Healthy Cranberry Orange Oatmeal Muffins

These healthy cranberry orange oatmeal muffins are bursting with bright citrus flavor and tart cranberries – the perfect combination of sweet and tart. Made with plant-based ingredients you may already have at home, these muffins are packed with whole grains and a great way to use up any leftover cranberries.

These muffins are nourishing treat. Whether you enjoy them as a grab-and-go breakfast or a midday snack, they’re a delicious way to add some seasonal cheer to your day. The orange juice plus a little sugar perfectly balance out the tart fresh cranberries.

Look for fresh cranberries in the fall or winter. Frozen cranberries are a good choice anytime.

If you’re craving a fresh-baked muffin for breakfast but don’t have much time, just plan ahead. You can mix up the dry and wet ingredients separately. Then, place the wet ingredients in the fridge, and mix them together in the morning to bake fresh in a relatively short time as you get ready for your day.

These cranberry orange muffins are vegan and a wonderful breakfast addition for a healthy diet. I like to add oatmeal to baked goods like muffins and cookies to increase the fiber and add more nutrients like phosphorus and protein to a recipe. Rolled oats in particular add a little pleasant chewiness to muffins and cookies.

Ingredient Notes

Egg Substitutes for Baking

• I used homemade applesauce instead of an egg for these muffins. There are several other ways you can replace eggs:

• Mashed bananas
• Ground flaxseed (See my banana bread with dark chocolate chunks for an example) or whole chia seeds mixed with warm water
• A commercial egg replacer
• Aquafaba (the liquid from canned chickpeas)

Here are some more ideas for replacing eggs from PETA.

The applesauce has a very light background flavor in these muffins. Instead of the dairy milk in most muffin recipes, I made these with some orange juice for more orange flavor. The liquids in these muffins are half orange juice and half plant-based milk.

Cranberries: This is a great way to use up any leftover fresh cranberries from Thanksgiving. They can be used right from the freezer. I love the sour tang of fresh cranberries, but dried cranberries are good in this recipe too. Look for lower sugar dried cranberries.

Plant-based milk: Feel free to substitute any plant-based milk. I have made these using soy and protein oatmilk.

Oatmeal: Rolled oats will provide a chewier texture, but either rolled or quick oats are fine to use. I suggest organic oatmeal due to the amount of glyphosate found in oatmeal from the Environmental Working Group’s research. Organic oats were found to have a significantly lower glyphosate content.

Flour: you can substitute gluten-free 1-to-1 flour for the all-purpose and white whole wheat flours to make these muffins gluten-free.

Oil: try light olive, avocado, grapeseed, or soy oil.

How to Make Cranberry Orange Oatmeal Muffins

• Preheat the oven to 400℉, Place the cupcake liners into a muffin tin or spray the inside of each muffin area with non-stick spray.
• Add the dry ingredients: whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt, to a large bowl. Combine these with a large spoon.

• Place the plant-based milk, orange juice, oil, applesauce, orange zest, and the cranberries into the large bowl with dry ingredients.

• One orange should be enough if it is juicy. Zest it before squeezing it.
• Stir the batter with a large wooden spoon until the ingredients are just combined and you don’t see flour in it. Don’t overmix the batter or the muffins can develop tunneling and become too tall and tough.

• Divide the batter evenly into muffin cups with an ice cream scoop- about a third of a cup of batter per muffin. There may be a little batter left: divide it between the muffin cups.

• Bake the muffins for about 22 to 24 minutes until lightly browned on top and feel set to the touch.

• After the muffins have cooled for a few minutes, move them to a cooling rack to cool.

Sugar in Most Muffins

A lot of muffins from commercial bakeries and coffee shops are very high in sugar, with 40 – 50 grams or 10 – 12 teaspoons in a large-size muffin. I used only a half of a cup of sugar for the whole recipe. In 12 muffins, that is only two teaspoons of added sugar per muffin! The American Heart Association recommends limiting added sugar to six teaspoons per day of for women and nine teaspoons for men.

Flavor Variations

• Add 1/2 cup of chopped nuts like pecans or walnuts in the last step of mixing
• Substitute (ideally unsweetened) dried cranberries for the fresh cranberries.
• Sprinkle the top of the muffins with a little organic granulated sugar
• Add 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips
• Use fresh or frozen blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, or quartered strawberries
• Out of oranges? Use lemon or clementine zest

Preparation Tip

The key to tender muffins is to not over-mix them. Just use a wooden spoon or tablespoon and combine your wet and dry ingredients until the ingredients are mixed. Don’t overbeat the batter or use a whisk or a mixer, or the muffins will have tunneling (long air pockets) and be tough.

Wrapper or No Wrapper?

If we’re just eating these at home, I often don’t bother with a wrapper. I do think it looks nice if I am giving them as a gift or bringing them someplace, though. Plus, then it is easier to wash out the pan. I recommend nonstick spray if you are not using a wrapper.

Store these muffins in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 3 days. For longer storage, I recommend freezing in a plastic bag or sealed container for a few months at most. To defrost, place in a pan in a 300-degree F oven for about 10 minutes.

More Recipes You May Enjoy

• Easy Vegan Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
• Cinnamon Maple Pecan Coffee Recipe
• Amazing Spiced Carrot Raisin Muffins
• Vegan Banana Bread with Dark Chocolate Chunks
• Homemade Vegan Oatmeal Date Cookies (Gluten-free)
• Easy Vegan Zucchini Muffins
• Blueberry Coffee Cake – Without Dairy or Eggs

Updated 11/28/24

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Have you tried these cranberry orange oatmeal muffins? Please leave a comment below and let me know how you liked them.