This simple, old-fashioned recipe for Cranberry Muffins comes from Mrs. Wilkes' Boarding House in historic Savannah, Georgia. Bake the easy muffins with sweet and tart fresh cranberries as a make-ahead breakfast, a Thanksgiving or Christmas side dish, or a delicious addition to your next Sunday supper.
Easy Cranberry Muffin Recipe
I first came across this easy cranberry muffin recipe in a vintage cookbook from Mrs. Wilkes' Boarding House (now called Mrs. Wilkes' Dining Room) in Savannah -- a cozy little Southern diner that serves comfort food lunches at communal tables. The wildly popular spot may be best known for its fried chicken, cornbread dressing, biscuits and corn muffins, but these homemade cranberry muffins are hidden gems that deserve some love, too!
I've tweaked the recipe instructions slightly to accommodate a modern kitchen, but the basic ingredients remain the same -- fresh cranberries, sugar, flour, buttermilk and shortening. The muffins are moist with a tender crumb and have a great sweet-tart flavor. You can jazz up the base recipe with walnuts or orange zest if you prefer Cranberry Nut Muffins or Cranberry Orange Muffins, or pile them high with streusel for bakery-style treats.
How to Prepare Fresh Cranberries for Muffins
You can use either fresh or frozen cranberries in this recipe. If you're starting with frozen cranberries, you do not need to thaw them before adding them to the batter.
Halve or coarsely chop the larger berries (very small cranberries can be left whole), then toss them with ¼ cup of sugar. That's it -- the cranberries are ready to stir into the muffins! You do not need to cook the cranberries before adding them to the batter.
How to make Cranberry Muffins from Scratch
This cranberry muffin recipe is a great option for prep-ahead breakfasts, a festive holiday side dish, or a quick addition to the weeknight bread basket. Best of all, you can stir together the homemade muffins from scratch in about 10 minutes!
Ingredients for Bakery Style Cranberry Muffins
- Cranberries (fresh or frozen)
- Sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Salt
- Egg
- Buttermilk
- Shortening
- Baking soda
How to make Buttermilk at Home
Buttermilk is an important ingredient in this recipe for a few reasons. The acid in the buttermilk reacts with the baking soda to help the muffins rise, it adds a nice subtle tangy flavor to the batter, and it helps to create a light, tender crumb. Do not substitute regular milk for the buttermilk.
If you don't have buttermilk in your refrigerator, you can make your own at home by adding 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to a 1-cup measuring cup. Fill the rest of the cup with regular milk. Stir and allow the mixture to sit for about 5 minutes. You've got 1 cup of homemade buttermilk! Use ¾ cup of the mixture in this recipe.
Why Use Shortening in Muffins?
Shortening traps more air bubbles and has a higher melting point than butter, so muffins made with shortening tend to rise higher, hold their shape during baking, and have a softer, lighter texture.
While the final product will not be quite the same, you can substitute with an equal amount of melted butter in this recipe.
Step 1: Combine Dry Ingredients
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and ½ cup of sugar.
Step 2: Combine Wet Ingredients
In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk and melted shortening.
Step 3: Add Wet Ingredients to Dry Ingredients
Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients and fold together the batter just until combined.
Step 4: Fold in Cranberries
Add the chopped, sugared cranberries and gently fold together.
Step 5: Divide Batter in Muffin Tin
Divide the batter evenly among paper-lined muffin cups.
Step 6: Bake at High Heat
First, bake the muffins in a 425 degree F oven for 5 minutes. This initial high-heat will help the muffins rise.
Step 7: Reduce Heat and Finish Baking
Next, without removing the muffins from the oven, turn down the temperature to 350 degrees F. Bake for 15-20 more minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack, then enjoy!
What to serve with Fresh Cranberry Muffins
The muffins are tasty on their own, but they're also delicious when served warm and spread with butter, honey, or a dollop of orange marmalade.
Pair the cranberry muffins with any of these cozy meals:
- Chicken and Stuffing Casserole
- Roast Turkey Breast or Slow Cooker Turkey
- Dutch Oven Roasted Chicken
- Cider Braised Pulled Pork
- Fried Chicken
- Dutch Oven Pot Roast
- Crustless Quiche with Spinach
- Overnight Breakfast Casserole
Storage
Allow the muffins to cool completely. Store in a large Ziploc freezer bag or other airtight container. The muffins will last for 2-3 days at room temperature, or you can freeze the muffins for up to 3 months.
