Cranberry Orange Cupcakes

Cranberry orange cupcakes have amazing flavor and are absolutely stunning. Moist and fluffy vanilla cupcakes filled with cranberry curd, swirled with orange buttercream frosting, and topped with sugared cranberries. These cupcakes are ideal for Thanksgiving or Christmas!

Ingredients for Cranberry Orange Cupcakes

Vanilla Cupcakes

• All-purpose flour – Level the measuring cups!
• Granulated sugar – For sweetness.
• Baking powder – Leavening agent to help the cupcake rise.
• Salt – Enhances flavors and contrasts sweetness.
• Milk – Room temperature.
• Vegetable oil – You can also use canola oil or another neutral baking oil.
• Egg – Large egg, room temperature.
• Sour cream – Adds moisture to the cupcakes.
• Vanilla extract – Vanilla extract adds amazing floral vanilla flavor.

Orange Buttercream Frosting

• Unsalted butter – Room temperature, softened butter.
• Powdered sugar – Also known as icing sugar or confectioners’ sugar.
• Orange juice – Freshly squeezed is best for the brightest orange flavor.
• Orange zest – Be sure to zest before your juice the orange.
• Vanilla extract – Adds a bit of underlying vanilla notes to the frosting.
• Salt – Provides some contrast to the intense sweetness of the buttercream.
• Heavy cream – Use heavy cream or heavy whipping cream.

Cranberry Curd

• Cranberries – Fresh cranberries or frozen cranberries will work equally well.
• Granulated sugar – For sweetness because cranberries are tart and bitter.
• Orange juice – Freshly squeezed!
• Orange zest – Adds great orange flavor.
• Water – Water brings everything together.
• Egg yolks – Just the yolks! Use the egg whites for Swiss meringue buttercream frosting!
• Unsalted butter – Makes the cranberry curd smooth and creamy.

Sugared Cranberries

• Water + granulated sugar – To make a simple syrup plus more granulated white sugar to roll the cranberries in.
• Cranberries – For sugared cranberries, definitely go with fresh cranberries for best results.

How to Make Cranberry Orange Cupcakes

There are four different components to these cupcakes: vanilla cupcakes, orange buttercream frosting, cranberry curd, and sugared cranberries. Although there are four components, each component is very easy to make.

1. Bake Vanilla Cupcakes

The vanilla cupcakes in this recipe are my classic vanilla cupcakes. No electric mixer required! All you need to do is whisk together the dry and wet ingredients in a large bowl, bake cupcakes, and you have moist, fluffy vanilla cupcakes!

2. Whip Up Orange Buttercream Frosting

The orange buttercream frosting is a spin off my vanilla buttercream frosting with the addition of fresh orange juice and orange zest. The buttercream comes together in less than 10 minutes. To make the buttercream, I recommend using a stand mixer or electric hand mixer.

3. Make Cranberry Curd

Next step is making the cranberry curd. Cranberry curd is made with fresh or frozen cranberries and some fresh orange juice and orange zest for great flavor. The process is similar to making a lemon curd with the addition of egg yolks and unsalted butter to make the curd thick, smooth, and creamy. The curd has amazing tart and citrusy flavor.

4. Make Sugared Cranberries

Sugared cranberries are so simple to make! Rather than using the stovetop, let’s make things easy with a microwave. Combine water and sugar and cook for a minute to create a simple syrup. Pour the hot syrup over fresh cranberries and let them steep for about 15 minutes. Drain the cranberries and allow them to dry for a bit before rolling in granulated sugar. Simple as that!

5. Assemble the Cranberry Orange Cupcakes

Finally, it’s time to assemble the cupcakes!

• Core the vanilla cupcake with an apple corer to make room for filling.
• Fill a piping bag with cranberry curd and fill the center of the cupcake.
• Swirl orange buttercream frosting on top of the filled cupcake.
• Decorate with sugared cranberries.

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Cranberry Orange Cupcakes

Prep Time 2 hours hrs

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Chill Time 2 hours hrs

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

12 cupcakes

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Cranberry orange cupcakes have amazing flavor and are absolutely stunning. Moist and fluffy vanilla cupcakes filled with cranberry curd, swirled with orange buttercream frosting, and topped with sugared cranberries. These cupcakes are ideal for Thanksgiving or Christmas!

