One of the very first words my daughter said was "jamp." At first, we had no idea what she was talking about. She kept asking for "jamp" and as we were putting food on the table for our Thanksgiving dinner, she started getting really excited and pointing at the table.
We finally figured out it was "jam" she was trying to say and cranberry sauce she actually wanted, which made total sense since cranberry sauce looks a lot like jam. She was obviously a fan of cranberry sauce, as am I. And that's what inspired these Cranberry Cornbread Muffins (with leftover cranberry sauce).
These leftover cranberry sauce cornmeal muffins are popular around the holiday season and perfect for a holiday breakfast or brunch or any time you have leftover cranberry sauce. You can also serve them as a side dish. These cornbread muffins are naturally dairy-free.
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First words are funny - I certainly didn't expect her to say "jam", but her very first word was even more unexpected....
Although I love cranberry sauce, I inevitably end up with lots of leftovers. My daughter and I are the only ones that really eat it. Hey, it's got gravy as it's competition and that’s some pretty stiff competition.
🥫 Leftover Cranberry Sauce Recipes
Still, I always struggled with what to do with my leftover cranberry sauce, hence the reason why I've come up with these leftover cranberry sauce muffins. And once you try these, you’ll be grateful for your leftover cranberry! My Cranberry Aioli is another great leftover cranberry sauce recipe, as is my Leftover Cranberry Sauce Coffee Cake (with Coffee Glaze)(shown)
🥘 Ingredients
My mom made cornmeal muffins, more commonly known as cornbread muffins, all the time. So I decided to take her beloved recipe and mess with it, as I'm known to do. I wanted to find a way to use up cranberry sauce and add some protein (hello bacon!) to this muffin to make it into a really satisfying sweet and savory morning meal, in the form of a muffin. That is how these Cranberry Sauce Muffins were born...
You don't need fresh cranberries for this cranberry cornmeal muffins recipe, but you will need:
- leftover canned cranberry sauce
- all-purpose flour
- cornmeal
- baking powder
- vegetable shortening
- white granulated sugar
- eggs
- bacon bit * I use real bacon bits
- maple extract
- orange juice
- orange zest
- maple syrup * I use low-sugar
*see recipe card for quantities
📖 Variations & Substitutions
- Vegetarian- you can skip the bacon and make these vegetarian!
- Cranberry sauce - you can use a store-bought (canned cranberry sauce) or homemade cranberry sauce
- Maple syrup - you can use pure maple syrup instead of reduced sugar
🌡️Storage
These cornbread muffins can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container, for up to a day, then they should be moved into the fridge for up to 3 additional days. This recipe freezes well for up to 3 months (in a sealed container or Ziplock freezer bag).
🍽Equipment
For these cranberry muffins you will need a mixing bowl and a muffin tin . If you opt to use muffin liners, the parchment baking cups work best (affiliate links).
If you are looking for easy canned cranberry sauce recipes, these leftover cranberry sauce muffins are perfect for using up those Thanksgiving leftovers or Christmas dinner leftovers. This muffin can also be eaten warm, cold, on the go, for breakfast, as a snack, and is a great lunch box addition!
👪 Serving size
This cranberry corn muffins recipe makes 24 cranberry sauce muffins. You can half, double or triple this recipe by simply clicking on the blue serving size in the recipe card and selecting the number of servings you'd like. The ingredient amounts will adjust accordingly.
Actually, my daughter's very first word was "cheese", which is not typically the first word you'd expect your kid to say. I was sort of waiting on "mama" or "dada". She happened to be eating cheese and looked up at me with a big grin and out it spilled. I was pretty shocked that she could say a word that complex, although it was only one syllable. I actually asked her to say it again, which she did. It sure came in handy when photos were being taken and someone would instruct the group to "say cheese"! The photographer was always a little taken aback that this little one-year-old could say "cheese." And she was pretty proud of that.
It's really not that surprising that her first words were all food related, she is the kid of a foodie, after all. And she did eventually say ’mama’ but I guess, in this case, you could say that’s kind of food-related too. 🙂
So, if you're looking for a muffin for your holiday table, you'll love this one!
And if you love cornbread quick bread recipes, you'll love these Leftover Cranberry Cornbread muffins, but you'll also want to give my Blueberry Cornbread a try too!
⭐ Reviews
Did you make these cranberry cornmeal muffins recipe? Please RATE THE RECIPE below!
What was your kid's (or your) first words? Leave me a comment below!
📋 Cranberry Cornbread Muffins (with leftover cranberry sauce) Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups cornmeal
- 2 ⅔ tablespoon baking powder
- ⅔ cup shortening softened
- ⅓ cup white granulated sugar
- 2 eggs beaten
- ¾ cup real bacon bits You can use real bacon finely chopped (about 6 slices) or lighten it up with turkey bacon or store-bought bacon bits
- ½ teaspoon maple extract
- 1 cups orange juice
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- ⅔ cup maple syrup * low sugar/no sugar added
- 1 cup canned cranberry sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F/205 degrees C. Generously spray muffin pan with non- stick cooking spray (or use parchment muffin cups).
- In a large bowl, mix flour, cornmeal and baking powder and set aside.
- In a separate medium bowl, cream shortening and sugar. Add orange juice, orange zest, syrup, maple extract and beaten eggs.
- Combine dry ingredients and wet ingredients. Fold in bacon bits.
- Spoon muffin batter into each muffin cup to ⅓ full.Drop 1 teaspoon of cherry cranberry pie filling onto batter in each muffin cup and swirl in with knife.
- Add the rest of the batter into each muffin cup up to ⅔ full. Drop another teaspoon of remaining cranberry sauce onto each muffin, dividing evenly between all muffins and swirl again.
- Bake in preheated oven for 12- 15 minutes or until tester/toothpick comes out clean and muffins are lightly browned. *It may take 15-20 minutes for you, as I live at a higher altitude.
- Cool for 5 minutes in muffin pan, then remove to wire rack to continue cooling.
- Serve warm or cold, with a little butter (if desired)
Ronit
These look delicious! Great way of using leftover cranberries. 🙂
Terri Gilson
Thanks - hope you get a chance to try them !