There are many reasons why a lot of us have pumpkin on the brain in the fall months. Carving them, baking them into a pie, sipping on pumpkin spiced lattés, we can't seem to get enough. And although I'm not a huge PSL fan, I'm a major pumpkin muffin fan. So I figured it's time to share an awesome easy recipe for Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins!
These muffins are super moist and tender, and they last for days without drying out. They're perfect for a lunchbox, a desk lunch, a grab-and-go breakfast, or not-to-sweet dessert.
What you'll need to make this recipe
- Pumpkin puree: The star of the show, pumpkin puree makes these muffins super moist and tender.
- Milk: You can use any milk of your choice here - dairy, soy, almond, oat, etc.
- Oil: Use whatever liquid oil you normally use for baking. These days I'm using avocado, but vegetable or sunflower oil works just the same.
- Eggs: To help bind the mixture and give the muffins a bit of poof.
- Brown sugar: For that caramel-like, rich sweetness that is soooo cozy.
- Vanilla: For a bit of background flavor.
- Flour: We're using a combination of all-purpose and whole wheat flour, which adds a bit of nuttiness.
- Baking powder and baking soda: To help the muffins rise.
- Apple cider vinegar: To activate the baking soda. Lemon juice or white vinegar will also work.
- Salt: A pinch of salt will help bring out all the flavors
- Spices: Cinnamon, ground ginger, and optionally a bit of cardamom too. I love cardamom and I feel like it doesn't get enough attention!
- Pumpkin seeds: Toasted, unsalted. For a bit of crunch.
- Cranberries: The other star of the show. I like using fresh cranberries when they're available, but frozen cranberries work too. They add such a nice burst of tart tanginess to the muffins.
How to make these Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins
Making these muffins is about as easy as it gets.
- Add the wet ingredients (including the sugar) to a large bowl, and whisk well to combine.
- Sift in the dry ingredients and stir until the mixture is almost combined, but you should still see some dry floury pockets.
- Add in your extras (cranberries, seeds, nuts, whatever), and fold them into the batter until everything is combined. Be careful not to over mix as this will make your muffins tough.
- Scoop the batter into a greased or lined muffin tin and bake for 25-30 mins or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Be sure to leave them in the tin for 10-15 minutes before taking them out. Otherwise they might fall apart!
Once they're slightly cool, they should pop out of the tin easily.
How can you freestyle your Pumpkin Muffins?
As far as add-ins are concerned, you can really take these pumpkin muffins in whichever direction you want. I've opted for a pumpkin seed and cranberry version here, but there is nothing stopping you from swapping these out for dates, raisins, chocolate chips, nuts, heck—you can even omit the spices and vanilla and add cheese if you're into more of a savoury muffin. They're not too sweet, so it really works.
Weighing vs. measuring your ingredients
When it comes to weighing versus measuring your ingredients in baking, it's a highly personal decision. I'm fairly evangelical about weighing because the minute I ditched the cup measures and embraced a digital scale, my baking improved, my enjoyment increased, and I found myself with way fewer dirty dishes to deal with. I wrote a whole post about it here if you're interested in a deep dive!
How to store these Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins
Once these muffins come out of the oven, I like to give them about 10 minutes in the tin before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Once they have cooled completely, store them in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 3-4 days. You can also freeze these muffins if wrapped tightly in saran wrap or in a freezer bag. Just make sure you don't crush them!
Frequently asked questions
Yes! Feel free to swap out the milk for any non-dairy milk of your choice.
No promises (because I haven't tried it) but try swapping out the all-purpose and whole wheat flours with all-purpose gluten-free flour. I imagine it would work fine!
You can puree your own if you prefer! Just make sure the home-pureed pumpkin isn't too watery or it will make the batter too wet.
Certainly. Although you won't get the same burst of tartness that a fresh or frozen cranberry delivers.
Looking for more cozy baking recipes?
Try my easy formula for The Best Scones or my Ultimate Fresh Fruit Cake (to use up all your over ripe fruit!)
I hope you love these muffins! Be sure to tag me @howtomakedinner on IG if you share them!
Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 400 grams pumpkin puree unsweetened
- 60 millilitres milk
- 60 millilitres oil
- 2 eggs
- 100 grams brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoons apple cider vinegar or lemon juice or white vinegar
- 120 grams all-purpose flour
- 120 grams whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoons cinnamon
- .5 teaspoons ginger ground
- .5 teaspoon cardamom ground, optional
- 50 grams pumpkin seeds toasted, unsalted
- 200 grams cranberries fresh or frozen
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
- In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, eggs, milk, oil, brown sugar, vinegar, and vanilla until well combined.
- Measure or weigh in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices through a sieve. The whole wheat flour might not make it through the sieve, so just dump it in.
- Use a spatula to gently stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until almost combined. Add the seeds and cranberries (or whatever add-ins you're using) and stir until just combined. Do not overmix, or your muffins will be tough.
- Grease or line a 12-muffin muffin tin and scoop the batter in.
- Top with a few extra seeds if you'd like, and bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre of the muffins comes out clean.
Rose Ann Bennett says
Loved the quiet straight forward presentation!
Anne McGinn says
Being Irish I've never tasted pumpkin muffins before - I am totally a fan. You said they last for days - I've just made a batch and was lucky to have one to taste for myself!