Equipment

• Stand mixer fitted with a whisk and/or paddle attachment or an electric hand mixer

Ingredients 

US CustomaryMetric

Vanilla Cupcakes

• ▢ 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• ▢ ½ tsp salt
• ▢ ½ cup milk room temperature
• ▢ ¼ cup vegetable oil
• ▢ 2 tbsp sour cream room temperature
• ▢ 1 egg room temperature
• ▢ 1 tbsp vanilla extract

Orange Buttercream Frosting

• ▢ 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
• ▢ 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
• ▢ 2 tbsp orange juice freshly squeezed
• ▢ 1 tsp orange zest
• ▢ 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ▢ ¼ tsp salt or to taste
• ▢ 1 tbsp heavy cream

Cranberry Curd

• ▢ 6 oz cranberries fresh or frozen
• ▢ ⅓ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 tbsp orange juice
• ▢ 1 tsp orange zest
• ▢ ¼ cup water
• ▢ 2 egg yolks
• ▢ 3 tbsp unsalted butter cold and cubed

Sugared Cranberries

• ▢ ¼ cup water
• ▢ ¼ cup granulated sugar for simple syrup
• ▢ 40 fresh cranberries
• ▢ ¼ cup granulated sugar for rolling

Instructions

Vanilla Cupcakes

• Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a cupcake pan with 12 cupcake liners.
• In a mixing bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt.
• Add in milk, vegetable oil, sour cream, egg, and vanilla extract. Whisk until the batter is combined and smooth.
• Portion the cupcake batter into the cupcake liners using a large cookie scoop, about ¾ full.
• Bake for 20 minutes until the tops of the cupcakes bounce back slightly when touched.
• Remove the cupcake pan from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely.

Orange Buttercream Frosting

• In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, add in room temperature unsalted butter. Whip the butter for 5 minutes on medium-high speed, scraping down the sides occasionally. The butter will be light, fluffy, and pale in color.
• Add one half of the powdered sugar and mix on the lowest speed setting until fully combined. Add remaining powdered sugar and continue to mix on low until incorporated.
• Add orange juice, orange zest, vanilla extract, and salt and mix on low until combined. Slowly drizzle in the heavy cream.
• Turn the speed on the mixer to medium-high and whip for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally to ensure the frosting is well mixed.
• If desired, switch to a paddle attachment on the stand mixer and mix buttercream on low speed for 2 additional minutes to remove air bubbles to create smooth frosting.

Cranberry Curd

• In a saucepan, combine fresh or frozen cranberries, granulated sugar, orange juice, orange zest, and water. Cook the cranberry mixture over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally for about 10 to 15 minutes. The mixture will bubble, reduce, and thicken slightly.
• Remove the saucepan from the heat. Transfer the mixture to a blender, food processor, or heat-safe container to use an immersion blender to puree the cranberry mixture until smooth. Be careful as the mixture will be hot. (See: tips)
• Add egg yolks to a bowl and whisk until broken up. Very slowly drizzle the hot cranberry mixture into the egg yolks whisking constantly to temper the egg yolks so they do not scramble. Transfer the cranberry mixture back to a saucepan and place over low heat. Cook the mixture for an additional 3 minutes whisking constantly until thickened.
• Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add in cold, cubed unsalted butter, one cube at a time, whisking in between each addition.
• Once all the butter is added, melted, and well combined into the cranberry curd, transfer the curd to a heat-safe container. Cover the cranberry curd with a lid or plastic wrap and cool to room temperature. Once cooled, chill the curd in the refrigerator for at least two hours before using.

Sugared Cranberries

• Combine water and granulated sugar in a heat-proof bowl. Stir to combine.
• Heat the sugar mixture in the microwave for 60 seconds. Stir to ensure the granulated sugar is fully dissolved.
• Place cranberries in a heat-safe bowl. Pour hot simple syrup over the cranberries and stir to coat the cranberries. Allow the cranberries to sit in the simple syrup for 15 minutes.
• Use a slotted spoon to remove and drain the cranberries from the simple syrup. Place the cranberries on a plate and separate them so they are not touching. Allow the cranberries to cool and dry for another 15 minutes.
• Roll the sticky, cooled cranberries in additional granulated sugar and place on a clean plate to dry.

Assembling the Cranberry Orange Cupcakes

• Use an apple corer to remove the center of the cooled vanilla cupcakes.
• Use a piping bag filled with the cranberry curd to fill the center of the cupcakes.
• Use a piping bag fitted with an Ateco 857 tip to pipe a swirl of orange buttercream frosting to the top of the cupcakes. Start in the center, swirl outward, and pull slightly upward once you reach the edge of the cupcakes.
• Garnish the cupcakes with three sugared cranberries.

Notes

Cranberry orange cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. To serve, bring the cupcakes to room temperature by removing from the refrigerator at least one hour before serving.

 

 

Metric conversions are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.

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