Gluten-free Cranberry Orange Muffins
Gluten-free Cranberry Orange Muffins- made with a combination of wholesome gluten-free flours, these naturally sweetened muffins are bursting with flavor from fresh cranberries and orange zest.
Cranberry and orange is one of the most underrated flavor combinations, in my personal opinion. The tart and tangy cranberries pair so well with the bright and sweet citrus flavor of oranges. Together they sing the praises of winter fruit which so often gets outshined by summer produce.
These muffins are actually an old recipe on my site that I decided to revisit because I wanted to make them with fresh cranberries rather dried. As it turns out, you can substitute them equally because fresh cranberries add quite a bit of moisture. Because of that I had to rework the recipe but I’m pleased to say that the result is so much better than before. The fresh cranberries and orange zest make them come alive with flavor and the texture is so perfect, no one would ever guess they’re gluten-free.
Gluten-free Cranberry Orange Muffin Ingredients
- Fresh Cranberries- Using fresh cranberries rather than dried adds moisture and tartness to the muffins. You’ll need a food processor to finely chop them before adding them to the batter.
- Oat Flour- Be sure to use certified gluten-free oat flour for allergies. Brown or white rice flour works well as a substitute.
- Almond Flour- I always add almond flour to my gluten-free muffins because it yields a lighter texture and helps prevent gumminess. I haven’t tested these with any substitutions for the almond flour but you might be able to use extra oat flour if you increase the oil since the almond flour adds fat and moisture to the recipe.
- Baking Powder, Soda and Salt- You’ll need both baking powder and soda to leaven the muffins so that they rise properly. I always add a touch of salt to help balance out the sweet.
- Eggs- I’ve tested these with both regular eggs and flax eggs, and they both work well. The non-vegan version is fluffier with a lighter texture but flavor wise they are equally delicious.
- Non-Dairy Yogurt- Plain almond milk yogurt is my go-to in baking but any kind of dairy-free yogurt will work. I haven’t tested them with dairy yogurt and it’s possible the acid could interfere with the leavening so be aware you may need to experiment and tweak the recipe if you want to use dairy yogurt.
- Honey- I like to use honey here since it’s slightly sweeter than maple syrup and helps counteract the tartness of the cranberries. However you can sub maple syrup if that’s what you have on hand.
- Vanilla- Not totally necessary but so worth it when combined with the fresh orange zest.
- Orange Zest- I like to add a full tablespoon so that the orange flavor can’t be missed. This requires about 1 large naval orange. Buy two if you can’t find any large ones.
- Unrefined Melted Coconut Oil- I prefer to use coconut oil for baking but any kind of neutral flavored oil (or melted dairy-free butter) will work.
How to Make Gluten-free Cranberry Orange Muffins
Outside of processing the cranberries and zesting the orange, the preparation for these muffins is pretty basic:
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients, finely chopped cranberries and orange zest. Fold together until a batter forms.
- Transfer to a lightly greased muffin tin and bake for about 25 minutes. Allow to cool and enjoy!
We’re obsessed with the flavor and texture of these muffins and I have a feeling once you try them, you will be too!
If you’re looking for more muffin recipes, be sure to check these out:
- Healthy Flourless Gingerbread Muffins
- Vegan Gluten-free Blueberry Lemon Muffins
- Flourless Pumpkin Muffins
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
- Vegan Lemon Zucchini Muffins
Gluten-free Cranberry Orange Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh cranberries
- 1½ cups oat flour, be sure to use certified gluten-free for allergies
- ½ cup almond flour*
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 pasture-raised eggs, or 2 flax eggs**
- 1/2 cup non-dairy yogurt, I have not tested these with dairy yogurt
- 1/3 cup honey, or pure maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon orange zest, from about 2 oranges
- 1/4 cup unrefined melted coconut oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F then light grease a muffin tin for 10 muffins.
- In a food processor, process the cranberries for about 5 seconds, until they are broken into little bits, but not pureed. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, oat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a medium bowl or large measuring cup, combine the eggs, yogurt, honey, vanilla and orange zest. Whisk until smooth.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, then add the melted coconut oil and fold everything together with a spatula, just until combined. Gently fold the cranberry pieces into the batter.
- Divide the batter between the 10 muffin cups, filling about 3/4 of the way full. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until the muffins are golden on top and a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.
Well, I wouldn’t have told these were healthy either! They look so moist and fluffy, and the flavor combo sounds great. I’ll take seven, please ;-)
Pinned! I’ve been meaning to make muffins now for the past few weeks but keep forgetting. I need to make them this weekend because a muffin is JUST what I’ve been craving for breakfast this week (no joke…it’s weird).
My mom would adore this recipe! She loved cranberry orange bread so I know she would like these muffins too! Great idea! :)
These look delicious! I’ve used oat flour to make pancakes before but never to make baked goods I am curious to try it out and see how it goes.
Oh I love orange cranberry muffins! I made some on my blog during thanksgiving and I just love how hearty they are! Yours look so delicious!
I think that would work fine!
Can any othet gluten free flour work instead of oat flour? Like sorghum or finger millet?
It’s hard for me to say because I haven’t used either of those flours on their own before. I would think you would have better luck using a combination of the two rather than just one. But if you’re afraid to risk experimenting then I would suggest picking up some oat flour or making your own by grinding oats in a food processor.
I’ve made this recipe twice! Muffins are delicious!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for the comment, Donna! :)
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Me and my family love your blender muffins and I’m eager to make these to take to my Mom’s for Thanksgiving, but could you clarify something? In the recipe pics you show fresh cranberries chopped in a food processor, but the recipe calls for dried cranberries. Which works best? Your muffin pics look like you used fresh.
Hi Michele! I actually just updated the pictures for this post because I was planning to reshare it with a revised recipe (that uses fresh cranberries instead of dried). It’s such an old post that I didn’t expect anyone would notice before I had a chance to update the recipe but clearly you did, lol. I will work on updating it now so that you can view the updated version. :)
What timing I had, huh? Thank you for the updated recipe–looking forward to making it!
Turned out great with regular yogurt. Thanks for the recipe.
Wheres the flax??? Only flax eggs in the recipe which amounts to 2 Tbls of flax.
Hi Allen! If you look at the recipe notes it shows how much flax to use which is (as you said) 2 tablespoons combined with 6 tablespoons water. That’s used to replace the regular eggs for a vegan option. Hope that clarifies it for you!
My family loved these muffins! Now I want to try blueberry orange ones using your recipe? Do you think I can simply substitute blueberries 1-for-1 in this recipe?
I think that would work if you mean just adding the blueberries whole to the batter. I think blending them would make the batter too moist.
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Soooo good! I had to sub orange extract for zest and dry cranberries for fresh (also added 1 grated green apple) The muffins remind me of scones, and I appreciate that they are not too sweet. Love this recipe, thank you!!