To Reheat
If the muffins are frozen, allow to sit on the counter for a few minutes while you preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Frozen muffins will require about 10-12 minutes in the oven; room temperature muffins will only need about 5 minutes to warm through.
Alternatively, you can microwave one or two muffins at a time for 15-30 seconds or just until warm.
Recipe Variations
There are a number of ways that you can adapt this simple recipe to suit your tastes. Here are a few ideas:
Cranberry Orange Muffins
Add the zest from 1 orange to the basic muffin batter.
Cranberry Walnut Muffins
Fold 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts into the basic muffin batter. Other nice options include pistachios, pecans and almonds.
Cranberry Muffins with Streusel Topping
Make a streusel for the top of the muffins by combining the following ingredients in a small bowl: ½ cup sugar, ⅓ cup all-purpose flour and ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon. Cut in ¼ cup cold butter until crumbly. Sprinkle on top of the muffin batter, pressing down gently. Bake according to recipe instructions.
Blueberry Cranberry Muffins
Use ½ cup of fresh or frozen blueberries and ½ cup of fresh or frozen cranberries for a nice combination of sweet-and-tart ingredients. You do not need to thaw frozen blueberries and you do not need to halve or chop the blueberries before adding them to the batter.
Can you use dried cranberries instead of fresh cranberries in muffins?
Yes! While I prefer the tart burst of flavor from fresh or frozen cranberries, dried cranberries (such as Craisins) will also work in this recipe. Here's a delicious cranberry orange muffin recipe that uses dried cranberries.
Tips for the Best Cranberry Muffin Recipe
- Sift together the dry ingredients before mixing with the wet ingredients.
- Allow the melted shortening to cool slightly before mixing with the egg and buttermilk. If it's too hot, the shortening may cook the egg.
- Fill the muffin cups to the top. This will yield about 10 large muffins, so you'll need to add water to the two empty muffin cups in order to ensure even baking. For 12 smaller muffins, fill the muffin cups about ⅔ full and reduce the baking time by a couple of minutes.
- Don't Over-Mix the Batter. The key to a perfect muffin is just barely mixing the ingredients. You want them to come together, but a few lumps are fine. This way they’ll stay moist and tender!
- Use melted shortening rather than melted butter for a light, tender crumb.
- Bakery-Style Cranberry Muffins: For those crisp sugary muffin tops that you find in a bakery, sprinkle coarse sugar on top of the muffins before baking.
More Recipes to Make with Cranberries
- Cranberry Apple Crisp
- Mom's Cranberry Bread
- Cranberry Baked Oatmeal
- Easy Cranberry Brie Appetizers
- 3-Ingredient Cranberry Sauce
- Cranberry French Toast Casserole
Cranberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, halved
- ¾ cup sugar, divided
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- ¼ cup shortening, melted and slightly cooled
- Optional: coarse sugar for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with 10 paper liners; set aside.
- In a small bowl, toss together cranberries and ¼ cup sugar.
- In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt and remaining ½ cup sugar.
- Whisk together egg, buttermilk and melted shortening. Make a well in the dry ingredients; add the wet ingredients. Fold together just until combined (do not over-mix). Carefully stir in cranberries.
- Divide batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle coarse sugar over top, if desired. Fill any empty muffin cups with water to ensure even cooking.
- Bake at 425 degrees F for 5 minutes, then (without removing the muffins) turn down the oven down to 350 degrees F and bake for 15-20 more minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Notes
- Sift together the dry ingredients to avoid any lumps in your batter.
- Allow the melted shortening to cool slightly before mixing with the egg and buttermilk. If it's too hot, the shortening may cook the egg.
- Fill the muffin cups to the top. This will yield about 10 large muffins, so you'll need to add water to the two empty muffin cups in order to ensure even baking. For 12 smaller muffins, fill the muffin cups about ⅔ full and reduce the baking time by a couple of minutes.
- Don't Over-Mix the Batter. The key to a perfect muffin is just barely mixing the ingredients. You want them to come together, but a few lumps are fine. This way they’ll stay moist and tender!
- Use melted shortening rather than melted butter for a light, tender crumb.
- Bakery-Style Cranberry Muffins: For those crisp sugary muffin tops that you find in a bakery, sprinkle coarse sugar on top of the muffins before baking.
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