These Orange Cherry Muffins will be a great addition to your weekend brunch or your meal prep alike. Whip them up in no time and surprise everyone when you tell them that they are keto friendly, gluten free and have no added sugar!
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I don't know about you, but I am in love with weekend breakfasts.
I love the leisurely and luxurious feel of it all. Taking the time to make something more then just a quick scrambled egg or bacon, and being in no real rush to do so - is one of my favorite ways to spend a Saturday or Sunday morning.
Making muffins from scratch was never something that appealed to me. The only muffins I'd ever eaten, were the ones that came wrapped in cellophane in vending machines and gas stations and I just didn't get it. They were so overly sweet, that I just never saw their appeal as a breakfast food.
One morning, a couple of years ago that all changed.
I was at a small little bakery and was told I had to try the orange cherry muffins. I'm a sucker for cherries, and I also suck at standing up for myself, so against my better judgement I got the muffin.
It was unlike any other muffin I'd ever had before. The sweetness was minimal, which really allowed the flavor from the fruit to shine. And why on earth are we not eating cherries with oranges all the time? It's a magical combination!
Before I get into the recipe, let's talk about fruit on a Keto diet.
Every time I post a recipe with a higher carb ingredient, I inevitably get the comments letting me know that my recipe isn't actually keto because ingredient xyz isn't approved for keto.
If this is you, then I respectfully disagree. If you are uncomfortable eating fruit on your keto diet, then by all means don't make this recipe.
There is no one way to eat keto or low carb, and when fruits are eaten in moderation they don't cause a problem for most people. I kept the carb count low enough that most people could easily fit it into their macros.
With that said ...
If you want to cut back on the fruit, you could substitute some orange extract for the orange juice and then make up for the extra liquid with water. I have never used orange extract personally, so I can't say for sure how much to use. I would start with ¼ teaspoon and then gradually add more to taste.
The orange zest is a great way to infuse these muffins with a delicious orange flavor, without adding a ton of sugar from more juice, so whatever you do - DO NOT skip the orange zest!
These muffins will keep for about a week in a sealed container in the refrigerator, but they also freeze really well!
Another question I get all the time is about substituting coconut flour for the almond flour. I haven't tried this personally, so I am not sure if this would work or not. Generally the ratio of coconut flour to almond flour is 1 to 3, so for this recipe I would start with ⅔ cup of coconut flour if you want to give it a try!
I've linked below a juicer and microplane similar to the ones that I have. They are both handy tools to have, but if you don't happen to have them, you can just use a small cheese grater to zest the orange.
For getting the most juice without a juicer, simply roll the orange on your counter top, pushing lightly. Then microwave it for 10-15 seconds, slice it in half and squeeze out the juice.
I also always get questions about the protein powder I use. I've linked to the one I use below, but any low carb vanilla protein will work fine. If you don't have protein powder, just toss in about 1 tablespoon of coconut flour and a little extra vanilla.
Be sure to try these other great recipes from This Mom's Menu:
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📖 Recipe
Orange Cherry Muffins | Keto, Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 2 cups super fine almond flour
- ¼ cup Low Carb Vanilla Protein Powder
- ½ tablespoon Baking Powder
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ½ cup erythritol (I use confectioners swerve)
- 4 large eggs
- ¼ cup butter (for dairy free use Ghee or coconut oil) softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup orange juice (about 1 medium orange)
- ½ tablespoon orange zest
- ⅓ cup dark sweet cherries, pitted and cut into fourths (I use frozen cherries!)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 12 cavity muffin tin, or line with cupcake liners.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, protein powder, baking powder, salt and erythritol. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl and using an electric hand mixer, combine the eggs, butter, vanilla orange juice and orange zest.
- Slowly add the almond flour mixture in with the wet ingredients and combine until smooth and uniform.
- Gently fold the cherries into the batter.
- Evenly distribute the batter into the muffin tin and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Notes
Be sure to read the entire post for tips, tricks, and help troubleshooting.
The nutrition information listed here is only an estimate and is simply provided as a courtesy. It nor any other information within this post should constitute medical or nutritional advice. Be sure to read all packaging and ingredient labels for potential allergens. Optional ingredients are not included unless otherwise specified.
Nutrition
Erin Fisher says
These were great! I didn't have orange juice or orange extract, though. I tried the extract with water trick you suggested, using almond extract and they we're wonderful!
Sabra says
Thanks for the review! I bet the almond extract was delish!
Ana Gibbert says
I love orange muffins so these just became my new favorite!
Terri Davey says
Can you suggest an alternative for the vanilla protein powder in addition to coconut flour? I don't have either.
Sabra says
Hi Terri! You can just leave them both out. If your batter seems too thin (it should be similar to cake batter) you can add a bit of additional almond flour. I hope that helps 🙂
Deb says
Wonderful, light tasty muffins. Followed the recipe and will add to my regular favorites. Thanks so much for the awesome recipe!