• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Style Sweet
  • Layer Cakes
  • Recipes
  • Cookbooks
  • Newsletter
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Layer Cakes
  • Recipes
  • Cookbooks
  • Newsletter
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Layer Cakes
    • Recipes
    • Cookbooks
    • Newsletter
    • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×
    Home

    Cranberry Orange Cupcakes

    November 26, 2019 by Style Sweet Leave a Comment

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Email
    Jump to Recipe - Print Recipe

    What’s pink, cute, and festive all over? These Cranberry Orange Cupcakes! Bridging the gap between Thanksgiving and Christmas, these fluffy cupcakes are filled with sweet, tart cranberry curd and frosted with swirls of naturally hued pink buttercream.

    Cranberry cupcakes with pink cranberry frosting being piped on top

    In a sea of beige, brown, and tan, let these pink Cranberry Orange Cupcakes be the shining light at your Thanksgiving feast! We personally love cranberry sauce, but if you are opposed to that canned jelly stuff (that wobble can’t be natural, right?), then incorporate cranberries into dessert instead.

    While the swirls of pink buttercream and sprinkles will make anyone stop in their tracks, we adore these Citrus Almond Cranberry Cupcakes for their knock-out flavors.

    The orange and almond cupcakes are adapted from Layered. The almond flour keeps them moist and flavorful while hints of orange and cinnamon make them truly festive for any holiday celebration this season.

    INGREDIENTS IN Cranberry orange cupcakes

    Here is a quick glance at some of the ingredients needed beyond basic pantry staples. Find a complete list with quantities in the full recipe to follow.

    • All-purpose flour
    • Almond flour
    • Ground cinnamon
    • Milk
    • Sour Cream
    • Unsalted butter
    • Orange
    • Granulated sugar
    • Eggs
    • Cranberries
    • Lemon
    • Confectioners' sugar

    TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT

    These are the primary tools you will need to bake these cupcakes:

    • Hand or stand mixer
    • Cupcake pan
    • Cupcake liners
    • Saucepan
    • Heat-safe rubber spatula
    • Piping bag

    A Few Words on Cranberry Curd...

    The cranberry curd filling offers a sweet and tart punch right in the middle of the cupcake. Cooking down fresh cranberries turns them into a super tart sauce that is bright magenta!

    Stir the tart cranberry sauce into fluffy whipped buttercream for the cranberry frosting make the 100% natural pink frosting.

    The curd may be made up to a week in advanced. Just be sure to keep stirring (with a heat-safe spatula or wooden spoon, not a whisk or it will take daaaayys) while it cooks so you don’t end up with scrambled egg curd!

    Read more about making curds here.

    Pumpkin Coffee Cream Cheese Cake

    Join the Style Sweet Bake Club!

    Get exclusive recipes and articles sent straight to your inbox. Become a subscriber today! Click to join.

    Recipe

    Cupcakes with pink cranberry buttercream
    Print Recipe

    Cranberry Orange Cupcakes

    These fluffy cranberry orange cupcakes are filled with sweet, tart cranberry curd and frosted with swirls of naturally hued pink buttercream.
    Prep Time45 minutes mins
    Cook Time21 minutes mins
    Total Time2 hours hrs
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: cranberry, orange cupcakes

    Ingredients

    Citrus Almond Cranberry Cupcakes

    • 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
    • 1 cup almond flour
    • 2 teaspoon baking powder
    • 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
    • ½ teaspoon baking soda
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup whole milk
    • ¼ cup sour cream
    • 1 cup unsalted butter softened
    • 2 cups granulated sugar
    • zest of one large orange
    • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    • ½ teaspoon almond extract
    • 4 large eggs

    Cranberry Curd

    • 3 cups fresh cranberries
    • 6 tablespoon unsalted butter diced and softened
    • 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
    • 3 large egg yolks
    • 1 large egg
    • ⅔ cup granulated sugar

    Cranberry Frosting

    • ¼ to ⅓ cup cranberry "sauce" (from above)
    • 1 cup unsalted butter softened
    • 3 ½ to 4 ½ cups powdered sugar
    • 1 tablespoon milk
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    Instructions

    Citrus Almond Cranberry Cupcakes

    • Preheat oven to 350°F. Fit a cupcake pan with paper liners and set aside.
    • In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, stir together the milk and sour cream. Set aside.
    • In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, place the butter, sugar and orange zest. Mix on medium-low until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl. Turn the mixer on low and add in the vanilla, almond, and eggs - one at a time. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl.
    • Turn the mixer to low and add the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the milk mixture, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Mix on medium, no more than 30 seconds, or until smooth.
    • Fill the cupcakes liners about ⅔ of the way with the batter. Bake for 21 to 24 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcakes comes out clean or the tops bounce back when gently presses. Cool the cupcakes on a wire rack.
    • Once cool, use an apple corer or paring knife to remove the centers of each cupcake. Spoon in a tablespoon or two of the cranberry curd. Frost and decorate as desired!

