Cranberry-Pecan Muffins
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Advertisement
Ingredients
- 1¾cups toasted pecans
- ¾cup unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing muffin tins
- 1½cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1½teaspoons grated orange zest
- 2eggs
- 1½teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2¾cups all-purpose flour
- 1tablespoon baking powder
- 2teaspoons kosher salt
- ¾cup whole milk
- 2cups fresh cranberries
Preparation
- Step 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grind ¾ cup of the pecans in a food processor and set aside. Chop the rest and set them aside. Butter 18 muffin cups very well.
- Step 2
Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and 1½ cups of sugar together. Mix in the orange zest. Add the eggs 1 at a time. Mix in vanilla.
- Step 3
In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt and ground pecans. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture alternately with the milk, mixing just to combine. Gently stir in the cranberries and the chopped pecans.
- Step 4
Divide the batter among the muffin cups and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Bake until the tops spring back when touched in the center, about 30 minutes. Let cool in tins slightly before turning out onto a rack to cool completely.
Private Notes
Comments
I prefer the cranberries chopped. If using frozen cranberries, do not thaw more than five minutes before chopping. One batch makes 48 mini-muffins.
Made exactly as above except used mini muffin pan so had to adjust the cooking time, and they were absolutely delicious. Brushed with melted butter after removing from pan. Served at a holiday brunch and they were a huge hit.
I’m wondering if there’s a way to make these with dried cranberries, which are easier to come by off-season. I use dried fruit (cranberries, raisins, apricots, dates) in my fruit cake (dislike candied fruit) and don’t hydrate them first. But cranberries in particular are a bit dry (not like dried tomatoes, but dry enough). Thoughts on whether that would work here too, or whether more moisture would be needed e.g., by hydrating or in batter. Maybe the flavor wouldn’t get into the muffin as well?
I prefer the cranberries chopped. If using frozen cranberries, do not thaw more than five minutes before chopping. One batch makes 48 mini-muffins.
Advertisement