Cranberry Orange Muffins with Orange Juice & Orange Zest

My easy cranberry orange muffins recipe uses cranberries, orange juice and orange zest. These muffins are naturally dairy free and are made without milk or butter. Why no milk & no butter? I wanted the orange flavor to stand out without any dilution.

Recipe Sections

1. Ingredients
2. Instructions
3. Helpful Tips

This is a simple muffin recipe. There is no changing oven temps in the middle of the baking process (as people forget or mistime the temperature change), no crazy or extra special ingredients, no super difficult glazes to make, etc. In turn, this means there is less work & less hassle to make my cranberry orange muffins… and thus a happier & less stressed muffin making Bread Dad!

Easy Variation – Cranberry Walnut Orange Muffins

Ingredients – Cranberry Orange Muffins Recipe

• 3/4 Cup – Orange Juice – 177 milliliters
• 1/2 Cup – Vegetable Oil – 118 milliliters – Use a neutral tasting vegetable oil such as corn or mild/light olive oil. For more info, see the tips section below.
• 2 Large Eggs – 114 grams
• 1 Teaspoon – Vanilla Extract – 5 milliliters
• 2 Tablespoons – Orange Zest – 10 grams – To make the zest, you will need 2 medium/large oranges. Use 1 tablespoon of zest if you prefer a milder orange flavor. See the instructions below on how to make orange zest.
• 1 Cup – White Granulated Sugar – 200 grams – Use 3/4 cup of sugar (150 grams) if you want less sweet muffins.
• 2 Cups – All Purpose Flour – 240 grams – Not bread flour.
• 1 Teaspoon – Baking Soda – 5 grams
• 1 Teaspoon – Baking Powder – 4 grams
• 1/2 Teaspoon – Salt – 3 grams
• 1 1/4 Cups – Fresh or Frozen Cranberries – 125 grams – I like to mix 1 cup of cranberries into the batter. Then I use the remaining 1/4 cup to add to any muffin cups that lack enough cranberries.

Servings – Roughly 12-18 standard muffins (non jumbo). Amount depends on the size of muffin cups, how much batter was added to each muffin cup, if extra ingredients were added, etc.

Equipment Needed – Measuring cup & spoons, mixing bowl, long wooden spoon, muffin trays, paper muffin liners (baking cups), oven mitts, cooling racks and an oven.

Cranberry Orange Muffins – Cooling Down After Baking

Instructions – How To Make Orange Zest

• Wash and dry 2 medium/large oranges. FYI – Keep the oranges whole because it makes them easier to zest. For example, do not cut the oranges in half before zesting.
• Use a zester (a fine grating tool) to gently shave off the thin orange outer peel of the orange. FYI – Do not grate off any of the white layer (the pith) below the orange peel. It is bitter.
• Rotate the orange slowly as you grate in order to remove the peel evenly.
• Repeat with second orange.
• This should create roughly 2 to 3 tablespoons of orange zest (depending on the size of the oranges!!).

Instructions – How to Make Cranberry Orange Muffins

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C).
• Prepare the orange zest (see instructions above).
• Lightly beat eggs.
• Stir orange juice, vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla extract, orange zest and sugar together in a large mixing bowl.
• Mix in the remaining ingredients (except the cranberries). Stir until batter is completely mixed.
• Add the cranberries to the batter. Gently stir in the cranberries until they are fully mixed into batter. FYI – Don’t overmix the batter or the muffins can come out gummy.
• Place paper muffin baking cups (liners) inside the muffin trays. Or grease the interior of muffin cups/wells if you are not using muffin baking cups or non-stick muffin trays.
• Fill each muffin cup/well with batter until it is 60-70% full.
• Place the muffin trays into the oven.
• Bake the muffins for 23-27 minutes at 350 F (177 C). FYI – See the tips section below about using a digital baking thermometer to test if the muffins are fully baked.
• Remove the muffin trays from the oven. Use oven mitts when removing the muffin trays.
• Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes within the muffin trays.
• Remove the muffins and place them on a wire cooling rack in order to completely cool.
• Please read the tips below to avoid common muffin mistakes & to learn about different variations that you can make with these muffins.

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Oranges & Zester (Zesting Tool)

Close-up of Orange Zest

Helpful Tips

• The tips below are designed to help muffin “novices” and/or people with limited baking experience.
• Click on this “print recipe” link if you want to print out this recipe. It includes all of the recipe’s ingredients and instructions. However, the recipe print function does not include my tips section. Please read the tips section in order to avoid common recipe problems.
• This recipe is part of Bread Dad’s series on Easy Muffin Recipes such as chocolate chip banana muffins, sweet cornbread muffins and eggless banana muffins.