    Cranberry Curd

    • Place the cranberries in a medium saucepan with ⅔ cup water. Heat over medium-high until the water boils and the cranberries start to pop. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook until most the cranberries have burst open and break down. Remove from the heat and press the cranberries and their juices through a mesh sieve. Discard the seeds and any remaining flesh of the cranberries. You should have about ⅔ cup of cranberry “sauce.”
    • Place the butter in a heat-safe bowl and set aside. In a saucepan, measure out ¼ cup of the cranberry sauce (save remaining sauce for the frosting) then add the lemon juice, egg yolks, egg, and sugar. Stir together. While stirring consistently, cook over medium heat until the curd thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon and registers 160°F, 7 to 10 minutes.
    • Pour the curd through a mesh sieve over the bowl with the butter. Stir to melt the butter and combine. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly to the top of the curd and refrigerate until cooled and thickened.

    Cranberry Frosting

    • Beat butter at medium-low speed of electric mixer until smooth and creamy (1 to 3 minutes.) 
    • Gradually add all but 3 ½ cups of powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract with mixer at low speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Mix until blended.
    • Beat at medium-high speed 3 to 5 minutes, until buttercream is light and airy and nearly white.  Add in ¼ cup of cranberry sauce and mix until combined. If needed, add the additional powered sugar or cranberry sauce until desired consistency is achieved.
    « S'mores Pumpkin Pie with Meringue
    Gingerbread Layer Cake with Cookie Butter Filling »

    Reader Interactions

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Tessa Huff

    Hi, I'm Tessa Huff! I am the cookbook author of Layered and Icing on the Cake. I bake, develop recipes, and photograph food from my home studio in North Vancouver, BC.

    More about me →

    My Cookbooks

    a Good Reads Best Cookbook Nominee!

    Join the Style Sweet Bake Club on Substack!

    Style Sweet is the ultimate resource for home bakers of all skill levels. Here you will find everyday dessert recipes, cake decorating tutorials, and expert baking tips to improve your skills and gain confidence in the kitchen.

    Find my recipes on FoodNetwork.CA and TheKitchn

    As Seen On

    Milk & Cookies Cake on The New York Times Style Magazine

    Cinnamon Roll Cake on Food Network 

    5 Stylish Layer Cakes on The Kitchn

    Cookie Decorating with MUJI 

    London Fog Cake on Bake From Scratch 

    Buttercream Flower Cupcakes with Wilton Cakes

    Popular Recipes

    • A thick slice of lemon ricotta cake with lemons and tea in the background
      Quick and Easy Lemon Ricotta Cake
    • How to Ice an Ombré Cake
    • Frosting a watercolor buttercream cake
      How to Make a Watercolor Cake
    • A bunch of mini two-layer vanilla cakes with flowers on top
      How to Make Mini Cakes

    Seasonal Recipes

    • An overhead image of a cake with slices on plum baked in a spiral on top.
      Plum Yogurt Cake
    • Carrot Cake Recipe with Brown Butter Frosting
    • Pumpkin Coffee Cream Cheese Cake
      Small-Batch Pumpkin Cake with Coffee Cream Cheese Frosting
    • A slice of apple blueberry pie
      Apple Blueberry Pie

    Cake Decorating

    • a perfect chocolate drip cake with pink buttercream frosting
      How to Make a Chocolate Drip Cake
    • How to Ice a Cake
    • Stacking layers of cake and filling.
      How to Stack and Fill a Cake
    • Making a buttercream flower cake with pink, orange, and purple frosting
      How to Make a Buttercream Flower Cake

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • As Seen On

    Newsletter

    • Sign up for new articles and updates
    • Bake my recipes on FoodNetwork.ca

    Contact

    • Work with Me
    • Email

    COPYRIGHT © 2024 StyleSweet Studio LTD.