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- December 6, 2023
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Hands down, the best orange cranberry muffins recipe! These incredible jumbo cranberry muffins are made with a vanilla batter dotted with orange zest and loads of cranberries; topped with a simple streusel topping; and finished with an aromatic orange glaze. The textures and flavors are what makes these muffins amazing – these have that perfect Costco muffin, muffin-y texture!
These cranberry orange muffins are great year-round, but especially wonderful for the fall and winter season and winter holidays! I love to enjoy these on Christmas morning with a cup of hot coffee or tea!
Watch My Cranberry Muffins Video Tutorial
Watch my YouTube orange cranberry muffins video tutorial for step-by-step instructions and see just how easy these delicious muffins are to make. Want to stay up to date on the newest recipes? Subscribe to my website email list and my YouTube channel for notifications.
Ingredients for Orange Cranberry Muffins
Here are my tips for the main ingredients you’ll need to make these incredible cranberry muffins. Find the full list of ingredients in the printable recipe card below.
- Fresh Cranberries – fresh berries will work best for this recipe. You can use frozen ones but thaw them completely before using them in the recipe.
- Orange Zest & Juice – the best way to add orange flavor is to use orange zest! You’ll also need some freshly squeezed orange juice for the batter; the acid in the juice will help activate the baking soda.
- Sour Cream – you can also use a thick and creamy Greek yogurt.
- Eggs – have your eggs at room temperature for the best results. The muffin batter will bake more evenly when not cold.
- Unsalted Butter – I recommend using unsalted butter for all baking recipes. It gives you better control over the amount of salt in the recipe.
- All Purpose Flour, Baking Powder & Baking Soda – regular flour works best for this recipe, and using two types of leavening agents yields fluffier muffins.
Need some supplies or tools to make these delicious cranberry orange muffins at home? Shop my Amazon Affiliate links for the items I recommend. See Disclosure Statement.
Making the Easy Muffin Batter
You’ll love how easy these orange cranberry muffins are to make! You can have them ready in no time for a delicious breakfast or afternoon snack!
- Start by preheating the oven to 350°F. Line 12 jumbo muffin tins with paper liners, or 24 regular cupcake tins.
- Place the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and sea salt into a large mixing bowl. Zest the oranges directly into the dry ingredients, then toss to coat the zest. Make sure it’s not clumped together, then set aside the dry ingredients.
- Squeeze the juice from the just-zested oranges into a measuring cup; you’ll need ½ cup of juice.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the freshly squeezed juice with the sour cream, melted butter, eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract. Whisk or beat the ingredients together for a few minutes, until the eggs are well beaten.
- Add the dry ingredients into the wet batter, then mix again for a few minutes or just until the batter is smooth and clump-free. Do not over-mix; this will create large pockets in the muffins.
- Lastly, add in the fresh cranberries. Reserve about ½ cup of sliced cranberries for topping. Use a spatula and fold in the berries.
Making the Streusel Topping
With the muffin batter ready, it’s time to make the easy streusel topping!
- In a separate mixing bowl, combine the ¼ cup flour, ¼ cup sugar, and 2 tablespoons of cold butter. Use a pastry blender or two large forks to cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles small crumbles.
- Pour in the heavy cream and use your fingers or a fork to toss together the ingredients, forming a crumbly mixture.
Filling the Muffin Tins & Adding the Topping
- Using a large measuring scoop, fill each lined muffin tin three-quarters full, leaving a little room at the top.
- Sprinkle the prepared streusel topping over each muffin, about 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons per muffin. Last, add the reserved sliced cranberries on top, gently pressing them into place.
Baking Instructions for Cranberry Muffins
Bake the orange cranberry muffins at 350°F for approximately 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Start checking for doneness after 28 minutes to avoid over-baking the muffins, which will dry them out.
If you are using a cupcake pan instead of jumbo muffin pan, make sure to decrease the baking time! The smaller muffins will take a few minutes less.
Once the muffins are baked, let them cool in the tins for about 5 minutes, then carefully remove the hot muffins onto a wire rack to cool.
Making the Orange Glaze
- While the muffins are cooling, prepare the simple orange glaze. Place the powdered sugar into a mixing bowl and add the orange zest.
- Pour in 1 tablespoon of cream at a time, whisking after each addition, until the glaze is to your desired consistency. If the glaze becomes too thin, simply add more sugar.
- Drizzle the glaze over the cooled muffins. Let the glaze set for a few minutes before enjoying the muffins.
Serving & Storing Suggestions for Muffins
These incredible orange cranberry muffins can be enjoyed right away while they’re still warm! I like to pair them with coffee or tea.
Enjoy the muffins within the first couple of days when they’re freshest, storing them at room temperature.
