Orange Cranberry Muffins

VeggieYogi ♦ March 28, 2012 ♦ Leave a comment

You may know that cranberries are a great source of antioxidants, but do you know where they come from and how they are harvested? A few years ago I found out when I visited a cranberry farm in Ottawa, Ontario. Turns out they are related to the blueberry and grow on vines in bogs. They are typically flooded several times during the growing season. At harvest time the bog is flooded and then special equipment agitates them to shake them loose from the vines and they float to the top of the water. The cranberries are then corralled and removed from the water. Kind of interesting don’t you think?

So after all that effort to harvest these yummy berries here’s a delicious way to enjoy them. Orange is an awesome complement to cranberry and combined with whole wheat flour and just a touch of sugar these muffins are a treat you can feel good about eating. No need to feel guilty about eating one, or two, or maybe even three!

In my first attempt to make these last weekend I accidentally made them without the sugar. So I can tell you they are ok without the sugar if you put honey on them! But I recommend you include the sugar as shown in the directions below–my second attempt! 🙂

Here is what you will need:

1 cup white flour

1 cup of whole wheat flour

1/2 cup of sugar

4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs or 3 egg whites

1/4 cup canola oil

1/2 cup orange juice (and maybe a little more if they seem dry when you mix them)

1 cup frozen or fresh cranberries

2 tbsp grated orange rind (2 generous tbsps!)

Makes 12 muffins