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Delicious bakery-style Cranberry Orange Muffins are full of cranberries and drizzled with a sweet orange glaze! Easy muffin recipe that’s a breakfast and brunch favorite!
Looking for more easy brunch favorites? You’ll love my French Toast, Bacon Egg Cups, and Buttermilk Pancakes!
Cranberries – and oranges – add such a bright, juicy flavor to so many delicious baked treats during the fall and winter – especially during the holidays! And these Cranberry Orange Muffins most certainly showcase the best combination of these flavors! They are the perfect combination of tartness from cranberries and oranges with moist, buttery sweetness from the bakery-style muffin. Simple, easy perfection!
This muffin recipe is an easy family favorite I’m sure you’ll love too!
Cranberry Orange Muffins
These Cranberry Orange Muffins are absolutely delicious and perfect for breakfast and brunch! Drizzled with a sweet orange glaze, they are even more special to serve during the holidays too! But please don’t save the glaze for special occasions. It’s so simple to make and takes them over the top in terms of deliciousness!
The orange glaze is made of only two simple ingredients that whisk together quickly, so I always drizzle the muffins with it, however the muffins are delicious without it, too – if you wish.
What You’ll Love About This Recipe
Incredible Flavor. The tart cranberries and orange zest combine to create amazing flavor in every bite!
Glaze Makes Extra Special. The drizzle of orange glaze gives these muffins a little something extra, making them even more special on the holidays (or any day!).
Simple Ingredients. Real ingredients you recognize are in this recipe.
How to Make Cranberry Orange Muffins
I think oranges bring out the best in cranberries! And these muffins are bursting with cranberries. The addition of fresh orange zest brings out the bright juicy flavor in these muffins.
Ingredients You’ll Need for Cranberry Orange Muffins
- All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder – helps the muffins to rise
- Salt – a touch of salt enhances the sweet and tart flavors.
- Cranberries – You can use fresh, frozen, or dried. You use fewer dried cranberries than fresh or frozen ones, and it’s better if the dried cranberries don’t have added sugar for this recipe.
- Butter – Make sure it’s softened to room temperature before you start. See How to Soften Butter in a Pinch if you are in a hurry.
- Sugar – Use granulated sugar.
- Eggs – Will bind the muffins together and give them that bakery taste and texture.
- Vanilla Extract – I like homemade vanilla extract, but you can use any quality, pure vanilla extract.
- Orange zest – Use the zest of one orange
- Milk – You’ll use a half cup.
- Orange Glaze (optional) – You’ll mix a couple of tablespoons of Orange Juice with Confectioner’s Sugar for drizzling over the warm muffins.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Prepare Muffin Tins and Preheat Oven: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray muffin tins with baking spray or coat well with shortening or butter and flour, discarding any excess flour from tins after coating.
Sift the Dry Baking Ingredients: Sift together all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
Prepare the Cranberries: In a separate bowl, toss together the fresh or frozen cranberries and 2 teaspoons of flour to coat the cranberries. Set aside. If you are using dried cranberries, skip this step.
Mix the Wet Ingredients: Cream together butter and sugar until lightened in color, or about 3 minutes. Add an egg, one at a time, taking care to fully incorporate it before adding the next egg. Mix in vanilla and orange zest.
Add the Dry Ingredients: Gently fold in the flour mixture and alternate with milk. Stir until just combined. Fold in cranberries.
Fill the Muffin Pans: Scoop mixture into prepared muffin tins. Fill tins about 2/3 to ¾ full.
Bake. Bake until a toothpick or skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 30 minutes.
Make the Orange Glaze: While the muffins are baking, stir together the orange juice and confectioner’s sugar until well combined.
Glaze and serve. Once the muffins have baked, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool slightly in the muffin tin. Then remove each muffin, place it on your serving platter or plate, and drizzle with Orange Glaze.
I like to serve them slightly warm, but they are delicious after they’ve cooled as well.
Can I Use Dried Cranberries Instead of Fresh?
Yes! You may use dried cranberries instead of fresh ones if you wish.
As I mentioned, I use a lot of cranberries in this recipe, so if you use dried cranberries instead of fresh, you use a lesser amount of them as specified in my recipe.
Can I Use Frozen Cranberries?
Yes, you may use frozen cranberries. Use the same amount of frozen cranberries as you would fresh ones.
How Do You Prepare Fresh Cranberries for Baking?
To prepare fresh or frozen cranberries for baking and prevent them from sinking to the bottom of your muffins as they bake, simply toss them in a bit of all-purpose flour to coat them. Then, when instructed in the recipe, gently fold them into the muffin batter. The muffins will then have cranberries throughout. You do not do this with dried cranberries.
I’ll warn you, these are hard to resist! So, while the recipe is sized perfectly for 12 muffins, you may want to make a few extras as they’ll disappear quickly.
How to Make Ahead, Store and Freeze Cranberry Orange Muffins
These muffins come together quickly and are also easy to make ahead. This makes them perfect for easy entertaining if you have guests for the weekend or for serving at holiday brunches too!
