Cranberry Ginger Muffins

Cranberry ginger muffins made with whole grain flour, fresh and dried ginger, cranberries and an almond crunch topping.

They’re hearty and wholesome, yet fluffy and light.

They’ll be your new favorite fall muffin!

How to Make Tender Muffins

Sometimes muffins can turn out tough, chewy or flavorless.

So, I have a few tips for making the best, most tender and delicious muffins!

• Don’t overmix the batter. I realize this is incredibly subjective.
  • But, if you simply mix the dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, then mix the two together until just mixed, you’ll be good to go!
• I generally avoid using a hand or stand mixer to make muffin batter because it’s easy to overmix.
  • I use a whisk to mix together the dry ingredients, then the wet ingredients, then I use a spatula to fold the ingredients together to make the batter.
• I also almost always use mix-ins like chocolate chips or blueberries in my muffins, so be careful to fold those in gently as well, and only until they are incorporated.
  • The mix-ins will help add flavor to the muffins, but I like the actual batter to have great flavor as well, and that’s where extracts come in.
• When it comes to batter flavor, most people think of vanilla extract right away, and I do too – I LOVE vanilla extract and always put extra in my baked goods.
  • But I also love almond extract, and in this particular recipe, the flavor lends itself really well.
  • I put it as optional in the recipe, but I HIGHLY recommend it.
• You can also add a crumble to the top of your muffins to make them extra delicious, like I did in this recipe!

Step-By-Step Baking Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place muffin liners in the wells of a 12-cup muffin tin.
2. The first step is to mix together the streusel topping ingredients.
   • That includes oats, almonds, melted butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.
   • A streusel topping is generally oats or flour (or both), some sort of sweetener and melted fat (generally butter or coconut oil).
   • And in this case, I added nuts and cinnamon. Set this mixture aside.
3. The next step is to mix together the brown sugar, eggs, oil, milk and vanilla extract until it’s fluffy.
   • You can use a hand mixer for this step, if you’d like.
4. Now, you’ll whisk together the dry ingredients, which includes flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and ginger.
   • You’re just looking for these ingredients to be well-combined.
5. Now we’ll mix together the wet and dry ingredients, just until incorporated.
   • As I mentioned in my tender muffin tips, you do not want to overmix muffin batter because they’ll become dry and dense.
   • So only stir until the dry ingredients are incorporated into the wet ingredients (no dry crumbles).
   • Because it’s so easy to overmix muffin batter, I don’t use a hand mixer (or a stand mixer) for this step.
6. Now, use a spatula to fold in the cranberries, just until incorporated.
7. Use a cookie scoop or measuring cup to scoop the batter into the muffin liners, filling them aout 3/4 full (or a little more).
8. Use a spoon to scoop the streusel topping into each liner.
   • Gently press the topping down into the batter so it will adhere when baked.
9. Bake until the muffins are just set. You can use a toothpick to test for doneness.
   • When inserted and pulled out, the toothpick should come out pretty clean.
10. Let them cool, then dig in! Slather with butter, if you’re interested.

More Winter-Inspired Recipes:

• Gingerbread Cut-Out Cookies
• Simple Brussels Sprouts Salad
• Cranberry Maple French Toast Cups
• Apple Cranberry Bread Pudding
• Grown-Up Deviled Eggs

Cranberry Ginger Muffins

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Delicious cranberry-packed whole wheat muffins that are perfect for the holiday season (or any time) and are a crowd-pleaser. 

• Author: Julie Andrews
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Total Time: 30 mins
• Yield: 9 Muffins 1x
• Category: Breakfast, Dessert
• Method: Oven, Baked
• Cuisine: American
• Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

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Topping:

• ¼ cup rolled old-fashioned oats
• ¼ cup slivered almonds
• ¼ cup butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Muffins:

• ¾ cup brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 6 tablespoons oil
• ¼ cup milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups whole wheat pastry or oat flour*
• ½ cup rolled old-fashioned oats
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon coarse salt
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a small bowl, combine the topping ingredients. Set aside.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together brown sugar, eggs, oil, milk and vanilla extract until combined.
4. In another medium mixing bowl, whisk together oat flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and ginger. Pour dry ingredients into the bowl of wet ingredients and whisk together until just combined. Fold in cranberries.
5. Spoon batter into the wells of a greased 9-cup muffin tin, about ¾ of the way full. Top with a scoop of the oat/almond topping. Bake 18-20 minutes, until toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean. Allow to cool.

Notes

Substitution Tip: You can substitute any flour.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 muffin
• Calories: 411
• Sugar: 25 g
• Sodium: 250 mg
• Fat: 18 g
• Saturated Fat: 5 g
• Unsaturated Fat: 10 g
• Trans Fat: 0 g
• Carbohydrates: 57 g
• Fiber: 8 g
• Protein: 7 g
• Cholesterol: 55 mg