Cranberry Orange Sourdough Muffins

Tart fresh cranberries give these cranberry orange sourdough muffins a tangy twist while the oranges adds a subtle sweetness.

Is there a better Winter combination than cranberry and orange? The sweetness of the oranges and the tartness of the cranberries make these muffins delicious! The sourdough starter is another agent for the muffins to rise and adds flavor to the muffins.

Usually, you might think that you would add dried cranberries to muffins, just like you would cookies. I think the fresh (or frozen if fresh is not available) keeps the muffins light and adds more moisture to the crumb. The orange kick comes from the zest of the orange. Replacing some of the moisture with even more orange just takes it up to another level.

The first step in this recipe is to beat the oil and sugars. Just like in cookies, it's important to get that air into the mixture in the first step, to ensure that they are nice and fluffy. I used coconut oil, but any neutral oil will do. I've also used whole wheat flour as well as the all purpose flour. I'm constantly trying to get more fiber and healthy ingredients into my kids, so subtle changes like replacing all purpose flour with whole wheat flour accomplishes that for me. The whole wheat flour also gives these muffins an interesting depth of flavor.

If you don't have sourdough discard, you can replace the sourdough with yogurt. Discard is a little bit acidic, so it helps the baking soda rise. I would love to share my sourdough journey with you all! I'm constantly trying to find ways to avoid throwing my starter down the drain after I use the amount I need in feeding it. Let me know if you make this recipe! I would love to hear from you!

Cranberry Orange Sourdough Muffins

• ½ cup coconut oil
• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup unfed sourdough discard
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Zest and juice of 2 oranges
• ¾ cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ cups cranberries (fresh or frozen)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a muffin pan with cooking spray, or add cupcake liners to the muffin tins if that is preferred.

Mix the coconut oil and sugars with a hand mixer or a stand mixer for about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, sourdough starter, vanilla, and orange zest and juice. Mix until combined.

In a separate bowl, mix together the whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Try not to overmix, as that will cause the muffins to be tough. Mix in the cranberries by hand until just combined.

Scoop the batter into the muffin tins and bake for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Serve these muffins as is, or mix 1 cup of powdered sugar with 1-2 tablespoons of orange juice and glaze the muffins. The more orange juice you put in the more liquid the glaze will be. I like a thicker glaze, so I usually only use 1 tablespoon. The glaze will also melt a little if the muffins are warm when you spoon it over.