To store: Once they’ve cooled completely, they can be stored underneath a cake dome for 3 to 4 days at room temperature.
To freeze: Place cooked and cooled muffins onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place the baking sheet into the freezer for 30 – 45 minutes so that each muffin individually freezes. If you wish, you can wait to add the glaze if you know you’ll be freezing them, but they can be frozen with the glaze as well. Once frozen, transfer the frozen muffins into a zip-top freezer-safe bag or other freezer-safe containers and freeze for up to 3 months.
To serve: When ready to serve, remove them from the freezer and let them thaw completely. I like to serve these warm (but you can serve them at room temperature as well), so I will reheat them a bit before serving.
More Muffin Recipes to Try
More Muffin Recipes
Here’s my Cranberry Orange Muffins recipe. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!
Cranberry Orange Muffins Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour + 2 teaspoons for coating fresh cranberries, if used
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups fresh cranberries or 1 cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup unsalted butter , room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- zest of 1 orange
- ½ cup milk
Orange Glaze:
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375º F. Spray muffin tins with bakers spray or coat well with shortening or butter and flour, making sure to discard any excess flour from the tins after coating.
- Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Toss together fresh cranberries and 2 teaspoons of flour to coat cranberries in a separate bowl. Set aside. If using dried cranberries, simply skip this step.
- Cream together butter and sugar until lightened in color, about 3 minutes. Add an egg, one at a time, taking care to fully incorporate before adding the other. Mix in vanilla and orange zest.
- Gently fold in flour mixture, alternating with milk. Stir until just combined. Fold in cranberries (fresh or dried) and scoop mixture into prepared muffin tins, filling about 2/3 to ¾ full. Bake until a toothpick or skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 30 minutes.
- Prepare orange glaze topping for muffins while the muffins are baking by stirring together until well-combined.
- Once muffins have baked, remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly in the muffin tin. Then, remove each muffin and drizzle with orange glaze. Place onto a plate to finish cooling or serve slightly warm.
Notes
Nutritional Information
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
From the Add a Pinch recipe archives. Originally published 2013.
I just printed your recipe, Robyn. I am going to make these this week! Thanks for a yummy sounding recipe!
I looooove this flavour combo – especially in a muffin. Yum!
Got to try this… these pictures look scrumptious… can’t wait to taste them
I’m dying over that first close-up shot!
I will try this and let u know Robyn. We in Srilanka dont get fresh cranberries but I bring the dried ones when I travel.Yes!! i think the combo will b great!
Just had to tell you that I made these on Thanksgiving morning. They were quick and easy and absolutely delicious! Excellent recipe!
I just love these muffins.Thank You so much. Just keep these recipe’s coming.They are a big help.
So glad you enjoyed them, Terry!
I made this but substituted the 2 eggs for 2/3c of applesauce and added the juice of the orange I zested [I used a blood orange] to the batter because I already had freshly squeezed orange juice for the glaze. I also baked my batter in a 8×8 pan for 40 minutes and it came out perfect!
It is very sweet with the glaze so I might cut back on it next time, but will surely remake!
Could I make these one weekend and freeze them to use the next weekend?
these are the best muffins.i made these awhile ago. they are so yummyyyyyyyyyyyyy
Desperate for a fresh new recipe at 5:00 this morning for my husband to bring to a coffee klatch. I didn’t know I could use dried cranberries with pretty great results. Thanks for an easy, excellent recipe. We both loved the texture and flavor on the inside and the slight crispness of the outside of the muffin. This recipe is a keeper. I’m slipping it into my recipe notebook; for sure I’ll make these again!
I’m so glad you both loved it! xo
I am making this for a class project and I need to make 30, can you please give me the recipe for 30?
Have made these a couple of times. Adapted them to gluten free using for coeliacs in my family. They are absolutely delicious. I used granulated sugar for the glaze to make a crunchy topping. Unfortunately they just seem to magically disappear!
Made these yesterday and they were perfect! I am making them again today because they disappeared that fast!
This will be the dumbest question you have ever receive,,,,,,
When you say fresh cranberries Im assuming these are uncoooked.
LOL….I warned you
Not dumb at all, Rosemary! Yes, the cranberries are uncooked. I can usually find them in the produce section throughout fall and winter.
I made two batches of these muffins for my coworkers as my homemade Christmas gifts this year and they were a hit! I think I put too much sugar in my glaze because it was not this transparent so I will adjust next time. Mine also did not take 30 minutes at 375 so fortunately I checked on them half way through baking because otherwise they would have burned.
Thanks for this recipe its a keeper for me for sure.
I just made a batch of these muffins. They are delicious. I added 1 tablespoon of chia seed (soaked in about 1/3 Cup of fresh orange juice). I might use only 1.5 c of fresh cranberries next time- I just found that there was slightly too many. Thanks for the recipe!
I need gluten free do you know I could make them GF they look so good would love to try. Thank you
Comment from Ruth, five up in the comments said she made hers gluten free, I wish she would of posted her changes.
