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Sunday, July 13, 2008

Tried Tested & True Two: Cranberry Orange Muffins Get a Makeover


I L-O-V-E muffins. A kitchen with muffins baking is a happy kitchen...at least to me. Cranberry orange is one of my favorite ones to make, and of course--eat. They were a natural choice for me to mess around with and makeover to submit to Equal Opportunity Kitchen's Tried Tested and True Two.



TT&T2 is a bit different than the first TT&T. This time, the challenge is to take a family favorite and give it a makeover. Make it better for you, but still taste great.



So what changes did I make?

1) I cut out both fats--1/4 cup of oil and 1/4 cup butter, and replaced them with 6 oz of nonfat plain yogurt.
2) There are two cups of flour in these muffins, and I replaced one of them with white whole wheat flour.
3) Next came the sugar. One cup became 3/4 cup, and as usual, it's organic cane sugar.
4) I also chose a marmalade that had no high fructose corn syrup.
5) I added walnuts, which are good for you, too.



Cranberry Orange Muffins


1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
3/4 cup organic cane sugar
1 Tbs baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
6 oz plain nonfat yogurt
3/4 cup low fat milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp orange extract
1/4 cup orange marmalade
3/4 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup chopped walnuts



1 Preheat oven to 350°.
2 Sift together dry ingredients, and make a well in the center.
3 Add eggs, yogurt, milk, and vanilla & orange extracts.
4 Mix by hand until just blended.
5 Fold in marmalade, cranberries and walnuts.
6 Spoon into lined or greased 12 muffin pan.
7 Bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool for a few minutes in pan, then turn out on to cooling rack.

Makes 12 muffins

Look at those gorgeous bottoms!



They turned out beautifully and I'm very happy with them! They are moist, tender, and not too sweet, just sweet enough. I'm scrapping the old recipe for the new, improved and better for us new one!

So make sure you get your makeover tried and true recipes ready and send them off to Giz and Psychgrad at Equal Opportunity Kitchen. It's sure to be an amazing, not to mention good for you roundup! You've got until Monday, July 21st at midnight EST. And there are prizes! How can you say no to that?



Print me!

Cranberry Orange Muffins

These muffins have had a makeover, so they're better ...

See Cranberry Orange Muffins on Key Ingredient.

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46 comments:

Amy said...

Wow, Elle! A delicious and healthy recipe. I love the yogurt idea. I'm going to have to try that sometime soon :)

Unknown said...

absolutely gorgeous bottoms! hehehe

Shelby said...

Beautiful muffins! I love how you replaced the fat with yogurt!

Adam said...

You're right, those are beautiful. I really like the golden color. Way to improve on a real favorite. Tell people cranberries are cleansing too... it's an added bonus.

PG said...

You've really outdone yourself Elle! This is excellent. I agree that a kitchen with muffins baking is a happy kitchen. It doesn't hurt that it makes the house smell wonderfully.

I also like the recipe card. What program do you use to create that? Tastebook?

Thank you for the great submission to Tried, Tested and True!

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

I too LOOOOOOVE muffins :0) And I love your changes to the recipe!!

Anonymous said...

I love walnuts in my muffins! These sound great!

Sharon said...

Healthy, I like it! I can't stop making muffins and my kitchen is hot! It's still happy, though.

Susan from Food Blogga said...

Cranberry-Orange muffins were my all-time favorite when I was a kid. And now I've got a hankering for one. They look wonderful!

April was in CA now MA said...

You're going to need an R rating on this blog with those gorgeous bottoms!

Love, love, LOVE the changes to the recipe! I've been trying to do that with recipes too and blogs have been so helpful with that because I'm not very creative. I've found cutting back on sugar in most recipes actually makes it taste better. Thank you for this one Elle. :o)

giz said...

Genius Elle - the theme that I'm loving and also indicated in comments is that people do realize the importance of healthier eating and you've shown that it's so doable. Congrats - definitely a sign of a cook/baker that understands ingredients. Love your submission to TTT2. Good luck and thank you for helping us bring the importance of signing organ donor cards to the forefront.

Garrett said...

Om nom nom nom! I think I could go through the whole batch for breakfast. Seriously.

Anonymous said...

Yummo-they are gorgeous Elle! Love those butts or bottoms..he-he.

Cathy - wheresmydamnanswer said...

The changes you made are great - I try to keep the calories and fat under control as much as possible.

