You like all of those words. You like them individually. You’ll also like them together. You’ll want them to hang out more, maybe rent an apartment in New York together. You’ll want them to have an insanely popular television show on TLC where you can follow along with their hopes, dreams, careers, personal relationships, good times and inevitable betrayals. And you’ll cry at the reunion show, “Lemon Cranberry Cream Cheese Muffins: The Next Batch” because no one thought that Cranberry would show up, but she will. She will.
(This is why you shouldn’t write blog posts when you’re tired.)
I came up with this recipe by modifying this one from CookingLight and substituting flavors I actually had on hand. Also, I used full-fat everything because…because. But they’re getting rave reviews so I’m pretty happy with the decision.
Ingredients
- 5 ounces cream cheese
- 1/3 cup butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp lemon extract
- 2 tsps grated lemon zest
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup finely chopped or ground almonds
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
- 1 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Prep muffin tins with either cupcake liners, baking spray or a generous spread of crisco.
- In a mixing bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Add the sugars, extract and zest, followed by the egg whites and egg. Beat thoroughly.
- In another bowl, combine the flour, almonds, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the flour mixture to the cream cheese mixture, followed by the buttermilk. Mix thoroughly but don't overdo it--you don't want to work the flour TOO much.
- Fold in the cranberries.
- Using an ice cream scoop or a spoon, pour the batter into the muffin tin, filling up each spot no more than halfway.
- Bake at 350F for about 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Enjoy!