Hi Sandra,
I’ve not made this particular recipe gluten free, but there are gluten free flours you may want to try. One I’ve tested in cakes before is called Cup4Cup Gluten Free Flour – but again, I’ve not made these muffins with it. I hope this helps you. Thanks! xo
I made these this afternoon as a test for the muffins for our Christmas breakfast at church in two weeks.
I used dried cranberries and 3 medium eggs and that worked well. I also added a cup of chopped pecans.
FABULOUS RECIPE!!!!! So delicious!
This will be a family staple from now on!
I just made these and taste tested while they were still warm. I can promise you these are the best orange cranberry muffins I’ve ever made or had. I subbed in raisin style cranberries and I used a cara cara orange for the zest and juice.
Thank-you so much for posting the recipe.
Made this for my whole family – LOVED IT! I decided to double the recipe (for 24 muffins) and I’m glad I did, I highly recommend this to anyone. 🙂
This recipe is wonderful. I made these last week , and they were a hit! Everyone loved them so much, I’ll make them again very soon. The were moist and flavorful. I tweaked a couple of ingredients. I used one hand cup of dark drown sugar and one half cup of granulated sugar. Also, I used one cup of fresh cranberries roughly chopped to minimize the tartness. This is a keeper, thank you Robyn!
My apologies, one HALF cup of brown sugar.
I liked the flavors of this recipe. I added a bit more orange zest to it and I made a streusel top with brown sugar and sliced almonds on top instead of the glaze. I felt they could have been a bit more moist inside.
i found the batter somewhat thick. great taste will make again
My grandsons love these muffins. We have made them dozens of times.
glaze recipe please?
Can I sub cashew milk for regular milk?
Didn’t have any Cranberries so I used Blueberries instead and they turned out delicious my other half wants me to make them again.
I think if you substituted lemon in the blueberry version, it would be divine! Blueberry & lemon go so well together.
Thanks so much, Alicia!
Hi can i use self raising flour?
Sounds great i might make it later this week
Can this be put in loaf pan ?? Will try it for bread loaf.
I’ve not made this particular muffin recipe into a loaf yet. If you try it, I’d love to hear how you like it. Thanks!
These muffins look wonderful. I’m putting them on my must-make list. Thanks for sharing!
Enjoy them! Thanks!
The muffins sound scrumptuous. I’m just wondering when you warm them, how do you go about doing this. I’m afraid if you put one in the microwave is will cause it to toughen.
I made 12 muffins and a small loaf too . Fabulous ?
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks!
I chose this recipe because the photo is gorgeous and in spite of the note that prep time is five minutes. (It took me five minutes just to assemble the ingredients and cookware!) another five minutes went to greasing and flooring the pan, and another five or so to creaming the butter and sugar… it’s in the oven now, looks wonderful! Total prep time is about half an hour. I’ll comment further when they come out.
I love this recipe! Do you think it would work to substitute some of the flour for cocoa powder and the cranberries for cherries and make chocolate cherry muffins? Thanks!
I made these this morning at my daughter’s request before she returned to college. My husband, who is not normally a fan of muffins or sweets for breakfast, absolutely loved these muffins. I thought they were very easy to make and the flavors of orange and cranberry were perfect. My husband enjoyed the fact that they had icing. I’ve added this recipe to my collection and will definitely make them again!
That’s great that you all enjoyed them – especially when your husband doesn’t like muffins! I’m so happy you’ve added it to your collection of recipes to make again! Thanks so much for your kind comment! xo
I’m going to make these tonight for a meeting. I am adding walnuts and chopping the cranberries and using a mini muffin tin. Do you see any flaws in my plan? I love to bring things to work functions but it scares me when I never made them before and make adjustments. They look absolutely delicious. All they had at the grocery store were dried cranberries. I bought the unsweetened ones. Is that okay?
I think everyone will absolutely adore you and the muffins! xo
I just made these muffins for tomorrow, Easter morning, and they turned out marvelous! My son just informed me that he had signed me up to bring 2 dozen muffins to Church,for between services, and I decided to try your recipe cause I had all the ingredients on hand and they look delicious. Thank yourself sharing such a great recipe!
I’m so thrilled you like them, Edy! They are really delicious and I hope you enjoy them! Thanks!
I have some extra buttermilk left over from another recipe, could I use buttermilk in this recipe? I made this before using milk and it turned out great the first time I made it.. Another time, I think I overbaked it or something: it came out really dry.
My all-time favorite!
Hi, is there any chance of having the quantities in grams as well for all of us Brits who love your recipes too and are never successful in converting from cups? Many thanks
looks really good and the pictures make it look mouth watering… Will definitely give these a go..Thank you for the recipe…
How due I make the orange glaze,for the cranberry orange muffins? These are my favorite muffins.
Easiest glaze for these would be to mix powdered sugar with the juice of the orange you used for the zest for the muffins. Mix with a whisk to desired consistency.
