Orange cranberry muffins

Instructions

1. Step 1

   Preheat the oven to 190°C and line a twelve-cup muffin tin with paper liners. The high starting heat helps the muffins puff up into pretty, rounded domes. You can start baking once the oven has been hot for about fifteen minutes.

   Mark step 1 as done

2. Step 2

   Add 8 g orange zest to 150 g granulated sugar and rub the two together with your fingertips for a minute. The sugar grains rubbing against the zest draw out its oils, making the whole batch far more fragrant. The sugar is ready when it is slightly damp, pale orange and clearly fragrant.

   Mark step 2 as done

3. Step 3

   In a large bowl, whisk together 280 g all-purpose flour, 8 g baking powder, 2 g baking soda and a pinch salt. When the leaveners are evenly spread, the muffins rise evenly without big holes. The dry mix is ready when it is loose and free of lumps.

   Mark step 3 as done

4. Step 4

   In another bowl, stir the orange sugar with 100 g eggs, 120 g orange juice, 80 g plain unsweetened yogurt and 90 g melted unsalted butter that has cooled slightly. Butter that is too hot can cook the eggs, while the yogurt keeps the crumb soft and moist for longer. The wet mix is ready when it is well blended, with no thick streaks of yogurt.

   Mark step 4 as done

5. Step 5

   Pour the wet mix into the dry, stir about fifteen strokes with a spatula, then add 120 g dried cranberries and stir a few more strokes. Minimal mixing keeps the gluten from developing, so the muffins stay tender rather than chewy. The batter is ready when the dry flour has just disappeared and it is still lumpy and fairly thick.

   Mark step 5 as done

6. Step 6

   Spoon the batter almost to the top of each liner, then sprinkle 20 g granulated sugar evenly over each one. Filling the cups well lets the muffins rise into tall domes, and the sugar forms a crisp, shiny crust. The tin is ready when every cup holds about the same amount of batter.

   Mark step 6 as done

7. Step 7

   Bake at 190°C for about 20 to 24 minutes, rotating the tin once halfway through if your oven heats unevenly. This temperature browns the crust while keeping the inside moist. The muffins are done when the tops are golden brown, spring back when pressed lightly and a skewer in the center comes out clean.

   Bake at 190°C for about 20 to 24 minutes.

   Mark step 7 as done

8. Step 8

   Leave the muffins in the tin for about five minutes, then lift them onto a rack to cool for ten minutes more. If they sit too long in the hot tin, steam collects underneath and makes the bottoms soggy. They are ready when they are just warm and the liners peel off easily.

   Suggested time: about 15 minutes.

   Mark step 8 as done