These tender Keto Cranberry have a light fluffy crumb that is bursting with fresh cranberries. They’re easy to make and perfect for quick breakfasts or snacks.
I am not much of a hoarder, but I do have a tendency to hoard fresh cranberries in the fall. Once I start seeing them in the stores, I find myself buying a bag or two on every shopping trip. And although I already have a few bags stashed in my freezer, I can’t resist the call of these tart red berries.
All the better to make recipes like these Keto Cranberry Muffins, right? I also like to have them on hand for Sugar-Free Cranberry Sauce and Keto Cranberry Orange Bread. Really, there is a never-ending supply of delicious low carb cranberry recipes!
Grab a bag (or five!) the next time you’re at the store, because there is so much keto baking to be done!
Why readers love this recipe
I created this recipe in 2016 and it was the first time I ever used my blender to make keto muffins. And I was utterly thrilled with the results. They came out so fluffy and with a delightfully fine crumb.
For anyone who thinks that almond flour can’t rival wheat flour for texture, this is the recipe you need to try! They are easy to whip up in your blender and the sour cream gives them an incomparable texture.
And they are bursting with fresh cranberries. I love how cranberries hold their shape but also release their juices while baking. All that tart flavor comes through perfectly.
Muffins like these are great for stocking your freezer. Simply place them into a ziplock freezer bag and freeze. They can last for several months. They can also be refrigerated for up to a week for easy keto breakfasts.
Reader Reviews
“I am so glad these are low carb, because they are so good!! Super soft & chewy from the cranberries. I did add nuts, because I love the crunch!” — Natalie
“I love these muffins, made them several times!! Very easy!! I put most in the freezer and when I want a little treat I have with a cup of tea and put a little cream cheese on the muffin!! Delicious! Sometimes I have for breakfast with coffee! Love your recipes. Thank you!!” — Charlotte
“I just made the recipe today, followed everything to the letter! AMAZING!!! I just loved eating that muffin, it’s my new recipe from now on. Many thanks for being so generous and sharing. This recipe is a 5***** one!” — Claire
Ingredient Notes
- Sour cream: I love using sour cream in baked goods like muffins and keto cakes. It makes them extra tender. You can also use Greek yogurt, but I recommend full fat for the best flavor.
- Almond flour: As with any almond flour recipe, the finer your flour, the finer the consistency. I always have good results with Bob’s Red Mill.
- Sweetener: I use an erythritol based sweetener but others may also work. Please see the Tips for Success for more information.
- Eggs: Be sure you bring them to room temperature first for smoother blending.
- Cranberries: Fresh cranberries will work best. You can also use frozen but make sure to thaw them first.
- Pecans: Other nut options include walnuts or almonds.
- Pantry staples: Vanilla extract, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.
Step by Step Directions
1. Blend the wet ingredients: Combine the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla extract in a large blender jar. Blend about 30 seconds.
2. Add the dry ingredients: Add the almond flour, sweetener, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Blend again until smooth, about 30 seconds to a minute. If your batter is overly thick, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water to thin it out (different brands of almond flour can vary).
3. Add the cranberries: By hand, stir in cranberries, keeping a few for the top of the muffins, and chopped pecans if using.
4. Bake the muffins: Divide the mixture in a muffin tin lined with parchment or silicone liners. Bake at 325ºF for 25 to 30 minutes, until just golden brown and firm to the touch. Remove and let cool completely.
Tips for Success
I like using a high-powered blender for this recipe, to really combine the batter and fluff it up a little. I am a huge fan of my BlendTec and it’s been going strong for over 12 years! You can blend it in a food processor as well. Mixing in a bowl is fine but you don’t get quite the fluffiness.
When baking keto muffin recipes, always use silicone or parchment paper liners. Regular paper liners stick badly and you lose too much of the muffin when trying to peel it off.
You aren’t limited to cranberries and pecans in this recipe. Let your imagination run wild! Lemon blueberry, cranberry orange, chocolate chip, you name it. You can use this as a basic keto muffin recipe and add in whatever you want.