These muffins are perfect for fall and a nice break from all things pumpkin! 🙂
I had a large bag of “cranberry bog fresh” cranberries my friend gave me while her in Cape Cod. Looking for a way to use these beauties once I returned home, I came upon this recipe and decided to try it. This is a great recipe and very simple. The muffin is moist and tender and the berry is a nice tart bite inside. The drizzle is necessary to provide the contrast needed for this tasty delight. Even my husband who is not a fan of cranberry, liked these very much. A real success and I am keeping this recipe on hand for future use. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Suzanne,
I just bet those cranberries fresh from the bog are amazing! 🙂
I am excited that you tried them in these muffins and enjoyed them so much! (I’m in love with the drizzle on top too!)
Thanks so much for sharing this with me! xo
Muffins look great, could you post the Nutritional information?
Thank you,
Marhy
They are delicious Mary! I use an Nutrition application, such as My Fitness Pal, to enter all the ingredients and serving sizes to get the nutritional information. Enjoy! Thanks!
ME AND MY HUSBAND LOVED IT !!!
Is there a bread loaf versian i can try?
I’m so glad you enjoyed it. I haven’t developed this recipe as a bread loaf, but will definitely add that to my list of must-makes!
I made these muffins exactly per the recipe (using fresh cranberries) except that I added some chopped pecans too. They were delicious and got rave reviews. A couple of comments:
1. The recipe made 15 muffins, not 12 – not a big deal but I needed to grease more muffin cups.
2. I set my timer for 30 minutes, checked at 27 and they were a little overdone for my taste. I know my oven temp is accurate.
I will make these again, but will either drop the temp to 350, or start checking before 25 minutes.
So happy you enjoyed them! They are one of our delicious favorites too!
Just a note as far as the quantity and cooking time… I’m not sure, but it’s possible that the chopped pecans added could account for the couple of extra muffins – and possibly even the slight difference in cooking time.
Thanks so much! xo
I was hesitant to add whole cranberries to this but it turned out just delicious. Followed recipe to a T……I did use paper muffin cups, so I ended up with 14 muffins cuz you can’t fill as much. The tartness of the berries tempered with the orange glaze…..an absolute keeper ! I baked at 375 for about 24 minutes. PERFECT.
I’m thrilled that you enjoyed them, Linda! I love these too! Thanks!!! xo
This is my favorite muffin. I added a little orange zest to the glaze too. Yummy! So happy to have this recipe!
Ms. Robyn you may as well come on over for Thanksgiving this year because the vast majority of recipes we are using are yours😉. Thank YOU
That sounds great, Kathy! What time do I need to be there? It is really an honor that you like my recipes that much. Hope you and your family have a very blessed Thanksgiving.
Is it 1 stick plus half cup of butter? Or 1 stick/half cup of butter?
Hi Kim,
It’s 1/2 cup of butter, which equals 1 stick. Enjoy them! Thanks!
I was looking for something to bake this lazy saturday afternoon and found this recipe. Easy to make and delicious!
Glad you enjoyed it, Susana! Thanks!
I baked these for Thanksgiving breakfast. They were super delicious! Do you think you could replace the milk with orange juice?
I’ve never substituted orange juice for the milk, Dayna. Let me know how it works if you try it.
My husband can’t have the cranberries, can you substitute pineapple? Thank you
Hi, can I make these muffins with a substitute for the sugar without them being boring? Honey, syrup,?
Yes, they turned out very good!
I used fresh blueberries instead of cranberries. Muffins really looked and tasted good. I’m definitely using this recipe again, next timer with cranberries.
Glad you enjoyed them Sharon! xo
Can you sub with whole wheat flour? Just watching carbs !
I’ve not made these muffins with whole wheat flour. I hope you enjoy them! Thanks
These muffins were awesome, I took them to work with great reviews.
I am so happy to hear that Gerville! Thanks!
I tried this recipe after Thanksgiving last year when I had leftover cranberries. My son has never liked muffins, but he likes these. These are good year-round, using fresh cranberries when available and dried ones at other times of the year.
Aren’t they delicious, Linda?! I’m so glad you enjoy them too! Thanks! xo
These are fabulous cupcakes. The whole cranberries burst when baking….tart plus sweet, delicious. The glaze with the orange flavor makes them! I always use fresh cranberries. It doesn’t say how many it makes, but I get 16. I fill the cups 3/4 full. Also, I usually do about 20-25 min in oven. That way they stay tender . I think they’d be dry if baked 30 minutes. Highly recommend this recipe!
Just made these and this recipe is a keeper. The second batch i made i baked them for a little less that 30 minutes as I thought the 30 min was too much. I will be making these again. Thanks for sharing this great recipe.
Thanks Patty!
My fiancé told me I’m not allowed to make these anymore…because they’re too good and we polish off the whole pan in an evening!
I just made this recipe again, this time in a loaf pan, as a thank-you to the couple who took care of our chickens when we traveled. I have the timer set for 40min at 375* but didn’t use all the batter. It was a last-minute fix because the banana bread I tried to make was a total fail haha!
