy to Make: This is a simple, beginner-friendly recipe. Just mix and bake!
- Holiday Flavor: The cranberry sauce and orange extract create a classic holiday flavor profile.
- Versatile: Serve these as a snack or dessert at holiday parties or enjoy them as a sweet breakfast throughout the holiday season.
🛒Ingredients
You’ll only need some basic baking ingredients to make this recipe, and you’ll find them all in your kitchen or at your local grocery store. They’re all listed here, but you’ll find their exact amounts in the recipe card at the end of the post.
Muffins
- Flour
- Sugar
- Brown sugar
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Melted butter
- Orange extract
- Eggs
- Buttermilk
- Orange zest
- Whole berry cranberry sauce
Orange Glaze
- Powdered sugar
- Orange juice
🔪 How to Make Orange Cranberry Sauce Muffins
This recipe is simple and straightforward, so it’s perfect for both beginners and seasoned pros who want a quick and easy treat they can whip up quickly.
Step 1: Prep
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside.
Step 2: Combine the Dry Ingredients
Whisk the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.
Step 3: Combine the Wet Ingredients
Whisk the melted butter and eggs in a large bowl. Then, add the orange extract and buttermilk and whisk until combined. Add the orange zest and whisk again.
Step 4: Make the Batter
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. fold the cranberry sauce into the batter with a spatula.
Step 5: Fill and Bake
Fill each muffin cup about 2/3 full of batter. Then, bake the muffins for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out cleanly.
Step 6: Make the Glaze
Whisk the powdered sugar and orange juice in a small bowl. It should be slightly runny but not so thin that it won’t stick to the tops of the muffins.
Step 7: Dip the Muffins
Turn each muffin upside down and dip the top into the glaze. Set aside to let the glaze set and enjoy!
📝Variations
Do you want to change up this recipe and make it your own? Here are some ways that you can do that!
- Lemon: You can use lemon zest, extract, and juice for a more tart version.
- Nuts: Add chopped nuts for more classic flavor and texture.
- Milk: Regular milk will work in a pinch, but the muffins won’t be quite as tender.
If you think these muffins sound good, then we think you’ll enjoy our cherry muffins, too!
🥄 Equipment
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Mixing bowls
- Muffin tin
- Muffin liners
- Small bowl
- Whisk
🥫 Storage
Store these muffins for up to 3 days in an air-tight container at room temperature.
What to Serve with Orange Cranberry Sauce Muffins
Serve these muffins as a snack with a glass of milk or a cup of coffee or tea.
You can also serve these muffins as part of a special holiday breakfast with savory favorites like bacon, ham, sausage, and eggs or as part of a larger holiday dessert spread alongside your favorite holiday-themed cakes, pies, cookies, and cupcakes.
💭 Tips
- If you don’t have buttermilk, add a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to a liquid measuring cup, then fill it with milk to the 1-cup line. Let it sit for 5 minutes, and you have buttermilk!
- Be sure to mix the ingredients until just combined or your muffins could become dense and tough.
- Use a folding motion to mix the cranberry sauce into the muffins, this ensures even distribution without overworking the batter.
⁉️ FAQ
Do you have questions about this recipe? Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions.
Just combined is a baking term that means the dry and wet ingredients have been mixed together until everything is moistened and no further. Batters like this are generally lumpy, which is totally okay!
Overmixing batter promotes the formation of gluten, a protein in wheat flour that contracts when baked. When batters are overmixed, too much gluten is formed, and dishes like muffins, cakes, and bread contract too much, creating a dense, tough final product.
You don’t need the glaze for these muffins to be delicious. They’re absolutely amazing served plain, as well!
🍽 More Recipes
Do you enjoy cranberry recipes? Then try these delicious recipes.
🧾Recipe Card
Want to make this recipe? Print the recipe card below, or pin this recipe so you can find it later.
Orange Cranberry Sauce Muffins
Equipment
- muffin pan
- cupcake liners
- medium bowl
- large mixing bowl
- Whisk
- small bowl
Ingredients
- 2 cup flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup melted butter
- 1 teaspoon orange extract
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- Zest from an orange
- 1 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
Glaze:
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 teaspoon orange juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with paper liners and set aside.
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. Set it aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and eggs.
- Add in the orange extract and buttermilk and continue to whisk. Add the zest and whisk.
- Add in the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.
- Use a spatula and fold in the cranberry sauce.
- Fill each muffin tin about ⅔ full of batter.
- Place in the oven and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out cleanly. Remove and allow to cool completely.
- To make the glaze, place the powdered sugar in a small bowl and whisk in the orange juice (adding enough juice to make the glaze runny, but not too thin that it won’t stick to the tops of the muffins).
- Turn the muffins over and dip the top of each muffin into the glaze.
