Name: Apple Cranberry Muffins
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups flour; 1 tsp. baking powder; 1/2 tsp. baking soda; 1/4 tsp. salt; 1 tsp. cinnamon; 1/2 tsp. nutmeg; 2 eggs; 1/2 cup sour cream; 4 Tbsp. butter; 1 cup packed brown sugar; 1 cup honeycrisp or firm sweet apple (chopped); 1/2 cup dried cranberries; 1/2 cup pecans (chopped); 1/2 cup All-Purpose Flour; 1/2 cup Brown Sugar; 1/4 teaspoon Salt; 1/4 cup Butter (Cold Cut Into Cubes)

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This fantastic fall/winter Apple Cranberry Muffin is packed full of cranberries, apples, spices, and nuts. They are topped with a perfectly crunchy streusel topping that makes them irresistible. No better way to start your day or have a mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack than with a delicious muffin.

Want more great muffin ideas then try our Banana Brown Sugar Crumb Muffins or dive into a batch of Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins. Both are so, so good, too!

Close-up of an apple cranberry muffin with streusel topping.

Helpful Items For This Recipe

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small portion from qualifying purchases at no extra charge to you.

KitchenAid Stand Mixer with Pouring Shield, 5-Quart, Empire Red

Standard Size Cupcake Wrappers, White, Pack Of 500

Premium Non-Stick Bakeware Cupcake Pan, 12-cup, Steel

Horizontal picture of a muffin with a big bite taken.

Look at how full of wonderful ingredients these muffins are!!

What Goes Into These Apple Cranberry Muffins?

Ingredients for Apple Cranberry Muffins.

I find fall flavors like apple and cranberry so adoring, so why not start your morning off with them?? Add in pecans, a little spice, and a streusel topping, and you have a fantastic treat.

The ingredients are easy to find, and if you are a baker, you will have most on hand.

Ingredients

Muffins

All-purpose flour – Just general, all-purpose flour works great in these muffins. I have not tested to make them gluten-free.

Baking powder – This gives your baking a light, airy texture that is great in muffins.

Baking soda – This also helps baking rise and become light and fluffy.

Salt – Salt is as important in baking as it is in savory dishes. It brings out the flavor in all your ingredients.

Cinnamon – Cinnamon gives the muffins a warm and earthy flavor that everyone loves paired with apples.

Nutmeg – Nutmeg accompanies cinnamon beautifully, giving it an earthy flavor and adding that perfect finishing flavor.

Eggs – Eggs add moisture and stability to muffins and are so important in most of your baked goods.

Sour cream – I love adding sour cream to cakes and muffins. It gives the baked goods so much more moisture, and they stay fresher longer.

Butter – The job of butter is to give richness, flavor, and tenderness to your muffins. I have been buying better butter lately and enjoying the difference.

Brown sugar – Brown sugar adds not only sweetness but richness to these muffins.

Honeycrisp or firm sweet apple, chopped – I love a honeycrisp in these apples, but you can substitute others. Check out our Pro Tips for suggestions.

Dried cranberries – Such an easy addition to a muffin, and just that added difference to raisins.

Pecans, chopped – I am a nut gal and love the flavor and textural crunch that pecans add to these muffins.

Streusel Topping

All-purpose flour, Brown Sugar, Salt, and Butter – This combination and, even more importantly, the specific amounts make the best streusel topping around.

How To Make Apple Cranberry Muffins with a Streusel Topping

Line a muffin tin with 12 paper liners. Preheat oven to 375 F.

Sift together the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, baking soda and set aside. In a bowl of a standup mixer, add the eggs, sour cream, and melted butter. With a paddle attachment, combine and then add the sugar.

Continue mixing and slowly add the dry ingredients. Remove the bowl and add the apples, cranberries, and nuts. Fold to combine.

Fill the paper liners with the muffin mixture, dividing evenly among the 12.

For Brown Sugar Crumb: In the same standup mixer, add 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and mix until well combined. Add 1/4 cup cold butter and mix until crumbly and again until well combined. Divide the topping among the muffins.

Overhead of muffins in a tin with pecans in one of the holes and scattered about.

Bake for 25 min. or until a cake tester comes out clean. Let cool for 10 min. then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy them freshly baked while still slightly warm.

Recipe Pro Tips!

What Kind of Apples Can I Use?

You can not go wrong with using a Honeycrisp apple in this recipe. But what if you can’t find any or have other apples on hand? I suggest these apples as great alternatives.

Braeburn
Pink Lady
Jonagold
Granny Smith
Winesap

How to Store These Muffins

These Apple Cranberry Muffins are best stored in an air-tight container in the refrigerator and eaten within 5 days.

For longer storage, I recommend freezing them for up to 3 months.

STILL CRAVING MORE?

We have lots of muffins on our site as we love making and enjoying them all year round. They can be filled with wholesome ingredients and are a great grab-and-go breakfast or snack.

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Pin it HERE!!