How funny, Nicole! I’m so happy you both enjoy them! I’m really fond of them too!
If you are looking for a Banana Bread recipe, this one has been in my family for a long time and we love it. Thanks!
I made these and my kids absolutely love the fresh cranberries and tangy orange flavor. I made a few substitutions however…I used fresh squeezed o.j. in place of the milk in the recipe and I used half butter and half coconut oil in place of all butter. The coconut oil should be soft and all other ingredients need to be at room temp so the coconut oil does not harden. There is a very slight coco-nutty undertone and they came out great! I also included a bit of zest in the orange glaze, about 1/4 teaspoon. The only thing I should have done differently is pay attention to the cooking time in the recipe because I cooked them maybe a smidge too long. They are still delish!
I’m glad that you liked them, Jen! Thanks!
I’m wondering how fresh they stay? I’d like to make them a day in advance – will they still be yummy? Thanks!
These are so good and pretty! I used whole wheat flour instead and came out great (haven’t tried with regular flour though so I’m not sure how to compare). I also did a light chop of the cranberries in a food processor for different texture (hack that I got from a different recipe). Perfect neighbor gift for the holidays! Thanks for posting!
Thanks Cindi!
Hi there, I am baking these for teachers I have a question will this recipe make 24mini muffins?
Can’t wait to try them. Thank you!
It should make approximately 36 mini muffins as the recipe yields 12 regular size muffins. Thanks Moon!
My muffin pans were completely out of commission (and had to replace them) so I pulled out my decorative bundt. What a fabulous compliment to Christmas breakfast!! I will make this again! Thank you!
I made these this morning with left over fresh cranberries from Christmas 🎄. They are perfect and delicious. Thanks for the super recipe!
Where does the milk come? in it’s not in the instructions .
It is in step 5 of the recipe instructions.
Just made these today 😋 & they’re awesome! Followed recipe exactly & added 1 cup chopped walnuts. It made 20 muffins using paper liners. Thanks for posting such a fabulous recipe. This will definitely be the only recipe I’ll use from now on!
Aww, thanks so much Vicki! xo
Any idea of temp and time difference if making mini muffins ?
I use this recipe to make not only cranberry muffins but also blueberry muffins. I love the orange zest because it inhances the flavor of the fruit. I omit the orange glaze on both. These muffins are delicious without the added calories. I prefer using fresh cranberries but I will use dried when I can’t find fresh.
Hello, I just waned to say I made these the other day muffins and a loaf tin = DEEEEELICIOUS!
Perfect amount of Orange too! I used dried cranberries but loved the tip to coat fresh berries. I didn’t know this trick!
Didn’t last long enough to even try freezing some.
Thank you xxxx I will be making more of this without hesitation!!!!
Hi Rachel,
So glad you liked these muffins. They are a favorite around our house, too! Thanks! xo
Can I user frozen cranberries?
Hi Judy,
Yes, you can use frozen cranberries. Don’t thaw before using. Thanks!
Can I use frozen, defrosted cranberries?
Hi Donna,
You can use frozen cranberries in this recipe but I would not thaw them before using. Hope you enjoy!
Does Having the cranberries frozen add to the cooking time?
Gio, you may need to add a few more minutes to the baking time.
Just made these today – still cooling in the kitchen. I loved this recipe. However, I definitely would watch baking time. I used a dark pan, with muffin cups and 26 minutes was almost too much at the 375 temperature. I also happened to have orange extract on hand so I used some orange and some vanilla. And while I used dried cranberries, I soaked them and then floured them so that they would be just a little more plump than the usual dried fruit.
I will definitely be making these again!
Thanks, Heather. Hope you enjoy these muffins.
Yum!
Super easy to make.
I used dried cranberries and loved the chewy texture. Only needed 25min cook time. Didn’t bother with the glaze, enjoyed the crunchy top instead.
Will definitely be making these again.
Many thanks 👍
Thanks, Claire. So glad you loved these muffins. I think you would like them too with the glaze. xo
These were the best ones of the recipes I have tried. They have twice as many berries as other recipes, and are not as dense. We will be making these again!
Thanks so much, Mike. These are favorites at our house. We love lots of berries in our muffins.
What a fabulous recipe! These muffins are very pretty to look at besides being delicious!Needed about a tbsp. of juice when making the glaze so it would”pour”
I’m so glad you liked the muffins, Jo-Ann. Don’t you just love the glaze?
These. Are. Heavenly. My brother brought me a cranberry muffin from a bakery, and it was so good I decided to bake some of my own. And THESE were better. And between my brother, my husband, and myself, we ate all of them in one night. So I made them again the next day. And gave some to my mother in law to be sure that we didn’t eat all of them again. And she raved about them too. Thanks for the recipe, I’ll be making these for the rest of my life!
Thank you so much, Stephanie! This makes me so happy that everyone loved these muffins.
