Cranberry Chocolate Chunk Muffins with Chocolate Streusel

Name: Cranberry Chocolate Chunk Muffins with Chocolate Streusel
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar; 1/4 cup all-purpose flour; 2 tablespoons finely chopped semisweet chocolate; 1/8 teaspoon salt; 3 tablespoons chilled butter, cubed; 2 sticks unsalted butter (softened to room temperature); 1/2 cup granulated sugar; 1/2 cup brown sugar; 3 eggs; 1/2 cup milk ((okay to use almond milk or other milk alternative)); 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 1 teaspoon orange zest; 1 cup all-purpose flour; 1 cup whole wheat flour; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1/4 teaspoon ground clove; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 3/4 cup chopped fresh (or frozen) cranberries; 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chunks

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These Cranberry Chocolate Chunk Muffins with Chocolate Streusel are loaded with chocolate chunks, fresh cranberries and topped with a double chocolate streusel – perfect to serve for breakfast or brunch during the holidays!

If you’re looking for an easy, no-fuss recipe for your holiday breakfast or brunch, these Cranberry Chocolate Chunk Muffins with Chocolate Streusel are your answer. They’re freezer-friendy – making them easy to prepare in advance – and they’ll please both kids and adults alike. Serve them alone as a quick-and-easy meal, or pair them with an indulgent casserole or special occasion scramble.

Why This Recipe Works

These muffins can totally be made in advance and enjoyed first thing in the morning with minimal mess and clean-up.
On that same note, they freeze up great! If you’re planning on freezing these, you can make them up to three months in advance.
They’re family-friendly. There’s no doubt that even the pickiest of eaters will love these tender muffins.
They sneak in some whole grains. This recipe calls for both all-purpose and whole wheat flour to give the muffins the perfect crumb.

Ingredients You’ll Need

Let’s make the streusel topping first, then move on to the muffin batter.

Ingredients needed to make chocolate streusel topping.

Butter – Make sure your butter is nicely chilled and cut into small cubes. This will make it easier to work into the rest of the ingredients to make the streusel topping.

Sugar – Granulated sugar is the perfect way to balance out the semisweet chocolate.

Flour – All-purpose flour helps bind the topping together.

Semisweet chocolate chunks – I recommend buying a big bar of semisweet chocolate and chopping it up with a sharp knife. Do not use chocolate chips as they will not break down enough to make a perfectly crumbly topping.

Some of the ingredients needed to make cranberry chocolate chunk muffins.

Milk – You can use any milk you prefer in this recipe (almond milk, whole milk, oat milk, etc.)

Sugar and brown sugar – We use two different types of sugar in this recipe to really add to the complex flavors in the muffins.

Some of the ingredients needed to make Cranberry Chocolate Chunk Muffins with Chocolate Streusel.

All-purpose flour and whole wheat flour – Using a combination of the two gives the added benefit of some whole grains while making sure the muffin doesn’t become too crumbly.

Ground clove and cinnamon – These spices complement the cranberries and chocolate perfectly.

Orange zest – A secret ingredient! Do not leave this out as it adds a brightness to these muffins that really bring them over the top.

Semisweet chocolate chunks – Again, I prefer cutting up a big bar of chocolate to get little hints of it speckled throughout the batter. However, while I don’t recommend using chocolate chips for the topping at all, you could substitute chocolate chips for the chocolate that goes into the batter.

Chopped cranberries – I usually use fresh cranberries in this batter, but you can use frozen as well if that’s all you can find.

Step-by-Step Instructions

First, prepare the chocolate streusel.

A mixing bowl of crumbly chocolate streusel.

Combine the butter, sugar, flour, semisweet chocolate chunks and salt in a small mixing bowl using your fingers, until a crumbly dough forms (as shown in the above photo).

Set aside the streusel topping for after you make the muffin batter. If your house is really warm, you probably want to put the streusel mixture in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it.

Now it’s time to make the batter.

A mixing bowl of creamed butter and sugar.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy, then beat in the eggs, milk, vanilla and orange zest.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (both flours, baking powder, spices and salt).

A mixing bowl of cranberry chocolate chunk muffin batter.

Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until incorporated, then fold in the chocolate and cranberries.

A cupcake tin filled with muffin batter.

Scoop the batter into a prepared muffin tin and top with the prepared chocolate streusel. Bake for 23-25 minutes and enjoy!

FAQs

How far in advance can I make these muffins?

If storing at room temperature, these muffins can be made up to three days in advance of serving. If freezing the muffins, you can make them up to three months in advance.

Can I use chocolate chips rather than a bar of semisweet chocolate?

While I prefer the small chopped fragments of chocolate you get by chopping up a bar of chocolate, you could substitute chocolate chips in the batter itself. I do not, however, recommend substituting chocolate chips in the streusel topping.

Do I have to use both all-purpose and whole wheat flour?

No. You can use all all-purpose flour, however I would not recommend using all whole wheat flour as this would make the muffins too crumbly.

My streusel topping didn’t hold up well after baking. What happened?

Either your butter wasn’t cold enough to begin with, or your topping mixture got too warm while you were making your batter. To ensure that your streusel topping stays in perfect form, pop it in the refrigerator while you are making the batter.