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    You are here: Home / Breakfast / Cranberry White Chocolate Muffins

    Cranberry White Chocolate Muffins

    June 15, 2015 Updated April 30, 2020 BySam 88 Comments

    This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my disclosure policy.
    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Extraordinarily soft, fluffy muffins with pockets of tangy cranberry, sweet white chocolate and a divine drizzle of rich white chocolate glaze, these cranberry white chocolate muffins are the perfect accompaniment to your breakfast or brunch.

    Cranberry White Chocolate Muffin interior

    It would appear that I am two steps behind (or two steps ahead, depending on how you look at it) the seasonal-foods trend.  Between my sweet potato recipe last week and now cranberries today, my palate has, for some reason, been in fall-flavors mode (though I can assure you my mind is nowhere near that season…  were it up to me summer would reign forever).

    I couldn’t help it, though.  I bought frozen cranberries on a whim after finding them steeply discounted at my grocery store and have been toying with different ideas on how to use them for several weeks now.  While I wasn’t planning on eating cranberry sauce all week, I did not expect upon buying them that they would find their home inside muffins, but here we are.

    Cranberry White Chocolate Muffins with glaze

    And, suddenly, every other idea I’d had for using them was clearly unsatisfactory.  These muffins are utterly, irresistibly fluffy (the addition of an extra egg white and a combination of butter and oil rather than solely butter helps to make this possible), each bite packed with an array of flavors– from warm notes of vanilla to the subtle, almost indiscernible hint of almond, surprise pops of tangy cranberry coupled with sweet kernels of white chocolate strike an exquisite balance (and, of course, the glaze is likely to be half-devoured before it even makes its way to the muffin tops).

    Just like when I made my banana muffins, I had to get these muffins out of my house as soon as I possibly could for fear of single-handedly eating the whole batch.

    Cranberry Muffins drizzled with white chocolateCranberry Muffins drizzled with white chocolate

    If you’re not prepared for cranberry, if you only eat strictly seasonably, I respect that.  But please, please bookmark this recipe for a crisp autumnal day and you’ll be glad you did (you may also regret having waited so long to try them).

    More Muffins to Try:

    • Chocolate Chip Muffins
    • Blueberry Muffins
    • Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
    • Peanut Butter Muffins

    Enjoy!

    inside of cranberry white chocolate muffin

    White Chocolate Cranberry Muffins

    Soft, fluffy muffins with pockets of tangy cranberry, sweet white chocolate and a divine drizzle of rich white chocolate glaze, these cranberry white chocolate muffins are the perfect accompaniment to your breakfast or brunch.
    5 from 14 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 20 minutes
    Cook Time: 22 minutes
    Total Time: 42 minutes
    Servings: 12 muffins
    Calories: 397kcal
    Author: Sam Merritt

    Ingredients

    • 4 Tbsp unsalted butter melted (55 g)
    • ¼ cup canola oil (60ml), vegetable oil would also work
    • 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
    • 1 egg lightly beaten, + 1 egg white
    • 1 tsp vanilla extract (5ml)
    • ¼ tsp almond extract (1 ml), optional
    • ¾ cup buttermilk (or ¾milk + 2 ¼ tsp vinegar stirred together and allowed to sit 5 minutes), (177ml)
    • 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour (281g)
    • 2 tsp baking powder (10g)
    • ½ tsp salt (2.5g)
    • 1 cup heaping frozen cranberries (150g)
    • ½ cup white chocolate chips (85g)

    Glaze

    • 1 cup white chocolate chips (170g)
    • ¼ cup heavy cream (59ml)
    • ⅔ cup powdered sugar (83g)
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 400F (205 C) and line 12-count muffin tin with cupcake liners
    • In large bowl combine melted butter, oil and granulated sugar. Stir well.
    • Add lightly beaten egg, egg white, and vanilla and almond extracts. Stir well.
    • Add in buttermilk and stir until combined.
    • Stir in cranberries and white chocolate.
    • In separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt.
    • Gradually, carefully add in flour mixture, stirring until just combined (there still may be some flour mixture visible, this is OK just do not over-mix)
    • Evenly divide into prepared muffin tin.
    • Bake on 400F (205 C) 20-25 minutes (until toothpick inserted in center comes out mostly clean with few crumbs)

    Glaze

    • In micro-wave safe bowl, combine white chocolate chips and heavy cream. Microwave at 10 second intervals, stirring every 10 seconds until chocolate is melted and heavy cream and chocolate are combined.
    • Stir in powdered sugar.
    • Using a spoon drizzle over muffins (muffins should be allowed to cool 5-10 minutes before being drizzled with glaze).

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1muffin | Calories: 397kcal | Carbohydrates: 55g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 126mg | Potassium: 182mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 37g | Vitamin A: 215IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 91mg | Iron: 1mg

    Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.

    Tried this recipe? Show me on Instagram!Mention @SugarSpun_Sam or tag #sugarspunrun!

    fluffy cranberry Muffins drizzled with white chocolate

     

     

    Cranberry Muffins with a scrumptious White Chocolate Glaze
    « Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownie Bars
    Chocolate Raspberry Galettes »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Rnays

      November 04, 2021 at 8:01 pm

      5 stars
      I made these and found them to be better the next day, after the glaze soaked in. Very moist and so delicious! Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
      • Emily @ Sugar Spun Run

        November 05, 2021 at 10:25 am

        Great to hear! We’re so happy you liked them. Enjoy 😊

        Reply
    2. Jen

      September 22, 2021 at 8:11 pm

      I am struggling to find frozen cranberries. Is there anything else that can be substituted? I’m thinking probably not since cranberries are kind of tart and the white chocolate probably helps to sweeten up that tartness. Just wondering what your thoughts are.