I made these based on a recommendation, and I was so pleased with the results that I made a second batch with lemon in the place of orange and blueberries in place of cranberries. They were just as good. Thanks!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them, Paige. I love the lemon and blueberry combination. Thanks.
I have frozen cranberries. Should I defrost them or cut them in half to help with the cooking process?
I would not defrost them, Kathy. Just use them whole and frozen. They might have to bake just a little bit longer.
Can this recipe be made into a cranberry and orange bread loaf? I would also like to add a streusel topping along with a sprinkle of chunky white sugar on top…
I haven’t made these as a loaf, Joyce, but I don’t know any reason it wouldn’t work. The loaf would just need to bake longer.
These delicious muffins were a huge hit on Thanksgiving morning! They looked beautiful and tasted perfectly tart and sweet! I appreciate that every recipe you publish always turns out amazing! You are one of my favorites!
Thank you for your kind words, Londa. I’m so happy this muffins were a hit for you.
Loved these muffins. Made them as mini muffins for a fundraiser and baked for 19 minutes. They were a hit!
Thanks, Janelle. I love to make these as mini muffins, too.
These muffins are THE BEST !. I make this recipe into 6 jumbo muffins, and they are always appreciated by family and friends. I’ve shared the recipe with friends, and they all are thankful for the recipe. I tried 3 other recipes that were pretty good, but this one knocks it out of the park, is a touchdown, scores a goal, is a 3-pointer…
Thank you. I’m so happy you and your friends love this recipe.
Absolutely amazing! It was perfectly sweet. My family ate half of it in 5 minutes. Delicious!!
Thanks, Grace. So glad your family loved them so much! xo
Delicious!!! I used a large navel orange so had lots of zest. Mine came out slightly over baked, but I’ll reduce the baking time next time. I love these!!! Thank you.
Best muffins I have ever made!! They were perfect.
Thank you, Arya. I’m so glad you loved the muffins!
I’ve made these three times now and getting ready to make more! They are delicious! I did freeze some and thawed when ready to use, then popped in the oven for about 10 minutes to warm them just enough not to melt all the glaze off. So good! Mine made a few more than a dozen. I also used frozen cranberries.
Gloria, I love to keep these in the freezer, too and just use however many I need at a time. So glad you love these, too. xo
Everyone I shared these with loved them. Tart taste with both the orange and the cranberries. Loved this recipe.
Thanks, Marilyn. I love baking these and sharing them, too.
Do you think this recipe would work if you substituted oil for the softened butter?
I have never made these with oil, Grandma Linda, so I’m not sure how they would turn out.
I’d say, Don’t mess with perfection.
I think it probably needs that consistency to cream the butter and sugar together, so you could probably use softened coconut oil in place of the butter. I’ve done that in baking to replace butter when I’m trying to go dairy-free.
So, so good! I will be saving this recipe for all future muffin cravings!
Thanks, Alex.
This is so easy to make and super tasty!
Thanks so much, Rynzel Ann.
Question. If I use frozen Cranberries, should I still toss them in flour?
You can use frozen cranberries, Carletta, and you should still toss them in flour. Don’t thaw them before using. Hope you enjoy the muffins.
Thanks for sharing the recipe. Turns out really moist. I used s/r flour and dried cranberries. Perfect!
OMG! I bake a lot, and this is THE perfect muffin recipe. I made them exactly as directed other than adding 1/2 cup of walnuts before folding in the berries. Even though it’s July, I felt like it was Christmas morning once that incredible aroma started wafting through the house. I did have to fill the muffin tins to the top in order to only use one muffin pan, but no complaint here. It just gave me a bigger, more delicious muffin.
Thank you, Norma. I just love the aroma in the kitchen while these are baking, don’t you?
According to your pictures one cup of dried cranberry doesn’t seem enough
Erica, I use 2 cups of fresh cranberries or 1 cup dried cranberries in this recipe.
I used to work at a bakery and loved the cranberry orange muffins there… I followed this recipe to make my own. Delicious! Adding orange zest to the glaze is an absolute must!!
Thanks, Michelle. I’m happy you like these muffins and can now make your own. These are some of my favorite muffins.
Used frozen cranberries and turned out beautiful 🙂
This is one of my FAVORITE recipes, it’s always a hit! I’m thinking about trying to make it into a loaf by pouring it into a 1.5 quart pan. Any thoughts on how to alter the cook time? Thanks 🙂
I haven’t made these as a loaf, Racheal, but others have. The loaf would just need to bake longer.
I added chopped nuts cause everything is better with nut IMO. These muffins were so delicious. One recipe made 12 regular size and 12 mini muffins!
Thanks, Colleen.
My favorite muffins!!! Love ❤️ this recipe, thank you!!!!
Thank you, Diane!
Used fresh cranberries and got 14 beautiful, tender muffins. Didn’t enjoy the glaze (just tasted like powdered sugar to me and I don’t like the stickiness). Will try adding sugar on top before baking next time.