• Zest is key to great orange muffins! Orange zest provides a lot of the flavor and aroma.
• If you use only orange juice (and no zest), these easy cranberry orange muffins will have only a very mild orange taste.
• What is orange zest? Orange zest is the thin orange outer layer of the orange peel. You only want to use this layer when making orange zest. You do NOT want to use any of the white layer (the pith) under the orange part of the peel. The white part is more bitter & has very little orange flavor. To learn more about the “science” of zesting, you should read the Wikipedia article on Zest (Ingredient).
• Always wash & dry the oranges before zesting. You want to wash off any dirt, chemicals, etc.
• Try to use organic or unwaxed oranges when making the zest. Some supermarket oranges are coated with wax to extend their shelf life, make them look shinier, etc. However, this wax can trap dirt & pesticides on the fruit. Therefore, it is better to use unwaxed or organic oranges in order to reduce this potential problem.

• In order to zest the oranges, you need to use a zesting tool (see picture above with the 2 oranges) or very fine grater.
• I like to use 2 tablespoons of orange zest to make these moist cranberry orange muffins because it adds a stronger orange flavor & aroma. FYI – To make 2 tablespoons of orange zest, you will need roughly 1 1/2 to 2 large oranges (or 2 to 3 medium-sized oranges).
• For a milder orange flavor, you should use 1 tablespoon of zest. However, if you use only 1 tablespoon, the tartness of the cranberries will stand out more. FYI – To make 1 tablespoon of orange zest, you will need roughly one large orange.
• I am using 5 grams as the weight of 1 tablespoon of orange zest. However, this weight can vary based on how packed the zest is in the spoon (compressed versus fluffed), the size of the zest “flakes”, the type of orange used, etc.
• If you don’t have any oranges to zest, you can skip this ingredient. However, without the zest, the orange muffins will have only a VERY mild orange flavor. The 3/4 cup of orange juice alone isn’t enough to provide a strong orange taste or aroma.
• Do not sprinkle orange zest on top of the batter in the muffin cups/wells. It will dry out, burn and/or turn bitter in the oven. The orange zest to needs to be thoroughly mixed into the moist batter.
• Visitors – Do you like to add orange zest to your cranberry orange muffins? Or do you skip this ingredient? Please leave your orange zest tips & thoughts in the comment section below.

• Optional – After zesting the 2 large oranges, you can use these “leftover” peeled oranges to make fresh squeezed orange juice for these muffins. However, depending on the size of the oranges, you might need a little extra orange juice (e.g. from store bought juice) in order to reach the full 3/4 cup of juice needed for this recipe.
• If you would rather use a ready-made commercial product (instead of grating some oranges), you should look for dried orange zest and NOT dried orange peel. Dried orange peel often is more bitter than dried orange zest because it often includes some of the bitter white layer (the pith) under the thin orange outer layer of the orange. You can find this product online or in the spice section of major supermarkets (but not all supermarkets carry it).
• If you use dried orange zest, you should only use 50% of the fresh orange zest listed in my recipe. Therefore, instead of 2 tablespoons of fresh orange zest, you would use only 1 tablespoon of dried orange zest. Dried zest has had the water removed and this concentrates the orange flavor.
• However, fresh orange zest usually has a better flavor and aroma than packaged dried orange zest.
• If you do not have any orange zest (fresh or dried), you can replace the 2 tablespoons of fresh orange zest in the recipe with 1 teaspoon of orange extract. FYI – Do not remove the vanilla extract from the recipe. The orange extract is just replacing the orange zest.
• In my opinion, orange extract is not as good as fresh orange zest in baked goods because fresh orange zest has a more natural aroma and flavor. However, orange extract is a good emergency substitute if you do not have any orange zest.
• Visitors – Do you prefer to use fresh orange zest, dried orange zest or orange extract to make orange muffins? Please leave your orange “flavoring” ideas in the comment section below.

• You can use fresh or frozen cranberries to make this cranberry orange muffins recipe.
• Fresh cranberries have the advantage of no attached ice crystals (which can add unplanned for moisture to the batter). Moreover, they tend to be firmer than frozen cranberries (which can sometimes turn mushy or burst during the freezing process). This why many people prefer to make fresh cranberry orange muffins.
• However, fresh cranberries can be harder to find in the supermarket (versus frozen cranberries). Fresh cranberries are more seasonal versus frozen cranberries tend to be found year round. Moreover, fresh cranberries are often more expensive than frozen cranberries.
• If you use frozen cranberries, they do not have to be thawed. They can be added directly to the batter of the cranberry muffins and they will thaw during the baking process.
• However, you need to make sure that you remove any ice attached to the frozen cranberries (or you will be adding too much liquid to the recipe and the cranberry muffins could come out underbaked). I like to wash off the ice off of the frozen cranberries & then dry the frozen cranberries (in order to make sure there is no extra moisture).
• Some bakers like to use halved cranberries when making cranberry muffins. They think that the halved cranberries “float” better in the batter. However, I don’t use halved cranberries in this recipe because that is too much work for me (cutting each cranberry in half). The halved berries also add extra moisture to the batter. Too much moisture variation throws off recipes and can lead to under baked cranberry muffins.
• You can also use dried cranberries to make dried cranberry orange muffins (if you don’t have fresh or frozen cranberries). However, since most dried cranberries have extra added sugar, I would only use 3/4 cup of granulated white sugar in order to make dried cranberry orange muffins (instead of the 1 cup of sugar called for in the recipe).
• Visitors – Do you prefer to use fresh cranberries, frozen cranberries or dried cranberries to make your cranberry orange muffins? Please leave your cranberry tips in the comment section below.