      Reply
      • Emily @ Sugar Spun Run

        September 23, 2021 at 10:55 am

        Hi Jen! You can substitute 3/4 dried cranberries in place of the frozen. We hope you love them! 🙂

        Reply
    3. wendy

      September 19, 2021 at 5:06 pm

      Hi..I’m going to try these muffins later as I was given a load of shaved white chocolate and always have frozen cranberries on hand…can I get away with one egg only,no white??
      Also I saw cornstarch comments…why do you ad that to other recipes? Thanks.

      Reply
      • Emily @ Sugar Spun Run

        September 20, 2021 at 11:39 am

        Hi Wendy. We haven’t tried this, but your muffins likely won’t be as fluffy or rise the same without that extra egg white. We suggest using it. Cornstarch is our favorite “secret” ingredient in baked goods. It adds structure and fluffiness without drying things out, which would happen if you used more flour instead. This recipe is one of our older ones, and we may include corn starch in the updated version when that comes out!

        Reply
    4. Moira

      March 25, 2021 at 8:33 pm

      5 stars
      Hi. I found your recipe and didn’t have any fresh or frozen cranberries but I did have dried. I soaked the dried ones in hot water to plump them up and to my delight the muffins baked up lovely. These are now my husbands favorite muffins. I would like to make them with fresh cranberries and I will when I buy some. Thank you for this recipe.Delicious!!

      Reply
      • Sam

        March 25, 2021 at 10:13 pm

        That is so awesome! I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Moira! 🙂

        Reply
    5. Megan

      December 19, 2020 at 12:51 am

      Hi Sam! I was wondering if I could substitute the cranberries for raspberries and all the ingredients and measurements still work well together? Thanks in advance!

      Reply
      • Sam

        December 19, 2020 at 3:33 pm

        Yes, that will work, no other modifications needed! Enjoy!

        Reply
    6. Imre

      November 20, 2020 at 9:41 pm

      5 stars
      Hi!
      Love all your recipes, this one and the bagels especially!!! 😍💖
      Could I make these as jumbo muffins? With a longer bake time?
      Thank you!

      Reply
      • Sam

        November 20, 2020 at 10:09 pm

        Hi Imre! That will work just fine. They will definitely need to bake a little bit longer. I would imagine the bake time would be very similar to my Bakery style chocolate chip muffins. 🙂

        Reply
        • Imre

          November 20, 2020 at 11:29 pm

          5 stars
          Thank you!!! They turned out amazing🤩 23 minutes did the trick.

        • Sam

          November 21, 2020 at 9:06 pm

          Wonderful, I’m so glad to hear it! Thanks for letting me know how they turned out! 🙂

    7. Kim Baird

      April 25, 2020 at 4:00 am

      5 stars
      So amazing as are all the recipes. Hard to stop eating at 1. Fluffy, moist and delicious! Thank you!!!

      Reply
      • Sam

        April 25, 2020 at 1:16 pm

        Thank you so much, Kim! I am so glad you enjoyed the muffins so much! 🙂

        Reply
    8. Lyn

      March 01, 2020 at 6:43 pm

      I’m curious why no corn starch? Just wondering why it is sometimes used (i.e. blueberry muffins) and not other times.

      Reply
      • Sam

        March 02, 2020 at 10:40 am

        It sometimes depends on the recipe. This muffin recipe was developed 5 years ago, though, before I unlocked the secret of cornstarch in baking. I’m happy with this recipe as it is written, but if I update it and re-publish I may end up working some cornstarch into the batter.

        Reply
    9. Rachel

      December 06, 2019 at 11:57 am

      Hi there! Can I use fresh cranberries instead of frozen ones?

      Reply
      • Sugar Spun Run

        December 06, 2019 at 12:08 pm

        Hi, Rachel! Yes, that will be fine. I hope that you enjoy the muffins! 🙂

        Reply
    10. Brandy Reinecke

      October 09, 2019 at 10:08 pm

      Can you use dryed cranberries instead of frozen ones?

      Reply
      • Sugar Spun Run

        October 10, 2019 at 8:40 am

        Hello, Brandy! You can substitute with dried cranberries, however, I don’t recommend it. The juices from the cranberries really add a lot of flavor to the muffins. I hope that you enjoy the cranberry white chocolate muffins. 🙂

        Reply
    11. Mary

      September 16, 2019 at 9:41 pm

      Is there baking soda missing in this recipe? Thank you.

      Reply
      • Sam

        September 17, 2019 at 9:21 am

        Nope, you will not need baking soda.

        Reply
    12. Brittany

      April 14, 2019 at 11:43 pm

      I think I did something wrong. The edges and bottom burned, but the chips didn’t melt on the inside. It also came out kind of dense. 😭
      I tried the double chocolate chip and those were just wonderful.

      Reply
      • Sam

        April 15, 2019 at 9:55 pm

        Hi Brittany! The chocolate chips shouldn’t melt inside the cupcakes. In regards to the edges and bottom being burned, is your oven temperature accurate? It sounds like the temperature may have been a little higher than it should causing the edges to crisp up a little bit. I hope this helps. 🙂

        Reply
    13. Kira

      January 06, 2019 at 2:01 pm

      Can these be made with dried cranberries instead?

      Reply
      • Sam

        January 06, 2019 at 2:32 pm

        Hi, Kira. That would work just fine. 🙂

        Reply
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    The author (Sam) in blue shirt holding donut Hi, I'm Sam! I'm dedicated to bringing you sweet, simple, and from-scratch dessert recipes. My life may or may not be controlled by my sweet tooth. Send help (or chocolate). Read more about me.

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