This recipe is TO DIE FOR!!!! I made these a few nights ago – and I can’t stop eating them. I usually never leave reviews on recipes, but I felt inclined to on this one because of how amazing they turned out. They’re dangerously good!!! I used dried cranberries for mine & the orange glaze at the end is a must! So so so good!
Thanks, Kristy! I’m so thrilled you love these muffins, too.
I’m new to baking and love cranberry orange muffins. The recipe is easy to follow and simple enough that I had complete confidence. The muffins came out great—in fact I’m not going to share😉.
I’m so glad these muffins turned out so well for you. Thank you!
Never tried Orange Cranberry Muffins before, but these turned out fantastic. I used cranberries from Shelby, (out of the pond) and they were the best muffins I have ever had. These are fail proof. Thanks for the recipe.
Thanks, Susie. I’m so glad you liked these.
made this recipe last night . the ” muffins” turned out more like scones . ill be looking for a different recipe
I’m sorry you didn’t like the muffins, Jess. These have never looked like scones when I make them.
Sounds like a missed ingredient? I almost missed the part about the milk. I also almost misread the amount of baking powder… I’m not used to a recipe calling for a full tablespoon of powder, but that’s what made them so light and fluffy. Hopefully, you will try them again, because they were delicious.
Love this Robin! So delicious!
These were beautiful and tasty (made with frozen cranberries) but lacked something I can’t quite put a finger on. They were also not quite sweet enough to offset the tartness of the cranberries. Probably will not make again or will tweak the recipe if I do. They had a very nice texture.
These muffins are DELICIOUS! Everybody in my family loved them. It was the perfect amount of tartness from the cranberries and zing from the orange and the glaze added a nice touch. I would rate these muffins 5/5 or more if I could! I doubled the orange zest and we didn’t use exactly 2 c. of cranberries.
The glaze is super duper simple. I actually would have liked a bit more orange in the glaze so I added a tad more orange juice.
We loved them so much so we gave 2 extras to our neighbors and whipped up another bit of glaze for them too.
I am so glad we tried these muffins they were a big hit I would definitely recommend these.
I love them a lot we will definitely make these again.
PS. I am 8 years old. PSS. This is my moms email I do not have a email yet.
Thank you so much for letting me know how much you loved these muffins. I think it is awesome that you are 8 years old and are making the muffins. You were so sweet to make them for your neighbors.
I LOVE this recipe! The muffins came out perfect and were oh so delicious. I followed the recipe as outlined except I substituted 1/4 milk for fresh squeezed orange juice.
I made these yesterday and they are delicious, I have never baked with cranberry’s before but I will again.
Very easy, and so good I didn’t even need the orange glaze! I used frozen cranberries and they worked perfectly. The muffins rise up nicely and have a nice dense texture and slightly crispy edge. So yummy! I will use muffin pan liners next time, as they were a bit tricky to get out of the pans.
Thanks, Laura. I’m so happy you enjoyed these muffins.
These are my favorite flavor for muffins. I’ve tried several recipes and none have come out perfect. These were delicious. They had the right balance of cranberry to orange. The only thing I will do differently next time is to add a bit more zest to please other people in the house.
Thanks, Vicki! I’m so glad you love these muffins.
These were delicious! I used fresh cranberries and they were SO plump and juicy! I didn’t have an orange to zest, so I added a splash of orange extract to the batter. I added walnuts and they were identical in taste and texture to the ones I get at my favorite restaurant. I don’t know if it’s a good thing or not that I can now make my favorite muffins at home! LOL
I’m so happy you enjoyed these muffins, Sherry!
I made a batch of these a few weeks ago and was well pleased. I just took another dozen of these beautifully tasty muffins out of the oven. They are now glazed and waiting to be eaten. YUMMY!!
Patricia, thank you. So happy you like these muffins.
For this recipe, do you use 1/2 cup + 1 stick of butter? A little bit confused with this particular ingredient listed in the recipe.
Otherwise everything sounds delicious 🙂
Sandra, you use 1/2 cup butter which is 1 stick. Hope you enjoy the muffins.
Great recipe. I did make 2 changes. I know…I know. That means I didn’t follow the recipe. We try to make better choices. So 1 cup unbleached all purpose flour and 1 cup whole wheat all purpose flour.
Soaked 1 cup of dried cranberries in orange juice. I think the extra liquid in the dried cranberry allowed for the whole wheat flour needing more moisture.
Great recipe. I only had mandarins on hand, but the zest of two of them worked well. Mandarin juice also worked nicely for the glaze. I also used half and half instead of milk. I found that the muffins came out a little crispy at 375 so I’ll probably try to bake them at 350 or 360 next time. Maybe my pan is darker than the writer’s.
These muffins sound amazing with mandarins, Alex. Sometimes different ovens will bake foods faster than others, too. Next time, I would reduce the baking time.
Just wondering if I can substitute the orange for lemon? Would it be the same measurements as the orange?
Tammy, I haven’t made these with lemon instead of the orange juice but others have and said it was delicious. You would use the same measurements.
