Christmas Cranberry Cupcakes
These Christmas Cranberry Cupcakes are genuinely one of our favourite things to bake in December. There's something about the combination of juicy cranberries, blueberries and banana that just tastes like Christmas to us. They're soft, fruity and packed with flavour, and when you top them with a fluffy vegan frosting they look proper festive without being fussy. We make a batch of these every year and they never last more than a day. Honestly, get these in the oven tonight.
Before You Start
- Preheat oven to 180°C
- 12-hole muffin tin lined with muffin cases
- Baking tray for toasting pecans
- Mixing bowl
- Food processor
- Cooling rack
- Piping bag
Ingredients
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 90g plain flour
- 90g wholewheat flour
- 50g light brown sugar
- 100g white sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 70ml coconut oil - melted
- 1 banana
- 125 tbsp plant-based milk
- 100g fresh blueberries
- 100g dried cranberries
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp plant-based milk
- 30g pecans
- 60g plant-based butter
- 450g icing sugar
- blueberries
Method
Make the cake batter
- Pour the flours, sugars, salt and baking powder into the mixing bowl and mix together with a fork
- Mash the banana with a fork and add it to the bowl along with the melted coconut oil and plant based milk
- Fold everything together with a spatula to combine
- Pour the blueberries and cranberries into the bowl and fold them into the batter
Cook the cupcakes
- Transfer equal amounts of the mixture into the muffin cases, put the tray in the oven and bake for 20 minutes until golden and fluffy
Whilst the muffins are baking, make the frosting
- Spread the pecans out on a baking tray and bake, on a low shelf for 6-7 minutes
- Take them out of the oven, transfer into a food processor and blitz them into a fine powder
- Add the dairy free butter, dairy free milk and maple syrup to the processor and blitz them until everything comes together
- Add the icing sugar to the processor and blitz into a thick icing sugar
Ice the cupcakes
- Take the muffins out of the oven, transfer them to a cooling rack and let them cool down to room temperature
- Transfer the icing sugar into a piping bag and squeeze it on to the muffins
Finish and serve
- Decorate the muffins with blueberries and serve immediately
Tips & Variations
- Ripe banana is key: The riper your banana the better here. Those spotty, almost-too-far ones are perfect and will give you a sweeter, more moist cupcake.
- Don't overmix the batter: Once you add the wet ingredients, fold gently until just combined. Overmixing can make the sponge a bit dense and we want these light and fluffy.
- Freeze your cranberries first: If you're using fresh cranberries, pop them in the freezer for 20 minutes before folding them in. It stops them bleeding too much into the batter and keeps those bursts of colour looking gorgeous.
Why This Works
The banana is the secret weapon here. It adds natural sweetness and keeps the sponge really moist without any eggs needed. The mix of cranberries and blueberries gives you little pockets of sharp, jammy fruit in every bite, which cuts through the sweetness of the frosting perfectly. Trust us on this one, it's a better combo than it sounds.