These healthy cranberry orange chocolate chunk muffins are sweetened with maple syrup. They are also naturally gluten-free, since they are made with oat flour. Surprisingly, they are not dense, but rather light with a fine crumb and plenty of wintery cranberry, orange, and chocolate throughout.

a straight on shot of a stack of three cranberry orange chocolate chunk muffins on a wire rack with other muffins arranged around it

Hello my friends and happy Monday! Can you believe that we are now less than five days away from Christmas? Where has 2021 gone? I hope that you are able to get some time off over the holidays to relax, de-stress, and enjoy plenty of good food with family and friends.

These healthy cranberry orange chocolate chunk muffins would be perfect on Christmas morning! If you recall my Chewy Double Chocolate Ginger Crinkle Cookies from last month, you may remember that Camino, a fair trade and organic cocoa/chocolate company based in Ottawa, Ontario, sent me a few of their limited edition holiday chocolate bars to try. As soon as I saw the cranberry orange chocolate bar, I knew that it would make a fantastic addition to a muffin. I took that flavour theme and ran with it in this recipe I am sharing today.

an overhead shot of a muffin flipped on its side with the paper liner peeled off to show what it looks like on the outside

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Gluten-Free: Oats are naturally gluten-free, making this recipe perfect for those with gluten sensitivities. Be sure to seek out certified gluten-free oat flour if baking for someone with celiac disease.
Sweetened with maple syrup: Like most of my muffin recipes, these healthy cranberry orange chocolate chunk muffins are sweetened with maple syrup instead of cane sugar. Maple syrup provides added moisture and a light maple flavour that goes so well with cranberry and orange.
Easy: These muffins take no time at all to whip up. I often make them in just one bowl, too!
Minimal ingredients: These muffins are made with just 10 ingredients, not including leavening agents and salt.
Seasonal: Is there anything more Christmasy than orange, cranberries, and chocolate?

Equipment You’ll Need For These Muffins

Muffin pan
Paper muffin liners (optional)
Mixing bowls
Whisk
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons

INGREDIENTS AND NOTES

overhead shot of a bowl of the cranberries, orange, and cranberry orange chocolate bar on a light pink backdrop

Eggs: As with all of my baked goods recipes, you will want your eggs to be at room temperature. To bring eggs to room temperature quickly, place them in a bowl and cover them with warm water for 10 minutes. Eggs help to bind these muffins. For a vegan version, replace the eggs with flax eggs. One flax egg is 1 tablespoon of ground flax mixed with 2 ½ tablespoons of water.

Salted Butter: I like to use organic salted butter for a beautiful rich flavour and aroma. If you prefer to avoid dairy, use virgin coconut oil instead.

Maple Syrup: My favourite liquid sweetener made right close to home in Ontario!

Navel Orange: You’ll use both the zest and juice.

Greek yogurt: Organic full fat Greek yogurt is my go-to. The Greek yogurt provides moisture and volume to the batter. If you are avoiding dairy, swap in your favourite dairy-free Greek yogurt.

Vanilla extract: Opt for real vanilla extract instead of artificial. My favourite brand is Simply Organic.

Oat Flour: Oat flour makes for a nice muffin texture. Bonus: It’s naturally gluten-free. Be sure to get certified gluten-free oat flour if you have celiac disease to ensure that oats have not come into contact with gluten in processing.

Baking Soda and Baking Powder: I find that using both baking soda and powder makes for the fluffiest muffins.

Sea Salt: Helps to enhance all of the flavours in these muffins.

Cranberries: Opt for fresh cranberries here. They are pleasantly tart, and sort of burst while baking, adding moisture and a pleasant tart flavour to cut through the sweetness.

Dark Chocolate: I used this cranberry orange dark chocolate bar from Camino, but if that is not available to you, use any dark chocolate you like.

an overhead photo of the healthy orange cranberry chocolate chunk muffins on a wire rack set on a wooden board

Step By Step Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a muffin tin with paper liners or grease with butter.
In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Add the butter, maple syrup, orange juice, Greek yogurt, vanilla extract, and orange zest. Whisk to combine.
In a medium bowl, stir together the oat flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk to combine. Fold in the cranberries and dark chocolate, reserving twelve squares of chocolate for topping, if desired.
Divide batter between the prepared muffin cups and bake for 22-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for a few minutes, then transfer onto a wire rack to cool fully.
Store muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days, or in the fridge for up to a week.

a process shot showing the muffin batter with the cranberries and dark chocolate about to be stirred in

a process shot showing the muffin batter in the muffin pan before being baked

an overhead photo of all of the muffins arranged on a wire rack set against a wooden board

Serving Ideas

Of course, these muffins are tasty on their own! But if you would like to curate a deluxe experience for yourself, I would recommend serving them with any combination of the following, as part of a fabulous brunch spread:

More Oat Flour Muffin Recipes

an overhead shot of one of the muffins with a bite taken out of it on a wire rack against a wooden backdrop

I hope that you love these healthy cranberry orange chocolate chunk muffins! If you make them, let me know how you enjoyed them by leaving a comment and rating below the post. And if you share a photo to Instagram, tag it @upbeet.kitchen and #upbeetkitchen. I love seeing what you’ve made.

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