Orange Cranberry Muffins (grain free)

Guys, I've been busting at the seams for weeks for it to be the day after Thanksgiving. And not because of Black Friday (I was never much of a crowds or shopping kinda girl), but because it means it is socially appropriate for my  Christmas-crazed side to shine.

My little family's day-after-Thanksgiving tradition is to Christmasify our house and life as much as possible...all while staying put in our warm house and cozy jammies. We play the classic Christmas songs (All I want For Christmas Is You is my Christmas jam), put up our tree, and bake (oh, how we bake). One of my absolute favorite flavors of the season is the glorious, tangy combo of orange and cranberries.

Its tangy. It's sweet. It's fantastically Christmas!  Bahhhhhhh I just love this flavor combination so much that I couldn't possibly pass up creating my own little TNN recipe inspired by it. And of course it had to be muffins, because we all know how much I love anything and everything that comes out of a muffin tin.... 

These orange cranberry muffins are moist, delicious, sweet, and everything that traditional orange cranberry baked goods are, except I made these suckers totally grain-free, dairy-free, and naturally sweetened with dates. Its the glory of the traditional Christmas taste that we all love...just a tad bit healthier.

Makes 9 muffins

Ingredients:

1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons coconut flour

1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons almond meal

1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

4 large eggs

6 medjool dates, pitted

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon orange zest

1/4 cup fresh squeeze orange juice

1 cup fresh cranberries

Directions:

1) Preheat your oven to 350 F degrees and line a muffin tin with paper lines or silicone liners (I find that silicone liners almost always work better with coconut flour muffin recipes, as it doesn't stick as much to the silicone)

2) Sift all the dry ingredients into a medium bowl. Set the bowl aside when done. Sometimes almond meal has big chunks of nut that wont make it through the sifter. That's okay, just pitch those bigger pieces. We want a really fine grain flour to make these muffins soft and fluffy.

3) In a blender, combine eggs, pitted dates, coconut oil, vanilla extract, orange zest, and orange juice. Blend until the mixture is smooth and the dates are well chopped. 

4) Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix until the batter is smooth and lump-free.

5) Gently fold in fresh cranberries to the batter.

6) Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, portion the batter into the lined muffin tins. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins start to turn a golden brown.

7) Remove from oven and allow muffins to cool completely before enjoying. Store in fridge for up to a week or in freezer for up to a month.

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