{Healthier} Cranberry Orange Muffins

I’m just going to refer to these tasty breakfast treats as “healthier” since I’m unsure if they technically qualify as “healthy.”

Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty of wholesome, healthy goodness in these muffins – whole wheat flour, oats, ground flax, mashed banana, honey. But there are also a couple of ingredients in this recipe that aren’t very healthy… such as the brown sugar (albeit a minimal amount, only 1/4 of a cup which isn’t so bad!) and the 1/2 cup of oil. If it makes you feel better, feel free to substitute melted coconut oil for the vegetable oil in this recipe, but be forewarned – I have yet to try that myself and therefore cannot guarantee you’ll wind up with the same soft and tender muffins I’ve been enjoying every morning for the past couple of days. If you do give it a go with coconut oil, though, let me know in the comments how it turns out 🙂

These muffins originated from the Pioneer Woman’s recipe for her mom’s muffins which I have made countless times since first stumbling across the recipe about a year ago. I wanted to bake up a batch of these as a healthier, more wholesome breakfast and snacking option for my roommates to be able to enjoy since they’ve denounced all bad-for-you foods for Lent, but decided to switch up the flavor profile a bit. The bag of dried cranberries sitting on the pantry shelf and the oranges that hadn’t been touched in over a week made the decision to makeover these muffins cranberry-orange style a no-brainer.

While the citrus sugar certainly isn’t necessary, I think it’s a fun and flavorful addition to these muffins. Feel free to use any other sugar in its place, though, or ditch a sprinkling of sugar on top entirely if that’s not your thing. And if you’re questioning the decrease in oven temperature partway through baking, hear me out – by baking at a high heat during the several minutes in the oven, the baking powder is activated more quickly and results in muffins with a tall, domed top. Next time I make this recipe, while these rose fairly well, I’ll try starting the oven temperature at 425º instead of 400º to see if I can get some slightly taller muffins.

You’ll also notice that this recipe instructs you to soak the dried cranberries in boiling water while the batter is being whipped up. This is something I always, always do when adding dried fruit to any sort of batter. This simple step adds some moisture back into the cranberries, transforming them from hard, dry, and chewy to soft, tender, fruity bits – and which would you prefer to encounter when biting into your muffin?

And a final note about the texture – it’s perfect. Hearty, but not dense, from the oats, flax, and wheat flour. Yet soft and moist from the banana and the addition of the oil. These are the only muffins I’ve come across that lack an unpleasantly dense and gummy texture typically associated with recipes advertised as healthy. Plus, they’re pretty incredible when eaten warm with a little pad of butter and a healthy drizzle of honey… just sayin’.

Give them a try and be amazed – you’ll soon have a new and healthier standby to add to your recipe box 😉 Enjoy!

{Healthier} Cranberry Orange Muffins
Makes: 14 standard sized muffins

For the citrus sugar
3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon grated orange zest

For the muffin batter:
3/4 cup dried cranberries
Boiling water
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 1/3 cups oats, divided
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup flax seeds
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 banana, mashed
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
Zest of 1 orange
Chopped walnuts or pecans, optional

Direction:
In the bowl of a food processor, add the 3 Tablespoons of sugar and the orange zest and pulse several times until thoroughly combined. Pour into a small bowl until ready to use.

In a small heat-proof bowl, add the dried cranberries. Pour enough boiling water over the top until they are completely submerged; set aside.

In the a large mixing bowl, mix together the flours, 1 cup of the oats, baking soda, baking powder, salt and brown sugar; set aside.

In the bowl of the food processor used earlier for the sugar, add the remaining 1/3 cup of oats and the flax seeds. Pulse/pulverize until a fine powder (similar to the texture of flour). Add this mixture to the flour mixture and whisk to combine.

In a large measuring cup or separate bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients until well combined. Drain the cranberries and add to the dry ingredients along with the buttermilk mixture. Using a rubber spatula, mix together until well-combined (but don’t over mix!!).

Divide into the prepared muffin tins, filling each cavity to the rim. Sprinkle with the citrus sugar and nuts (if using) and place in the oven for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 350º and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean with no crumbs attached. Allow the muffins to rest in the pan for several minutes and then remove from the tins and allow to cool on a wire rack. These muffins store well at room temperature in a covered container for several days.

Recipe adapted from the Pioneer Woman