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These healthy cranberry orange muffins are soft, fluffy, and bursting with tart fresh cranberries and bright orange flavor from fresh orange juice and zest. They’re easy to make, ready in about 35 minutes, and are a delicious, festive treat for the holiday season.
These muffins instantly take me back to childhood holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. I couldn’t resist lightening up this nostalgic classic while keeping all the delicious flavor and cozy holiday memories I remember. They’re perfect for your holiday table, and I know you’ll want to make them all season long! For more delicious holiday muffins, try our chocolate cranberry muffins and cranberry banana oat muffins! Plus, if you love cranberries, don’t miss our homemade cranberry sauce and cranberry overnight oats!
Table of Contents
- 🔎 Quick Look: Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Substitutions & Variations
- How to Make Healthy Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Expert Tips for the Best Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Serving Suggestions
- Storage Instructions
- More Muffin Recipes to Try!
- Healthy Cranberry Orange Muffins Recipe
🔎 Quick Look: Cranberry Orange Muffins
- ⏱️ Prep Time: 15 minutes
- ⏱️ Cook Time: 20 minutes
- 🕒 Total Time: 35 minutes
- 🍽 Calories: ~91 kcal per muffin
- 👥 Servings: 12 muffins
- 💙 WW: 2 points per muffin if using a sugar-free sweetener
- 🥣 Key Ingredients: Flour, eggs, sweetener, applesauce, orange juice, fresh cranberries
- 👩🍳 Cook Method: Baked
- ⭐ Difficulty: Easy
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Healthier: These muffins are lightened up while still keeping that classic flavor! There’s no oil or butter in this recipe.
- Easy to Make: These muffins come together quickly and easily. No mixer needed!
- Festive: They’re perfect for the holiday season or anytime you’re craving a cozy treat.
- Delicious Flavor: The combination of tart cranberries and sweet orange is bright, fresh, and delicious!
“This recipe was delicious! I like more orange flavor so I doubled the orange zest. And I took your advice and chopped the cranberries. This is now my favorite muffin recipe.”
– tami
Key Ingredients
- Dry Ingredients: Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Wet Ingredients: Whisk together the eggs, sweetener, unsweetened applesauce, fresh orange juice, vanilla extract, and orange zest.
- Cranberries: Fresh cranberries for the ultimate burst of flavor in these muffins!
Find the full measurements in the recipe card below.
Substitutions & Variations
- Add Nuts: Sprinkle 2-3 tablespoons of chopped walnuts or pecans on top before baking the muffins or fold them into the batter.
- White Chocolate Chips: Mix in some mini white chocolate chips for a touch of sweetness.
- Make it Sugar-Free: Use your favorite 1:1 sugar-free sweetener in place of sugar in this recipe.
How to Make Healthy Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Zest the entire orange, avoiding the white part (the pith), as it can taste bitter. Then, set the zest aside.
- Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to a large bowl. Thoroughly mix these dry ingredients.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, sweetener, applesauce, fresh orange juice, vanilla extract, and orange zest. Thoroughly mix these wet ingredients.
- Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients, mixing just until the batter comes together. Be careful not to over-mix.
- Lightly fold the fresh cranberries into the muffin batter.
- Line a non-stick muffin pan with parchment paper liners or lightly spray it with oil. Divide the batter evenly into 12 muffin cups.
- Bake the muffins at 350°F for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the muffins cool slightly before enjoying.
Expert Tips for the Best Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Don’t Zest the Pith: Only zest the orange skin, not the white part underneath, as it can taste bitter.
- Use Fresh Orange Juice: It gives the best bright citrus flavor.
- Room Temperature: Let the eggs come to room temperature before mixing the wet ingredients.
- Don’t Over-Mix the Batter: Mix until just combined for soft and tender muffins.
- Lightly fold in the Cranberries: This helps them stay whole and spread evenly throughout the batter.
- Use a Scoop: We like to use an ice cream scoop or measuring cup to evenly pour the batter into the muffin pan.
- Batter Consistency: If you’re using a sugar-free sweetener and the muffin batter seems a bit dry, add 1 tablespoon of your milk of choice at a time until the batter reaches the right consistency.
- Texture: You can leave the fresh cranberries whole for juicy bursts of flavor or lightly pulse them in a blender or food processor to spread the cranberry flavor more evenly throughout the batter.
Serving Suggestions
These cranberry orange muffins are delicious served warm or at room temperature. Enjoy them with a cup of coffee, tea, or a cozy chai latte with almond milk for the perfect breakfast or snack. You can even spread a little Greek yogurt or light cream cheese on top!
They also make the perfect addition to a festive platter for holiday gatherings. For more delicious recipe inspiration for the holidays, check out our roundup of 30+ healthy Thanksgiving sides, 20+ healthy Thanksgiving desserts, and Weight Watchers Thanksgiving recipes!
Storage Instructions
Storing: Store leftover homemade cranberry orange muffins in an airtight container at room temperature on the counter for up to one day or in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Freezing: Or, you can freeze these muffins for 1-2 months in a freezer-safe airtight container.
More Muffin Recipes to Try!
Breakfast
Chocolate Cranberry Muffins
Breakfast
Healthy Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Cottage Cheese
Cottage Cheese Blueberry Muffins
Breakfast
Greek Yogurt Chocolate Chip Muffins
If you try this recipe, please be sure to leave us a comment and star rating, ★★★★★, letting us know how it turns out for you.
Healthy Cranberry Orange Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs, whisked
- 3/4 cup sugar or 1:1 sugar-free sweetener
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- zest of 1 large orange
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
Instructions
- Zest the entire orange, avoiding the white part (the pith), as it can taste bitter. Set the zest aside.
- Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to a large bowl. Thoroughly mix these dry ingredients.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, sweetener, applesauce, fresh orange juice, vanilla extract, and orange zest. Thoroughly mix these wet ingredients.
- Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients, mixing just until the batter comes together. Be careful not to over-mix.
- Lightly fold the fresh cranberries into the muffin batter.
- Line a non-stick muffin pan with parchment paper liners or lightly spray it with oil. Divide the batter evenly into 12 muffin cups.
- Bake the muffins at 350°F for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the muffins cool slightly before enjoying.
Video
Notes
- Texture: You can leave the fresh cranberries whole for juicy bursts of flavor or lightly pulse them in a blender or food processor to spread the cranberry flavor more evenly throughout the batter.
- Batter Consistency: If you’re using a sugar-free sweetener and the muffin batter seems a bit dry, add 1 tablespoon of your milk of choice at a time until the batter reaches the right consistency.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe was delicious! I tweaked it a bit. I like using bananas instead of applesauce so I used two large smashed bananas instead of the applesauce. I used Kodiak instead of flour to reduce the WW points to 1 pry muffin. I like more orange flavor so I doubled the orange zest. And I took your advice and chopped the cranberries. This is now my favorite muffin recipe 😊
Hi Tami, I am so glad you enjoyed these healthy cranberry orange muffins! Your tweaks sound wonderful. Using mashed banana, swapping in Kodiak, adding extra orange zest, and chopping the cranberries all sound delicious. I love hearing how you made it your own. I am so happy these muffins are a new favorite.
These are the perfect holiday muffins! Cozy, bright, and festive for Christmas, Thanksgiving, or any seasonal brunch. They’re just as great for breakfast or a quick snack with your coffee.