These dark chocolate cranberry pistachio muffins are a delicious twist on an old classic. They're made with rich dark chocolate, tart cranberries, a pinch of freshly grated orange zest, and salty roasted pistachios. These delicious muffin cups are truly perfection!
Over the summer I visited a friend who served the most delicious muffins. When I complimented her, she said "I used your recipe - but swapped strawberries for cranberries and pistachios." The result was so delicious! I knew I wanted to recreate it when Autumn rolled around. I even added some dark chocolate and optional orange zest, the combination of all of the flavors are divine.
WHY YOU'LL LOVE THIS RECIPE
- Incredibly soft and fluffy, but sturdy enough to pick up and eat with your hands
- Gorgeous seasonal flavors
- Easy to prepare with basic kitchen staples and no fancy equipment or ingredients
- Perfect for cool mornings with a hot cup of tea or coffee
Ingredients and possible substitutions in dark chocolate cranberry pistachio muffins
- Flour - all purpose flour, you can also use 1:1 gluten free flour, like this one.
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda
- Salt
- Honey - you can sub another liquid sweetener, like maple syrup if needed.
- Eggs
- Cream cheese - you can use high fat greek yogurt if needed
- Granulated Sugar - you can use coconut or date sugar if you need to keep it refined sugar free.
- Butter
- Milk - any liquid milk works here, except oat milk.
- Add ins: dried cranberries, pistachios, dark chocolate, orange zest are all optional, you're the boss!
How to make dark chocolate cranberry pistachio muffins
Divide batter between each muffin cup, filling all the way to the top.
Now it's time to bake!
Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk the melted butter, honey, sugar, and eggs together until combined. Then whisk in the cream cheese, and milk.
Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and fold together with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until completely combined. Use a whisk to rid any large lumps of flour, if needed. Avoid overmixing. The batter will be thick.
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Divide batter between each muffin cup, filling all the way to the top.
Now it's time to bake!
Baking notes
These muffins have tall, rounded tops, which is achieved by:
- Using this thick batter and baking at a high temperature. This muffin is still nice and fluffy despite being tall and bakery style, so if you love a soft, airy muffin - you will love this one!
- Baking the muffins for 8 minutes at a high temperature allows them to lift up. The temperature is then reduced the remaining time the muffins bake to allow them to bake completely without burning. They end up a nice golden brown, with a slightly crispy top.
- We also fill our muffin tins all the way to the top while helps them achieve the size and rise we want!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THESE MUFFINS:
CAN I MAKE THESE MUFFINS GLUTEN FREE?
Yes you can swap out all purpose flower for your favorite 1:1 ratio gluten free flower. This recipe hasn’t been tested with other flours. Do not swap all purpose flour with almond or coconut flour.
CAN I MAKE THESE MUFFINS WITHOUT REFINED SUGAR?
Absolutely! Swap your granulated sugar for coconut or date sugar. You do not want to replace it with maple syrup or honey as it will be too much liquid in this recipe.
HOW CAN I STORE THESE MUFFINS?
Cover leftover muffins and store at room temperature for 5 days or in the refrigerator for 1 week. Muffins freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or on the counter.
The recipe
Dark chocolate cranberry pistachio muffins
Ingredients
- 3 cups 375g all-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup 5 Tablespoons; 80g unsalted butter
- ½ cup cup 80ml honey
- 1 cup 200g granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- ⅓ cup 80g cream cheese
- 1 cup 240ml milk, at room temperature
- 1 and ½ cups 170g combination of chopped dark chocolate, dried cranberries, pistachios
- optional: zest of one orange
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C)
- Line the muffin tin with muffin liners or grease generously. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk your flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together to combine your dry ingredients.
- Whisk the melted butter, honey, and eggs together in a separate bowl until combined. Once well combined, add in your cream cheese and milk. These are your wet ingredients.
- Pour these wet ingredients into dry ingredients and fold together with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until completely combined.
- Use a whisk to rid any large lumps of flour, if needed. Avoid overmixing. The batter will be thick. Fold in your add-ins, including the optional orange zest. Divide batter between each muffin cup, filling to the top.
- Bake at 425°F for 8 minutes, then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C) and continue to bake for 30 minutes or until the tops are lightly golden brown and centers are set.
- Stick a toothpick in the center of a muffin to test for doneness. If it comes out clean, the muffins are done.