Fresh Cranberry Muffins

dry and flavorless

Have made these many times.  Love them with fresh cranberries but if all you have is dried, just soften 1 cup dried cranberries in boiling water for 5-10 minutes, drain then use as directed.  Yummy!

I made these with chopped pears instead of cranberries, and 3/4 tsp. ginger plus 1/4 tsp. cinnamon instead of the orange rind. Then I threw in a handful of white chocolate chips. The pears were very ripe and juicy, so the muffins turned out really moist!

I first made these years ago when the recipe was originally published in Cooking Light, and have made them many times since then. I follow the recipe exactly, and I don't understand some reviews that call these bland. I would not recommend substituting dried cranberries - the muffins need the tart flavor of fresh or frozen cranberries.

I can't believe so many people gave this recipe a favorable review. The ratio of (a lot of flour) to (very little) butter results in a flavorless, dry, and bland muffin. I would suggest to anyone trying this to use less flour and more butter. Also, it yields 10 (not 12) muffins.

Really good! I halved the recipe, used white-wholewheat flour, Splenda blend, egg substitute, and doubled the orange rind. Made 6 nice-sized muffins. I think drizzled with some powdered sugar/orange juice "frosting" they'd be a wonderful dessert.

Easy and great recipe for muffins! These bake up in about 20 minutes start to finish - use in season fresh ingredients and you can't go wrong with this one. Delightfully tart with the cranberries (definitely "chop" in a mini-food processor) and deliciously moist. The orange adds some freshness that makes these muffins very "bright" for a morning breakfast on the go. Will be making these again and again - esp. after the holidays when I have some lingering fresh cranberries. Hint: to get a full cup of "chopped" cranberries for the recipe, start with a whole 1/2 bag of fresh cranberries. Enjoy!

Delicious! I adapted the recipe by using coconut milk for the milk, coconut oil for the butter, and 2 tsp. Grand Marnier instead of the grated orange rind. Also added 1 tsp. of Ceylon cinnamon and sprinkled with a bit of addition sugar before baking for a nice crisp top. It's a keeper!

Easy and Delicious! i used this pan and it was perfect for a get together. http://www.kitchenkrafts.com/honeycomb-pull-apart-cake-pan/p/BP8543/

I love this recipe! I use it all the time for events at my home. I also bring these along for brunch at others' homes. I get compliments every time. Enjoy!

The reviewers describing these as bland must be doing something wrong or using old ingredients. The tartness of the cranberries and the hint of orange are perfect. The flavor isn't overpowering but certainly not bland. In addition, these aren't hard to bake, and have always turned out nicely for me. They are perfect for breakfast during the autumn, and especially nice around Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Bland and dry. Substituted blueberries, lemon rind and 1/2 cup of flour with whole wheat flour. Only enough batter for 10.

Love these muffins! I've made them for years now, and you can easily substitute a scant cup of dried cranberries (i.e. Craisins) for the fresh--just soak them in hot water for a few minutes, drain, and add to dry ingredients. Sometimes I throw in a little candied orange peel, too, if I have it around. Yum.

Pretty tasty! I used 1 cup of buttermilk instead of the 2% milk and added 1/3 cup chopped pecans. The batter was like a drop cookie dough consistency rather than a muffin or quick bread batter, but they baked up very nicely. Very moist and yummy.

In my opinion there was not enough batter to fill a whole muffin pan to give that "Muffin top". All in all it was a great starting point for me to tweek it a bit. For instance, I added 1/3 cup of OJ, 1 tsp of lemon rind, pecan nuts (as much as you like) and last but not least, 3 tsps of wheat germ(just so that I don't feel guity). Turned out WONDERFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Loved the recipe. To add more fiber I used 1/2 cup of quick oatmeal, 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour to replace 1 cup of the white flour. Turned out great. Will make again.

These turned out really good and look just like the picture. They have a perfect balance of cranberry and orange flavors. I used fresh cranberries pulsed in the food processor, 2/3 c milk and 1/3 c OJ for the liquid (past reviews said the batter was dry) and I threw in 3 T ground flaxseed just for the health benefits. These make a great mid-morning snack or a quick breakfast.

Several reviewers commented that the muffin seemed bland. I tweaked the recipe by adding 1/4 teaspoon more salt and using 3/4 cup liguid - a mixture of milk and orange juice instead of 2/3 C milk. I also added 1/4 cup chopped walnuts. With these adjustments I would give the muffins 5 stars.

I used apricots tonight instead of cranberries (didn't know I ran out!) and they are AMAZING!!! I also did the following changes: -instead of 2 c flour, I used 1 c flour (1/2 whole wheat) and 1 c oats - soy milk instead of skim milk -smart balance instead of real butter 1/2 c sugar instead of 2/3 c sugar TOTALLY recommend these!

I love these muffins. I make them all the time and always have them in the freezer. They're great for breakfast. I made a couple of changes. I use white whole wheat flour and frozen sliced cranberries from Trader Joe's. They're delicious!!

I thought these were great; and I've made them several times! One change I've made (and kept making) is to replace 1/2 C of the flour with 1/2 C oats-- it makes the muffins more flavorful and adds more fiber/makes more filling. I've also added chopped nuts, cut down on sugar (I only had 1/2 C one day, so I supplemented the rest with honey, which solved the moisture problem), and tried different fruits. Cherries and walnuts are good, too. All-in-all a great muffin base - very flexible!

So easy and so good! It may have been the directions that made the difference....follow them to a T and you will like the result!

This was so quick and easy! I agree with another review that it was a little bit tough when mixing it together, but somehow turned out great. I may try to use more milk next time. They are delicious heated up with a little bit of butter. I also only used dried cranberries, but will try with fresh ones next time.

These were pretty good. To make them better next time I will use a combination of fresh and dried cranberries. I also used more zest, about 1 tablespoon. And finally, I topped them with a sprinkling of demerara sugar.They were good and moist with a slight crunch on the top.

These are a favorite--I have some in my freezer at all times. They can be varied easily (lemon rind and raspberry, lemon rind and blueberry, etc). It does get hard to stir (the mix seems dry), but they turn out perfectly. You can freeze them, microwave for a few seconds and then pop them in a toaster oven--they are good as new then.

This is an easy, straightforward recipe that turns out great muffins. The taste is fresh and light, nothing heavy here. I make these for breakfast frequently.

The only change I made to this recipe was using fat free milk instead of 2%. The muffins were delicious and received rave reviews from my family. They are perfect with a cup of tea!

These are my favorite muffins ever!! I love them and have made them several times to freeze and eat for breakfast. Only issue I have is that I always forget to buy fresh cranberries when they are out and freeze them for this. :( I have not tried it with dried cranberries yet, but i might one day.

I've made these twice and have been happy with them both times. They are not as sweet as some muffin recipes, but I actually like that. I made them with frozen cranberries that I thawed by running under warm water for a few minutes before draining and chopping and they turned out really nice.

I made these for Thanksgiving and ended up not serving them because they were so bland. All I could taste was flour. I will not be making these again.

I thought these were fantastic muffins. You could use the base for any fruit really. I made it as written and I also added one whole apple, chopped since I have so many and they were so good we ate them all and I just made a double batch last night. My husband requested them for breakfast this week.