• Optional – You can turn these into cranberry walnut orange muffins by replacing 1/2 of the fresh cranberries with chopped walnuts.
• Optional – Or you can just sprinkle chopped walnuts (broken into very small bits) on top of the batter in the muffin cups/wells. These another easy way to make some cranberry walnut orange muffins. You want to break the chopped walnuts into very small bits (because this reduces the potential for sunken middles in the cranberry walnut orange muffins). You don’t want too much weight on top of the orange muffins.
• Optional – Don’t have cranberries or the kids don’t like the tart taste of cranberries? You can use blueberries instead of cranberries. Blueberries allow to create some delicious blueberry orange muffins!
• Optional – Another fun variation is to turn these muffins into chocolate chip orange muffins. Replace 1/2 of the fresh cranberries (or all of the cranberries) with mini chocolate chips. Mini chocolate chips “float” better in the batter than heavier large sized chocolate chips. This means that the mini chips spread out better in the batter (versus sinking to the bottom).
• Optional – Want a fun & super easy topping for these moist cranberry orange muffins? Sprinkle some powdered sugar on top of the orange muffins after they have been baked & have completely cooled down.
• Visitors – How do you like to make your cranberry orange muffins even better or more special? Do you add chocolate chips? Blueberries? Chopped walnuts? More zest? Other? Please post your cranberry orange muffin variations in the comment section below.

• After filling the muffin cups/wells, I like to add the remaining 1/4 cup of cranberries to the tops of any muffins that look too barren. This also helps to ensure that the cranberries are more evenly distributed in my orange muffins.
• This orange muffins recipe uses all purpose flour. Muffins do not work as well with bread flour. If you use bread flour (which has more protein and gluten potential), the muffins could turn out dense & gummy.
• This cranberry muffin recipe uses a little less baking soda than my recipes for banana muffins. Why? Because orange juice is more acidic than mashed bananas. Therefore, in this recipe, the baking soda reacts more efficiently (and thus you need less baking soda).
• If you like cranberry baked goods, check out Bread Dad’s recipes for Cranberry Banana Bread, Cranberry Banana Muffins, Bread Machine Cranberry Orange Bread (dessert recipe) and Bread Machine Cranberry Walnut Bread (sandwich bread recipe).

• My cranberry orange muffins recipe is dairy free because it does not use milk or butter.
• Many of my baking peers like to use milk and/or butter in their cranberry orange muffins recipes. However, I don’t want to dilute the orange flavor of the muffins with milk or butter.
• If you want to be dairy free and you want to add chocolate chips to your orange muffins, you need to use dairy free chocolate chips. There are a variety of companies (such as Enjoy Life, Ghirardelli and Nestle) that sell diary free chocolate chip options.

• I like to use vegetable oil (instead of butter) to create moist cranberry orange muffins.
• Orange muffins made with oil tend to taste MOISTER than orange muffins made with butter. The main reason is because vegetable oil remains liquid at room temperature whereas butter turns back to a solid at normal room temperatures. Therefore, the use of vegetable oil helps to create moist cranberry orange muffins.
• You should use a neutral flavored vegetable oil (e.g. corn) in order to make these orange muffins. A strong flavored oil (e.g. peanut oil or extra virgin olive oil) may negatively impact the orange muffin taste.
• If you want to use olive oil, I would recommend using “light”, “extra light” or “mild” olive oil as they would have the least impact on these muffins. Unfortunately, extra virgin and virgin olive oil have stronger flavors and are more likely to negatively impact the taste of your muffins.
• Some of my visitors like to use avocado oil in order to make their muffins. Avocado oil has a neutral flavor and is high in monounsaturated fats. However, as you are probably aware, avocado oil is usually significantly more expensive than corn oil.