Thanks for the healthy changes

Cheers
Cathy
www.wheresmydamnanswer.com

Mama Mia said...

your muffins look perfect! I just want to eat them hot right out of the oven!

Annie said...

I love cranberry orange muffins and yours look wonderful. I love using yogurt as a fat replacement.

I think muffins should be healthier anyway. Most muffins at the bakery and even muffin recipes are really just cake disguised as muffins! Great job on making them over...

Anonymous said...

Mmmmm.... muffin bottoms. Love it.

Deborah said...

I love the cranberry orange combo, and healthy muffins are great in my book!

Sarah said...

Elle,
I'm so glad you're such a muffin person...just like me. And yes, replacing some of the fat with yogurt is such a great idea...if you haven't already, you should try Barefoot Contessa's Lemon Yogurt Cake. I think it's on my blog. It's good stuff. Great post!

Anonymous said...

Another lovely creation from you. These look fantastic. You did a great job playing with the ingredients. Yum!

Chef Jeena said...

I love the bottoms of the muffins! :-D

Shreya said...

A true treat it is! Lovely bottoms:-) Amazing blog...

Anonymous said...

Oh wow...these look incredible, Elle! I wish I could get cranberries round here.

grace said...

people sure are loving your bottoms! i prefer a muffin top (but not what people are now calling what hangs over the waist of one's pants. no, not a fan of that...). :)
i'm glad your alterations worked out so well--i think you made some good choices there. i'm a bit of a muffin aficionado myself, and cranberry-orange is definitely one of my top five. very nice!

hungryandfrozen said...

They look gorgeous and sound delicious - maybe even more than the original. For all that I love butter and chocolate I do enjoy fiddling round with recipes to make them healthier. Even though it would really be healthier not to eat the muffin at all, that's no fun is it! :D

Jen said...

YUM YUM YUM!

I will have to give these a try becaus I agree with you on the happy kitchen and muffins.
I may try some raspberry lime ones this week, plus I have tons of blueberries, so I am thinking a lemon blueberry batch may be in line too.

LyB said...

You made such healthy changes! Those muffins look fabulous!

Sandy said...

Those sound so yummy. I was just looking at a orange bread recipe ... maybe I'll try your muffins.

nicole said...

They are a perfect golden color. I went to a restaurant that had these muffins and they were so good. These little babies will be put on my list of things to make. Thanks!

kat said...

what great changes!

Cris said...

Yummy yummy, I love muffins!

test it comm said...

These muffins look and sound good! I like the change that you made.

Tiffany said...

Wow, good job Elle! I love doing that to recipes...yours turned out beautifully :)

Anonymous said...

Thank you for this healthy version! I'm always on the look-out for healthier alternatives too, Mrs Big Bossman likes to eat healthy :-).

Anyway, when you start reading what's in mass-produced food it makes you want to run back to your kitchen and start making your own. Just like you did!

And yes, those are gorgeous bottoms! haha

Mrs Ergül said...

I think this is a VERY GOOD practice! It really helps make these sinful baked goods a lot more health friendly! Good job! And they still turned out lovely, don't they?

cakewardrobe said...

What a perfect looking muffin!! XOXO

vanillasugarblog said...

I'm sooooo with you: I love muffins too. I can't get enough blueberry muffins. I must make blueberry something every week. I also love Morning Glory muffins if they're done right. Your muffins look amazing--I will have to try these and give my blueberries a vacation.

Anonymous said...

Ooh... I am so going to try these! Great entry!

Elle said...

I have to say, you guys are the best readers ever. You say the nicest things! Thanks so much to everyone!

Summer has been so busy for me, but I'm trying to keep up, slowly making my way through my reader every few days and catching up with you guys.

Thanks again. :)

Ruth Strong said...

These look so cute and very yummy!

Anonymous said...

You have great timing: My daughter and I were just talking about making muffins, and I wanted to figure out how to make a healthier, less fatty, but still moist muffin. Thanks for sharing your strategy!

Erika said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Erika said...

Hey Elle, love the cranberry orange combination! I am trying to keep up too, I feel guilty if I am inside at my computer instead of outside in this New England summer!

Anonymous said...

What an incredible blog. Will keep you a record on my forum

Elle said...

Thank you so much, guys! :)

Anonymous said...

Wow--These do look delicious, and so much healthier than the original!

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