These Gluten Free Cranberry Orange Muffins are a delicious way to use up leftover cranberry sauce. The tartness of the cranberries combines with sweet orange to make a soft and tasty muffin. Naturally sweetened with maple syrup, these are perfect for breakfast or a light snack.
Leftovers are common after a large holiday meal, and sometimes it’s hard to use them all up. That’s where these muffins come in. They take regular cranberry sauce and turn it into soft, fluffy, super delicious muffins.
I like to eat these muffins plain, getting both tangy cranberry with sweet citrus, but you can also slather with butter or drizzle maple syrup on top to make it more of a dessert.
Any way you eat it, these are sure to be a family favorite.
Why you’ll love these muffins
- These muffins bake up soft & moist, using greek yogurt to keep them from drying out.
- They’re a perfect way to use up any leftover cranberry sauce from a holiday dinner.
- They make for easy meal prep! Bake them on weekend and have with breakfast during the week.
Ingredients
- Gluten free flour – I used Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 flour, but other gluten free blends like Pamela’s, Cup 4 Cup, or King Arthur’s would also work.
- Baking soda & baking powder – make sure whatever you use is fresh, as this will help the muffins rise.
- Spices – again, you want to make sure these are fresh as they will really help flavor the muffins.
- Maple syrup – I use pure maple syrup, either light or dark is fine.
- Butter – make sure this is softened but not melted. Otherwise it won’t combine well with the maple syrup.
- Eggs – room-temperature eggs work best. If your eggs are cold, stick them in a bowl of hot water for a minute or two before adding them in.
- Orange juice & zest – you can easily use a single orange for both of these.
- Full fat Greek yogurt – you can use low fat, but the muffins will have a fuller flavor with full fat.
- Cranberry sauce – use whatever leftover you have, or if you want to make some try my super easy gluten free cranberry sauce recipe.
I’ve written condensed directions here including pictures so you can see how to make this recipe. The full set of detailed instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
Before you scroll through, there is important information throughout this post.
How to make cranberry orange muffins
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and ginger. Stir to combine. Set aside.
- Combine the maple syrup and softened butter together until well combined and creamy.
- Add in the eggs and stir.
- Add in the orange zest, fresh orange juice, and yogurt and mix together.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Scoop the muffin mixture into each muffin cup, equally distributing as best you can.
- Spoon a tablespoon of cranberry sauce on top of each muffin.
- Mix the cranberry sauce into the muffin mixture with a spoon or knife. Bake for 30 minutes, turning halfway through to ensure even cooking.
FAQ
I recommend using Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free flour for these muffins. You could also use another one to one flour blend, like Pamela’s, King Arthurs, or Cup 4 Cup. You would not be able to use a single type of flour, like oat flour, almond flour, or coconut flour.
If you want to make the cranberry sauce with frozen cranberries, you could do that. But I would not put frozen or fresh cranberries directly into the muffin batter.
You can store these muffins in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days after baking. Make sure they’ve cooled completely before storing, otherwise the heat will generate moisture in the container and the muffins will get slimy.
You’ll know the muffins are done baking when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (without any wet muffin mixture on it). Be sure and check muffins on the outer edges and the middle of the muffin tin as the middle ones can sometimes take a minute or two longer to cook through.
Recipe tips
- This recipe uses a silicone muffin tin. If you’re going to use a metal one, the muffins may cook faster so check them sooner than is written in the directions.
- Be sure and use a sheet pan under the silicone muffin tin! Otherwise it will be difficult to remove the muffin tin from the oven.
- When checking for doneness, test both a muffin in the middle of the pan and one on the outside. The ones in the middle may need a longer baking time.
- To freeze the muffins, let them cool completely then place them in a sealed plastic bag. They will keep in the freezer for several months this way.
- If you want to make these more of a dessert, add a glaze to the top of the muffins. Combine 1 cup powdered sugar with 1 to 2 tbsp milk and ½ tsp of vanilla extract. Whisk to combine and then drizzle over the tops of the muffins.
Looking for more ways to use up Thanksgiving leftovers? Check these recipes out!
- Turkey Bone Broth (GF, DF, Paleo, Whole30)
- Mashed Potato Pancakes (GF)
- Paleo Turkey Tortilla Soup (GF, DF, Paleo, Whole30)
- Leftover Breakfast Hash (GF, DF, Paleo, Whole30)
- Turkey & Rice Soup (GF, DF)
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Gluten Free Cranberry Orange Muffins
Equipment
- A hand mixer (or stand mixer)
- A toothpick
Ingredients
- 2 cups gluten free flour I used Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp ground ginger
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- ½ cup butter softened (1 stick)
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ c orange juice
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- ⅓ c full fat greek yogurt
- ¾ cup cranberry sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and ginger. Stir to combine. Set aside.
- Place the maple syrup and the softened butter in a separate large bowl and stir with a hand mixer, or use a stand mixer, until well combined, scraping the sides with a spatula as necessary. Stir the eggs, orange juice, orange zest , and yogurt into the maple syrup & butter mixture until well combined.
- Pour the dry mixture into the bowl with the wet mixture. Stir until just combined and there are no pockets of dry flour in the mixture.
- Scoop the muffin mixture into each well in the silicone muffin pan with a spoon, dividing it equally between each well. Add a tbsp of cranberry sauce on top of each and mix with a spoon or knife, swirling the cranberry sauce into each.
- Place the muffin pan onto a sheet pan and into the oven, setting the timer for 15 minutes. After the timer goes off, carefully rotate the muffin pan 180 degrees (so the muffins in the front of the oven are now in the back of the oven) and bake for another 12-15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into several muffins comes out clean. Once cooked, take the muffins out of the oven and let cool for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
- This recipe uses a silicone muffin tin. If you’re going to use a metal one, the muffins may cook faster so check them sooner than is written in the directions.
- Be sure and use a sheet pan under the silicone muffin tin! Otherwise it will be difficult to remove the muffin tin from the oven.
- When checking for doneness, test both a muffin in the middle of the pan and one on the outside. The ones in the middle may need a longer baking time.
- To freeze the muffins, let them cool completely then place them in a sealed plastic bag. They will keep in the freezer for several months this way.
- If you want to make these more of a dessert, add a glaze to the top of the muffins. Combine 1 cup powdered sugar with 1 to 2 tbsp milk and ½ tsp of vanilla extract. Whisk to combine and then drizzle over the tops of the muffins.
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