• Do not use an electric mixer to mix your ingredients (when combining the wet and dry ingredients). I prefer to use an old fashioned wooden spoon. An electric mixer can easily overmix the ingredients if used too long. Unfortunately, overmixing the batter can result in rubbery & gummy muffins.
• There are a variety of ways to pour the batter into the muffin trays. For example, you can scoop with a spoon (while using another spoon to scrape off the batter into the muffin tray), use a small cup and spoon, use an ice cream scoop with a trigger release, use a homemade “pastry bag” to squeeze the batter into the muffin liners, etc.
• Use paper baking cups (muffin liners) if you want to easily extract the soft & moist muffins from the muffin trays. This also helps to prevent the muffins from sticking to the bottom of the muffin tray.
• FYI – Cranberries are VERY sticky after being baked. Therefore, paper baking cups help to prevent the cranberry muffins from sticking to the muffin trays. Sticky baked fruit or chocolate chips are some of the main reasons that muffins & banana breads may be difficult to remove their pans.

• Fill the muffin cups about 60% to 70% full (roughly two thirds) with batter in order to prevent your cranberry muffins from developing mushroom tops.
• If you want a “mushroom” top on your muffins (where the muffin top has expanded beyond the edge of the cup), you should fill the muffin cup about 75% to 90% full with batter.
• However, be aware if you try to make mushroom tops, they are harder to get out of the muffin cups without breaking the edges of the muffin tops.

• Use FRESH ingredients (e.g. baking soda and flour) for the best results. For example, if you use stale baking soda and/or baking powder, your muffins will not rise properly and will be too dense. Baking soda & powder is best if used within 6 months of opening the container. Using baking soda from an open container (that has been deodorizing your refrigerator for months) may lead to subpar results. Old & hard baking soda/powder may lead to rising problems and/or leave small bitter clumps in your muffins.
• Old flour can affect the taste of your muffins. Old flour can spoil and taste bitter, sour, musty, etc.
• Try to keep your ingredients (e.g. flour) in airtight food containers in order to extend their shelf life and avoid spoilage (e.g. exposure to moisture, pests and dust).
• Flour (when stored in an open bag and not in an airtight container) can absorb a lot of moisture from the air. This extra moisture throws off recipes and can lead to overly wet batter, the required baking time may be longer than expected, etc.

• It takes roughly 10 to 20 minutes to fully preheat most ovens with some variability due to the size of the oven, planned baking temperature (hotter takes longer), etc.
• I like to use a hanging oven thermometer to confirm that my oven has reached the right temperature before baking my muffins. This helps to prevent the muffins from being over or under baked.
• If you want to test these easy orange muffins to see if they are fully baked, you can use a digital “baking” thermometer. Muffins are usually fully baked if their internal temperature is around 205 F to 210 F. If the temperature is below this then they will be underbaked and if it is above this range, they might be overbaked and dry. For the most accurate results – Place the tip of the digital thermometer in the center of the muffin.

• Place your muffins in the middle of your oven. If you place it on the top or bottom racks, the muffins may be too near the oven’s heating element and bake faster than expected.
• When making this recipe, many international bakers prefer to use a kitchen scale versus using measuring cups. A kitchen scale provides greater accuracy because the amount of ingredients in a measuring cup can vary somewhat (e.g. a cup of fluffed flour vs a cup of densely packed flour). Therefore, my recipe also includes some rough gram/milliliter measurements.
• If you want to freeze these muffins – After the muffins have completely cooled, wrap them in plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Make the wrapping is airtight (no open areas). Then place the wrapped muffins in an airtight container or large resealable sandwich bag before placing them in the freezer. FYI – If the muffins have not completely cooled before being wrapped, they will release steam inside the wrapping as they cool. This steam will condense inside the wrapping and create soggy spots when you eventually thaw out the muffins.

• If you have a problem with a recipe, please make sure that you are following the recipe exactly (e.g. using the correct oven temperature), using the correct amounts of ingredients (e.g. don’t eyeball the measurements versus using a measuring cup or accidentally add a tablespoon when a teaspoon is called for), using the correct ingredients (e.g. baking soda/powder versus yeast or all purpose flour versus bread flour), etc. Please don’t “wing” things with recipes.
• My recipes are based on US ingredient measurements (e.g. US cups & tablespoons). However, as a courtesy to our European visitors, I have also included some very ROUGH European equivalents (e.g. grams & milliliters). Since I rarely use European measurements when baking, please let me know in the comment section below if any of the European ingredient measurements need to be changed (e.g. for XYZ ingredient, milliliters are more commonly used versus the grams information listed in the recipe).
• Always wear oven mitts/gloves when dealing with a hot oven, hot muffin trays, etc.
• For more easy recipes, please visit Bread Dad’s Easy Muffin Recipes section.

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Reference Sources

1. Wikipedia, Cranberry
2. Wikipedia, Muffin
3. Wikipedia, Orange Fruit
4. Wikipedia, Zest (Ingredient)

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