Great recipe! This recipe was a hit, but I was out of milk so I used orange juice for the liquid instead of milk. They were perfect. I used a “bag” of freshh cranberries which was close enough to 2 cups so I used the whole thing. Thanks!
Thanks, Lila, for letting us know how this did with the orange juice.
I substituted splenda for the sugar and also used powdered splenda for the glaze (put granulated splenda in a food processor until powdered) The muffins are perfect for a diabetic breakfast. Thank you ♥️
Sylvia, thank you for telling us how you made these muffins to fit your dietary restrictions.
How much Splenda did you add?
These are my absolutely favorite muffins. I make them quite often and stock up on dried cranberries when I go to Costco!
Thanks, Phyllis.
I made this with craisins, 1/2 cup OJ, and 1/2 cup milk (and no orange zest), put it in a loaf pan, and baked it for about 50-55 minutes. Turned out great! Though many of the craisins did go to the bottom. Next time I might soak the craisins in the orange juice and milk mixture to rehydrate them while I’m preparing the other ingredients, remove them with a spoon, coat with flour, then add everything back in.
Thank you for the recipe, I made them and they came out good, but my husband’s first comment was “they are hard”… when I tried them they were somewhat dry, not hard, perfect for coffee, not greasy, which I liked much more compared to the ones we get at the store… so, not a success for now, but next time I will glaze them to add moist and I will bake them for 25’, not the whole 30’… Will get this cakes perfect!
p.s. I spent about $4.06 in total for 12 small muffins (not counting electricity)… A great deal!
Lorenzo, it sounds like the muffins over baked. That will make them dry. I don’t know if you left the muffins in the tin until completely cooled but they will continue to cook in the tin. I let mine cool slightly then remove them from the tin to finish cooling. I hope you try the glaze on them next time.
how can I make these muffins with cranberry juice instead of dried/fresh or frozen cranberries.? can I substitute cranberry juice for THE cranberries?
thanks
I’ve never made these with cranberry juice, Millie, but you would be adding a lot more liquid to the recipe with the juice substitution. I don’t think this would work with that much liquid instead of the cranberries.
Used lemon/blueberry in place of cranberry/orange and everyone loves them. Thanks for the recipe, it’s a keeper 🙂
I just made these muffins. I used 1/2 whole wheat flour, flax eggs, dried cranberries soaked in 1/2 cup soy milk and 1/2 cup orange pineapple juice (as suggested by someone else) and 3/4 cup sugar. They were delicious!
Simple and tasty! Used mandarin zest, dried cranberries and cake flour because that’s what I had on hand and skipped the glaze. 25 minutes and muffins came out perfect. With three boys, the batch of 12 didn’t last a day in our house.
Delicious!! The husband really enjoyed these!! Thank you!!
These muffins always come out wonderful! Today I made them with blueberries and lemon and they were great. Don’t leave off the glaze!
Ellen, I’m glad you tried these with blueberries and lemon and loved them. I agree; do not omit the glaze!
I made these muffins and they turned out super good . I did adjust the recipe. I used 1 3/4 flour. I added 1 tsp of cinnamon. I added 1/2 cup of orange juice to the dry cranberries and I put these in a pot on the stove to allow them to warm and plump up. I omitted the milk using the orange juice as a substitute. I baked the muffins for 24 minutes. They were delicious. 10/10
Thanks for the tips on how you made these muffins, Liz.
THE best muffins we have ever made! Thank you Robyn.
Thanks so much, Gary. I love that you think these are the best muffins you have made.
These were delicious! I made them gluten-free and used dried cranberries soaked in about 1/8 cup of orange juice. Mine came out a little overdone at 30 minutes.
Linda, these sound delicious with the added orange juice to the dried cranberries. So glad you liked them.
Easy recipe, every batch has been wonderful. I needed to cut down my baking time by 6 minutes, otherwise I would have had burned muffins. Of course don’t forget get the glaze. Once I used sugar crystals on top before baking because I didn’t have confectionery sugar, it wasn’t bad but I prefer the glaze.
I agree that the glaze makes a difference. I’m so happy these always turn out great for you, Robin.
I made these without the glaze (so my toddler could have them without too much sugar), they’re super delicious! Thanks for the recipe
These are still delicious without the glaze, aren’t they, Jessie? You need to try them sometimes, though, with the glaze even if put glaze on a few of them.
I absolutely love these. I’m not a big fan of cranberry, yet these keep me coming back. Perfect for the holidays, but I make them year around.
I love these year round, too, Heidi, but they are a hit around the holidays. Thanks!
Very good but 30 minutes cook time is way too much. I checked them at 22 minutes and that was longer than necessary. I work recommend checking after 18 minutes
Thanks, Normand. Sometimes different ovens will bake foods faster than others. It always takes about 30 minutes for my muffins to be done when I make them. I’m so glad you liked them.
I have made this recipe several times and they always turn out. I did sub 1/2 cup of orange juice for the milk. Husband’s favorite. Thank you Robyn.