For longer storage, wrap each muffin individually in plastic wrap, then place the muffins into a zip-lock bag and into the freezer. When you want to enjoy a muffin, remove it from the freezer and let the muffin thaw at room temperature until softened.
More Recipes to Try!
Enjoyed this muffin recipe? Check out some of my other recipes you’re sure to love!
- Orange Cranberry Bread – the most delicious dessert bread, dotted with cranberries and orange zest, then glazed with orange glaze!
- Orange Cranberry Scones – the best scones recipe and the only one I use! These are made with fresh orange zest and fresh cranberries – perfect for the holidays!
- Cranberry Orange Trifle – super easy no-bake trifle for the holidays! With orange whipped cream, cranberry sauce, and ladyfinger cookies.
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins – these are always a huge hit! Soft and moist muffins with lemon zest and poppy seeds. Plus, a simple lemon glaze!
- The Best Lemon Blueberry Muffins – Costco-style, jumbo muffins dotted full of blueberries and touch of lemon zest! So delicious with coffee!
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The Best Orange Cranberry Muffins Recipe
20 minutes mins prep + 30 minutes mins cook
12 jumbo muffins
The best orange cranberry muffins recipe! Costco-style jumbo muffins with orange zest, fresh cranberries, streusel topping, and orange glaze!
IngredientsUS Customary – Metric
US Customary – Metric
For Muffin Batter:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
zest from 2 large oranges
1/2 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed
1 cup sour cream, or thick Greek yogurt
1 cup unsalted butter, melted
4 large eggs, at room temp
1 1/2 cups white granulated sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups fresh cranberries
For Streusel Topping:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
2 tbsp unsalted butter, cold
1 tbsp cream, or milk
For Orange Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp orange zest
2 to 4 tbsp cream, or milk
Instructions
Start by preheating the oven to 350°F. Line 12 jumbo muffin tins with paper liners, or 24 regular cupcake tins.
Making the Muffin Batter:
Place the flour, baking soda, baking powder, ands ea salt into a large mixing bowl. Zest the oranges directly into the dry ingredients, then toss to coat the zest. Make sure it’s not clumped together, then set aside the dry ingredients.
Squeeze the juice from the just-zested oranges into a measuring cup; you’ll need ½ cup of juice.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the freshly squeezed juice with the sour cream, melted butter, eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract. Whisk or beat the ingredients together for a few minutes, until the eggs are well beaten.
Add the dry ingredients into the wet batter, then mix again for a few minutes or just until the batter is smooth and clump-free. Do not over-mix; this will create large pockets in the muffins.
Lastly, add in the fresh cranberries. Reserve about ½ cup of sliced cranberries for topping. Use a spatula and fold in the berries.
Making Streusel Topping:
Prepare the streusel in a separate mixing bowl: combine the ¼ cup flour, ¼ cup sugar, and 2 tablespoons of cold butter. Use a pastry blender or two large forks to cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles small crumbles.
Pour in the heavy cream and use your fingers or a fork to toss together the ingredients, forming a crumbly mixture.
Filling/Making Muffins:
Using a large measuring scoop, fill each lined muffin tin three-quarters full, leaving a little room at the top.
Sprinkle the prepared streusel topping over each muffin, adding about 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons per muffin. Last, add the reserved sliced cranberries on top, gently pressing them into place.
Baking Instructions:
Bake the orange cranberry muffins at 350°F for approximately 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Start checking for doneness after 28 minutes to avoid over-baking the muffins, which will dry them out.
If you are using a cupcake pan instead of a jumbo muffin pan, make sure to decrease the baking time! The smaller muffins will take a few minutes less.
Once the muffins are baked, let them cool in the tins for about 5 minutes, then carefully remove the hot muffins onto a wire rack to cool.
Making Orange Glaze:
While the muffins are cooling, prepare the simple orange glaze. Place the powdered sugar into a mixing bowl and add the orange zest.
Pour in 1 tablespoon of cream at a time, whisking after each addition, until the glaze is to your desired consistency. If the glaze becomes too thin, simply add more sugar.
Drizzle the glaze over the cooled muffins. Let the glaze set for a few minutes before enjoying the muffins.
Storing Suggestions:
Enjoy the muffins within the first couple of days when they’re freshest, storing them at room temperature.
For longer storage, wrap each muffin individually in plastic wrap, then place the muffins into a zip-lock bag and into the freezer. When you want to enjoy a muffin, remove it from the freezer and let the muffin thaw at room temperature until softened.
Nutrition
Serving: 1jumbo muffin | Calories: 504kcal | Carbohydrates: 71g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 118mg | Sodium: 293mg | Potassium: 137mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 42g | Vitamin A: 779IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 86mg | Iron: 2mg
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Course:
- Cakes
- Dessert
- Pastries
- Recipes
Cuisine:
- American
Holiday:
- Christmas
- Thanksgiving
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