Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins

Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins are packed full of chocolate, fresh cranberries and pecan nuts. They are flavoured with cinnamon and orange zest making them the perfect bake for Christmas and the Holidays. These delicious muffins work equally well as part of a festive breakfast or brunch or serve with tea or coffee as a sweet treat.

Why should I make Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins?

I like to make Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins because they are so quick and easy to make. They have all the flavours of Christmas in a soft light muffin and make a great alternative to rich Christmas Fruit Cake and Mince Pies.

Make Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins as a gift. Or donate them to bake sales or Christmas fairs, they are sure to be popular.

What are cranberries?

Cranberries are small bright red berries that are related to blueberries. They have such a sharp fruity flavour that cuts through the sweetness of the other ingredients. And this makes them ideal to provide the balance of flavours in cakes and bakes. 

Where do cranberries grow?

Cranberries are farmed commercially in the Northern United States, Canada and Chile.

Do cranberries grow in water?

Cranberries don’t actually grow in water. However, some cranberries are harvested by flooding the fields and they are then beaten off the bushes using a special harvester. These cranberries are usually used for juice and commercially produced sauce.

When you buy whole cranberries, these are harvested without flooding. The farmer uses a different type of picking machine that ‘combs’ the cranberries from the bushes so they are not damaged.

What ingredients do I need to make Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins?

You will need:

• Fresh or frozen cranberries
• Caster (superfine) Sugar
• Plain (All purpose flour)
• Cinnamon
• Baking Powder
• Salt
• Butter or baking spread
• Eggs
• Natural Yogurt
• Milk
• Pecans or Walnuts
• Chocolate
• Orange
• Icing (Confectioners) Sugar
• Lemon juice

What kind of cranberries should I use for Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins?

Use fresh or frozen cranberries in the Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins. I use fresh cranberries in November and December when they are easily available in greengrocers and supermarkets. I also like to keep a pack or two of frozen cranberries in the freezer to use all year round.

Chop the frozen cranberries while still slightly frozen and mix with the sugar before you add to the mixture.

Can I use dried cranberries?

If you can’t source fresh or frozen cranberries then you can substitute dried cranberries in this recipe.  However, you will need to add more yogurt and milk as the muffins will have less moisture. They will also be sweeter which is why I like to use fresh cranberries. The sharpness of fresh or frozen cranberries really offsets the sweet chocolate and rich taste of the nuts.

I do use dried cranberries for the muffin topping. Chop the dried cranberries or snip them with scissors, then sprinkle them over the icing. Don’t use fresh cranberries for the topping, fresh cranberries are too sharp to use raw and too wet if cooked.

What kind of chocolate should I use in the Cranberry & Chocolate Muffins?

Use the kind of chocolate that you like to eat. I use milk chocolate in this recipe but I have also made them with dark semi-sweet chocolate and it works very well. You can also use white chocolate although it can be very sweet.

I recommend buying a chocolate bar and chopping it into chunks with a sharp knife.  The chocolate you buy in a bar is usually better quality than the chocolate in chocolate chips.  However, if you are short of time, chocolate chunks or chips will still make excellent muffins.

What kind of nuts should I use in Chocolate & Cranberry Muffins?

I use pecan nuts because they are my favourite nuts for baking. I use them in my Rhubarb and Pecan Muffin recipe too. Pecan nuts have a mild, sweet flavour and they provide a lovely texture to the muffins.

You can use other nuts In this recipe, choose the type of nuts that you like best. Alternative nuts I suggest for these muffins are:

• Walnuts
• Hazelnuts
• Macadamia Nuts
• Almonds

Can I leave out the nuts?

Leave out the nuts if you don’t like them or if you or any of your family are allergic to nuts. Simply make up the quantity with more chocolate.

How many muffins does this recipe make?

The recipe is to make 18 muffins. However, it does depend on how much mixture you put into each muffin cup, sometimes I get 15 or 16 muffins.

How do I store Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins?

Store them in a cake tin or a large airtight lidded container. Store the muffins in a single layer so that the topping doesn’t get flattened. You can store the muffins like this for up to 3 days.

Can I freeze Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins?

Yes, you can freeze the muffins, they freeze really well.  Once they are completely cooled, pack in freezer-proof boxes or bags. To serve simply take out as many as you need and thaw on a cooling rack for about 2 hours covered with a clean tea towel.

Can I freeze the muffins with the topping?

I recommend that you don’t put on the topping until after they are defrosted if you plan to freeze them for more than a few days. However, you can successfully freeze Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins with their topping for a few days.

Are the muffins suitanble for vegetarians?

