Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins

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Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins are the perfect blend of sweet pumpkin and tangy cranberries, all packed into a mouth watering muffin.

A plate of muffins with pumpkins behind them.

It’s no secret that I make a lot of muffins.   I like to make them because they are good for an on the go breakfast, as a snack, or even as a healthier dessert.

I like combining different fruits, spices, and even nuts to give the muffins a punch of flavor.  One of my favorite things about muffins is a tasty crumble topping.

Since it’s fall I’ve been thinking pumpkin.  I made cream cheese swirled pumpkin muffins and I made sourdough pumpkin muffins so now I was looking for a pumpkin muffin with fruit in it.

This is where I had trouble.  I wasn’t quite sure what fruits went with pumpkin.  After going through several recipes I thought that cranberries sounded the best with the pumpkin.

ingredients:

  • all purpose flour (you can also use half AP flour and half whole wheat flour)
  • baking powder
  • baking soda
  • salt
  • butter (I prefer salted in this recipe)
  • granulated sugar
  • pumpkin pie spice (or make your own-see below!)
  • dried cranberries (I usually use Craisins)
  • egg
  • vanilla extract
  • pumpkin puree (don’t use pumpkin pie filling, only pumpkin puree)
  • applesauce

The base of the muffin is a classic muffin recipe.  I combined the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.   Then I creamed together the butter and sugar in another bowl, added in the egg and vanilla, and mixed well.

A cutting board with ingredients for making Pumpkin Muffins on it.

Next I combined the wet and dry ingredients and mixed them together.  Then I added in pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice to give it that fall flavor.

how do you make pumpkin pie spice?

You can make your own pumpkin pie spice if you have a well stocked spice cabinet.   To make pumpkin pie spice you will combine 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, 1 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg, and 1 teaspoon ground cloves together in a bowl.  Mix well then keep in a jar in your pantry for up to 1 year.

The last thing I put in were the dried cranberries.   The cranberries just get folded into the batter so that they are evenly distributed.

can I use another fruit instead of cranberries?

If you don’t want to put dried cranberries in the bread other options would be dried apricots, dried dates, dried cherries, or dried apples.   Any of these pair well with the pumpkin flavor.

After pouring the batter into the muffin cups I mixed up a tasty crumble to go on top.  The crumble consists of oats,butter, flour, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and pecans.   It gets sprinkled over top of the muffins.

what Nut can I substitute for the pecans?

Other nuts that work well with pumpkin and in this recipe would be hazelnuts, walnuts, or toasted almonds.   If you don’t want nuts in the crumble at all you can simply leave them out of the recipe.

These muffins baked up nice and tall and smelled amazing from all the spices.   The crumble mixture broke up over top of the muffins but there was still plenty of it on top.

A muffin tin with muffins in it.

More pumpkin recipes:

The sweet and tart cranberries were delicious with the savory pumpkin.  The sweet crumble with pecans on top added a nice sweetness and crunch.  These muffins smell and taste like fall.

Store the muffins in an air tight container for up to 4 days.  They are great for breakfast, snack, or even dessert!

A close up of a pumpkin muffin with a plate of muffins in the background.

If you’ve tried my Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins or any other recipe on Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. I love hearing from you! You can FOLLOW ME on:

A close up of a pumpkin muffin with a plate of muffins in the background.

Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins

Pumpkin muffins mixed with spices and sweet and tart cranberries topped off with a pecan oat crumble.
5 from 16 votes
Print Pin
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 12 muffins
Author: Hezzi-D

Ingredients

For the muffins:

  • 2 c. flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
  • 3/4 c. dried cranberries
  • 1 egg
  • 4 Tablespoons butter melted
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 3/4 c. pumpkin puree
  • 1/4 c. applesauce

For the crumble:

  • 1/2 c. oats
  • 1/3 c. flour
  • 1/3 c. brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 3 Tablespoons butter melted
  • 1/4 c. pecans chopped

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners and set aside.
  • In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and cranberries in a bowl. Mix well and set aside.
  • In a large bowl mix the egg, butter, vanilla, pumpkin puree, and applesauce together. Mix well.
  • Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well. Batter will be thick.
  • Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tin, filling 3/4 of the way full.
  • In a small bowl combine all crumble ingredients. Sprinkle the crumble over top of the muffins.
  • Bake for 28-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  • Remove from oven and allow muffins to cool for 5 minutes. Remove from muffin tin and cool completely on a wire rack.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Beets and Blue Cheese
A close up of a pumpkin cranberry muffin split in half.

One Comment

5 from 16 votes (16 ratings without comment)

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