Low-Fat Cranberry-Orange Muffins with Raspberry Liqueur or Orange Puree Glaze

One of my favorite (and simple!) ways to bring baked goods to a new level is to add a nice glaze. In this recipe, we’ll take an easy cranberry-orange muffin, give the cake a creamy texture using fat-free Greek yogurt, and top it with either of two glazes, one made from orange puree and one made from raspberry liqueur. (The photo at right shows both; the muffins on the left have the orange glaze, the ones on the right have the raspberry glaze.)

How easy are Low-Fat Glazed Cranberry Orange Muffins? Years ago, before I was ever interested in real cooking, I could make two things: pancakes, and cranberry-orange muffins. A while back I updated the pancake recipe (check out Fluffy and Reduced Fat Blueberry Pancakes with Fresh Strawberry Syrup), and now it’s the muffins’ turn.

Two points to mention before we start:

• Although I’m showing two particular flavorings for the glaze, feel free to substitute any flavor you like. Just substitute the appropriate liquid in place of the orange puree or the raspberry liqueur. Glaze made with lemon juice, for example, is often used and works with a lot of baked goods.
• One of my pet peeves is when fruit muffins are made with practically no fruit. (We’ve all had blueberry muffins that turned out to be called that only because the baker passed a blueberry over the batter before baking it, and putting the blueberry aside to wave over the next batch.) I think we should be able to pick up a muffin and see fruit starting to show through the sides. (Don’t overdo this, though; too much fruit and the muffins won’t hold together.)

This recipe makes about 8 large muffins. (You can also use it to make more small muffins, but who wants small muffins?)

Sift together 2 cups of all-purpose flour, a generous pinch of salt and 4 teaspoons of baking powder into a large bowl.

Add 1 cup of sugar and stir to combine.

Make a well in the flour mixture and add the zest of one orange.

Then add 1 cup of fat-free Greek yogurt, ¼ cup of skim milk, 3 tablespoons of melted butter substitute, 2 egg-substitute eggs, and . Mix the wet ingredients in the well, then stir into the dry ingredients to form a batter.

Fold 1-1/4 cups of dusted whole cranberries (cranberries tossed with flour to coat them lightly) into the batter. (Fresh or frozen both work well; if you’re using frozen there’s no need to thaw them.)

Pour into muffin tins (1/2 to 2/3 full) and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes till the tops are firm and the edges are lightly browned. When they’re done, a toothpick inserted into the center of one should come out clean.

After baking, let the muffins rest in the muffin tins for about five minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool.

When the muffins have cooled, prepare the glaze by combining one cup of confectioner’s sugar with 1 Tbsp of orange puree (made from the orange you zested earlier) or raspberry liqueur. Add additional liquid, little by little, until the glaze is thick but spreadable and does not ball up. Apply the glaze to the top of the muffins and let firm up for about 30 minutes.

Be careful. These can be mighty addictive!

I hope you enjoy making – and eating – these tasty (and, let’s not forget, low-fat) muffins!

See you next week with another delicious, kitchen-tested, reduced fat recipe! Till then, and as always, stay well, keep it about the food, and always remember to kiss the cook. ;-)