These muffins should work with any kind of sweetener. Do keep in mind that if you use one that contains a lot of allulose, they will darken quickly in the oven. Keep your eye on them as you may need to take them out earlier. I also recommend using silicone muffin liners when baking with allulose.
Are cranberries good for you?
- Fresh cranberries are very low in carbs and high in fiber
- 1 cup of cranberries has only 12 grams of carbs
- They are full of phytonutrients and antioxidants
- They are anti-inflammatory
- Cranberries are high in vitamin C
- Beware of dried cranberries, as they are usually full of added sugars. I have a great recipe for sugar-free dried cranberries that you can make at home.
Frequently Asked Questions
Fresh cranberries are very tart on their own so I don’t recommend eating them raw. But they don’t need to be cooked in advance when adding them to baked goods. They soften and release their juice so as long as the recipe is sweet, they will add a delightful tartness.
These muffins freeze very well so go ahead and make a big batch. Let the muffins cool completely and then place in an airtight container or freezer bag. They will last up to 3 months.
This keto cranberry muffin recipe has 8.4g of carbs and 3.9g of fiber per serving. That comes to 4.5g net carbs per muffin.
Keto Cranberry Muffin Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (115 g) sour cream
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups (336 g) almond flour
- 1/2 cup (91 g) Swerve Sweetener
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup (100 g) fresh cranberries
- 1/2 cup (54.5 g) chopped pecans, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF and line a muffin tin with parchment or silicone liners.
- Combine the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla extract in a large blender jar. Blend about 30 seconds.
- Add the almond flour, sweetener, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Blend again until smooth, about 30 seconds to a minute. If your batter is overly thick, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water to thin it out (different brands of almond flour can vary).
- By hand, stir in cranberries, keeping a few for the top of the muffins, and chopped pecans if using.
- Divide the mixture among the prepared muffin cups and bake 25 to 30 minutes, until just golden brown and firm to the touch.
- Remove and let cool completely.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Would I use the same amount of Truvia as Swerve? Thanks
I believe that the regular Trivia (not the baking blend) is sweeter but I don’t know the conversion.
Made these and loved them. The subtle nutty sweetness of the muffins with the bright zing of the cranberries – seriously good. Made them in my nutribullet in two batches. I’m glad the previous poster mentioned the waffles – This was such an old post I never would have found it but now am anxious to try. Thanks for another good recipe.
Made these and loved them. The cranberries really popped. I used Sukrin:1 instead of Swerve and my non-D hubs said they could be a little sweeter for him, but he liked them as well. Will adjust sweetener next time. I am going to try this with blueberries as well. This recipe made me wonder if this could be done with your fabulous Almond Flour Yogurt waffles – of which I made three batches this past weekend ! (Blueberry, cranberry almond, and choc chip) All resting nicely in the freezer along with my cranberry muffins !! Another hit recipe, Carolyn !!
I also made a batch with blueberries, adding a couple drops of EZ Sweetz this time. Delish !! Thanks for pointing out the weight issue in the other posts on the almond flour. Mine was thick as well, I scoop lightly and level, but will weigh next time. I have an old Oster Kitchen center that I love, but I don’t think the blender is capable of handling the job, as toward the end of adding in the almond flour, I could tell it was straining to process it, so I finished the last portion in a bowl. I’m in the market for a high powered blender that can handle my low carb tasks. Great recipe again, Carolyn !!
I really want to try these as I have frozen cranberries in hand but don’t have sour cream. Can i replacement it with cream cheese? Thanks so much and I love all your recipes.
Cream cheese will be much too thick, but you might try half cream cheese and half whipping cream.
Thanks Carolyn!!
I will try as you suggested.
I made these with the zest of a large orange and 1.5 tsp Boyajian orange oil added and left out the pecans. They are GORGEOUS and taste wonderful. Another Carolyn win!
Can’t wait to try these! I need to order more blanched almond flour. I too only have confectioners swerve. I am wondering if I could actually get by with just using this confectioners In my baking all the time instead of the granular?..
In most cases, you can use confectioners. Occasionally, the granular is important for whipping air bubbles into cakes and such.
Costco and Sam’s carry finely ground almond flour in this are now.
