Diced pears and fresh cranberries make for the perfect balance of sweet and tart in this recipe for cranberry pear muffins.
Thirteen days until Christmas and we’ve got three different holiday parties on the calendar this weekend! You can bet I’ll be busy baking plenty of desserts to take to all the festivities. But despite the busy holiday season, I’ve also been trying to keep up with my usual muffins, quick breads, and granola to keep at home for our breakfasts and snacking throughout the week. The recipe for these cranberry pear muffins is one I’ve returned to again and again.
When Ben and I were first married, I’m pretty sure I whipped up a quiche and a batch of muffins every single week. And no, I’m actually not exaggerating! I’m not entirely sure why I became so attached to those two dishes in particular, except that they are both so flexible and versatile.
It was always a great way to use up whatever leftovers I had in my fridge, and it added some predictability to my week. If I had cheese or spinach or broccoli or onions, it meant quiche was on the menu. And when I had carrots or apples or zucchini or bananas or yogurt to use up, it meant it was time to bake some muffins!
I’ve branched out a lot since those days, but since I’ve been buying so many cranberries this year, I decided to return to my roots and use some of the leftovers to bake muffins. I’ve also been in love with pears lately, and I figured they would be the perfect pairing (see what I did there??) for the cranberries.
I know, I know.
That was cheesy, I’m sorry. A little fun fact about me is that puns are my absolute favorite brand of humor (and food puns?? Donut even get me started!). Of course, I am well aware of how lame everyone thinks puns are. But honestly, I don’t carrot all! 😉
Okay, okay, that was the last one, I promise! As I was saying, the diced pears and the cranberries in this recipe bring the perfect combination of sweetness and tartness to the lightly spiced muffin batter. I tried several variations of these cranberry pear muffins, and this was my favorite because of the moist, tender, and almost cake-like crumb.
The recipe is also wonderfully simple, which can be refreshing after baking so many layer cakes, you know? Seriously, the hardest part about this recipe is peeling and dicing the pear. So, take a little time to care for yourself in the craziness of the holiday season and bake yourself a dozen of these cranberry pear muffins muffins.
Then, warm a couple of them up for breakfast and promise me you’ll slather them with butter, okay? Add your favorite seasonal hot beverage, and I think you’ll be well on your way to having a lovely morning. This would be the perfect way to take a pause before the busyness sets in for the day.
As always, I love seeing your creations on Instagram, so don’t forget to post a pic and tag @flourcoveredapron if you make this recipe!
Cranberry Pear Muffins
Diced pears and fresh cranberries provide the perfect balance of sweetness and tartness in this recipe for cranberry pear muffins.
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup plain, nonfat Greek yogurt, room temperature
- 1/4 cup whole milk, room temperature
- 1 cup pear, peeled and diced (about 1 medium size pear)
- 1 cup fresh cranberries, whole
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and generously grease a muffin tin (or, use paper liners).
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Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt) in a large bowl. Set aside.
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In a medium size bowl, whisk together both sugars, eggs, melted butter, vanilla, Greek yogurt, and milk. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour the wet ingredients into it. Fold together until just combined. Then, gently fold in the diced pears and cranberries.
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Divide batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake for an additional 5-7 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each muffin comes out clean. Let cool in pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
