i'd rather be baking

People, sometimes I make things too complicated. Seriously.

This weekend was a prime example. Due to an excellent price at Sam’s, I now have cranberries coming out of my ears and kind of need to start using them. And for some reason, nearly every recipe I could find that sounded remotely yummy was heavily dependent on the presence of some form of orange (be it juice or zest), and I just wasn’t interested in going to the store for one orange.

And then it dawned on me: doesn’t it stand to reason that the good people at Ocean Spray know their way around a cranberry? You guessed it: the back of the bag totally came through for me.

These little guys are hearty and delicious with a punch of cranberry that’s downright cheery. They’re perfect with a morning cup of tea, or pretty much anything else.

Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins
Adapted from the back of the Ocean Spray cranberry bag

1 3/4 cups flour
1 cup sugar*
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a muffin tin.

Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside. Combine remaining ingredients, except cranberries, in a separate bowl. Add to dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Fold in cranberries.

Spoon evenly into muffin tin and bake for 20-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted mid-muffin comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

*I actually used a sugar substitute (generic version of Splenda) here, so that I could share some with my diabetic father-in-law. Feel free to do the same!