Prep

• Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Prepare your muffin tins by either lining them with paper liners or greasing them thoroughly. This recipe will make approximately 24 standard-sized muffins, so you may need to work in batches if you don’t have enough pans.

Flavor the sugar

• Place the sugar in a large bowl and add the orange zest. Using your fingertips, rub the zest into the sugar until it becomes fragrant and slightly moist. This technique releases the essential oils from the zest, infusing the sugar with intense orange flavor that will permeate throughout your muffins.

Cream fats + sugar

• In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the butter, olive oil, and orange-sugar mixture for 3-5 minutes until the mixture becomes pale and fluffy. Don’t rush this step—proper creaming creates air pockets that help the muffins rise and develop a tender crumb.

Add eggs & yogurt

• Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition to ensure they’re fully incorporated. Then mix in the Greek yogurt and vanilla bean paste until the mixture is smooth and uniform. The yogurt adds moisture and tanginess that complements the citrus flavors.

Add Orange Juice & Milk

• Whisk in the fresh orange juice and milk. The mixture may look slightly curdled at this point due to the acidity of the orange juice, but this is perfectly normal and will smooth out once the dry ingredients are added.

Mix dry ingredients

• In a separate bowl, whisk together the cake flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon until thoroughly combined. The cake flour will give your muffins a lighter, more tender texture than all-purpose flour would.

Add dry ingredients to wet

• Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture in three additions, mixing gently after each. Stop mixing as soon as you don’t see dry pockets of flour. Overmixing will develop gluten and result in tough muffins. The batter should be thick, which helps keep the cranberries suspended throughout the muffins instead of sinking to the bottom.

Flour cranberries for extra secure suspension

• Toss the cranberries with 1-2 tablespoons of flour (taken from your measured flour) in a small bowl. Shake off any excess flour. This light coating helps the berries grip the batter and prevents them from sinking to the bottom during baking.

Fold in berries

• Gently fold the flour-coated cranberries into the batter with as few strokes as possible. Use a rubber spatula and a light hand to preserve the air in the batter while distributing the berries evenly.

Bake

• Fill each muffin cup about ¾ full with batter. Sprinkle the tops generously with sugar, which will create a sweet, slightly crunchy top. Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.