Yes, this bake is suitable for vegetarians as it contains no meat products.

Can I make the muffins gluten-free?

I have not tested this recipe with gluten-free flour and I have limited experience of baking with gluten-free flour.

Please note that this recipe may contain other allergens not referred to above and any variations suggested have not been tested unless otherwise stated.

How do I serve Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins?

Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins are delicious at any time of day. Here are some ideas for serving these choc-full festive muffins:

• Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins are quite substantial so ideal to serve for breakfast or brunch.
• Serve alongside other holiday bakes as part of a dessert buffet.
• Muffins make a great coffee cake to keep hunger pangs at bay mid-morning.
• Warm the muffins and serve as dessert with Easy Vanilla Custard Sauce, cream or ice cream.

More Holiday Bakes from Farmersgirl Kitchen

Easy Festive Apple and Mincemeat Streusel Muffins are simply made with ingredients you probably already have in your larder. You can make them to serve for  Christmas breakfast or as a sweet treat at any time of day. I think you’ll love them! 

Christmas Mini Mince Pies are small buttery pastry pies filled with a delicious mixture of dried fruit, and warming spices. They are bite-sized versions of the traditional British mince pies that are such a feature of Christmas holiday feasts.  

Black Bun Traybake is a rich and spicy fruit cake sandwiched between two layers of shortcrust pastry. It is a simple version of the traditional Scottish Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve) cake with all the same flavours. It is so simple to make and takes a third of the time to bake.

More Cranberry Treats

• Brie and Cranberry Tear and Share Bread – Fab Food 4 All
• Christmas Bliss Balls – Tin & Thyme.
• White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies – Something Sweet, Something Savoury
• Orange Cranberry Loaf Cake – Sew White

PIN FOR LATER

Chocolate and Cranberry Muffins

Janice Pattie

These muffins are packed full of chocolate, cranberries and pecan nuts. They are quick and easy to make and perfect for holiday entertaining.

3.27 from 30 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Baking

Cuisine American, British

Servings 18

Calories 291 kcal

Equipment

• 2 x 12 hole muffin pans
• Paper muffin cases
• weighing scales
• Measuring spoons
• Large bowl
• measuring jug
• Whisk or fork
• Sharp knife
• chopping board
• Scoop
• Sieve
• Lemon zester or grater
• Lemon squeezer
• small bowl

Ingredients

• 50 grams caster sugar
• 75 grams chopped fresh or frozen cranberries
• 450 grams plain flour
• 200 grams caster sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 170 grams butter or margarine
• 2 eggs lightly beaten
• 150 millilitres natural yogurt
• 100 millilitres milk
• 100 grams chopped pecans or walnuts
• 75 grams chopped chocolate white, milk or dark
• 1 tablespoon grated orange rind

For the topping

• 85 grams icing (confectioners) sugar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons dried cranberries finely chopped

Instructions

 

• 50 grams caster sugar, 75 grams chopped fresh or frozen cranberries
  Mix the chopped cranberries with the 50g caster sugar, set aside.
  
• 450 grams plain flour, 200 grams caster sugar, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt
  In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt and the 200g caster sugar.
• 170 grams butter or margarine
  Cut in the butter or margarine and rub in with your fingers until it resembles coarse bread crumbs.
  
• 75 grams chopped fresh or frozen cranberries, 100 grams chopped pecans or walnuts, 75 grams chopped chocolate, 1 tablespoon grated orange rind
  Gently stir in nuts, orange peel, cranberries and chopped chocolate.
  
• 150 millilitres natural yogurt, 100 millilitres milk, 2 eggs
  Whisk together the eggs with the yogurt and milk and stir into the flour mixture until just moistened, do not over mix.
  
• Fill paper-lined muffin tins two thirds full.
  
• Bake at 190C/180C Fan for 20-25 minutes.
  
• Leave to cool in the muffin pan for 10 minutes then remove to a cooling tray and leave to cool completely.

For the topping

• Sift the icing sugar into a bowl
  
• Squeeze the juice from the lemon and gradually add to the icing sugar until it is the consistency of thick cream.
  
• Drizzle the icing (frosting) over the muffins and sprinkle with chopped dried cranberries.
  

Notes

This recipe will make 18 muffins, however, if you fill the muffin cups a little bit more then you may get fewer but bigger muffins! 

Nutrition

Calories: 291kcalCarbohydrates: 38gProtein: 4gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 40mgSodium: 147mgPotassium: 131mgFiber: 2gSugar: 17gVitamin A: 289IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 49mgIron: 2mg

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