Yum! I bet these would be good with a little orange zest and a touch of orange extract!
I just did that and yes, orange zest and orange extract is great in that recipe!
My second comment –
I Just made these with fresh blueberries and brown Splenda and wow They are gorgeous!! I will make these again.
I used my mini Ninja blenda for the eggs, sour cream and vanilla and then added that wet mixture to the dry and used a spatula. They rose very well indeed. 12 good sized muffins.
Please can you share a link to a nutrition calculator that you use.
Thanks
I can’t share a link to the nutrition calculator because it is software that is downloaded to my Mac, not an online source. It is called MacGourmet.
Is there any way you could add the weight of the almond flour to the recipe? I think mine was too packed down because it was way too thick for my blender to blend it.
I have a vitamix, it should be up to the job!
That really doesn’t sound right. I don’t pack my almond flour at all, I just scoop and level. What brand of almond flour do you use? I just weight a cup of Bob’s Red Mill and it came to 3.5 ounces.
According to Bob’s Red Mill website, 1 cup of their super fine blanched almond flour weighs 4 ounces (1/4 C = 28 grams = 1 ounce): http://www.bobsredmill.com/almond-meal-flour.html.
The difference between using 4oz per cup to your 3.5 oz would add up over the whole recipe to using an extra 1.5 oz = 6 tablespoons, which would affect the texture. I made this recipe this morning and while the flavor is delicious (thank you!), the texture was definitely off. I had to use the tamper on my Vitamiz to get it to mix completely. I will try next time by weighing to your 3.5oz x 3 cups = 10.5 oz.
They may say that, but I sat there weighing it out in my measuring cup so I would definitely go with the 3.5 oz per cup.
I am also wondering if different brands of sour cream make a difference…some thicker than others?
My batter was super, super thick as well. Nearly killed my basic blender and my flour wasn’t packed down at all. Next time I will add the dry ingredients slowly or use my mixer.
Try adding 1/4 cup water.
I ended up using some almond milk. It worked pretty well.
Mine was too thick, too (I have a Blendtec). I scoop and level so not sure … I half blended, half stirred. 🙂 Used Honeyville.
Thank you for an awesome low carb muffin reciped.. Just found your blog today, and I love your recipes…
This may be a totally stupid question but I’ve never cooked with cranberries before and I really want to make these. 🙂 You area talking fresh whole cranberries – not dried cranberries right???
Yup, fresh (or frozen) berries.
OH my goodness — I made these yesterday and they are yummy. My husband and my boss say they are perfect…. me? I’d put a dab more sweetener in them if they were just for me (LOL), but I have a raging sweet-tooth. SO delicious and SO easy. Thanks Carolyn!!
I’m out of granular Swerve until my Amazon order arrives in a few days. Are there any adjustments for using confectioners Swerve or should I just wait? Been out for a while and kept forgetting to order more. I’m really craving something sweet. Any other suggestions?
You should be okay using confectioner’s here.
Swerve can be bought in Publix and a few grocery stores now.. hope this helps
Meijer has a great price on Swerve. They beat Amazon typically.
Can xylitol be used instead of swerve
Sure.
You can make your own confectioners by blending some granular. If you want to make some for future use also, add 1 t. of corn starch to every cup to prevent it clumping up… take count of the extra carbs when doing this.
Hello, Can you let me know if using blueberries or raspeberries would significantly change the nutritional value?
I need an alternative to cranberries if possible without shooting the carb value past 10G per muffin.
Second question, Can I use a ninja bullet type blender for this mix?
Many Thanks
Sue
Please use an online nutritional calculator. It will change the counts some, although probably not significantly. I don’t know about a Bullet, I don’t have one.
Could I make chocolate chip muffins this way? Yum
Yup, I am sure you could!
I know that recipes can be funny some times and you do not always get the same result if they are simply doubled or in my case, would like to half it for just 6. Any recommendations or adjustments or tweaks when halving a recipe?
This one should be fine to cut in half.
What ingredients are you not suppose to 1/2 over the end result with not be the same? I haven’t heard this before. thanks
I, too, have some in the freezer. Defrost first or us frozen?
Frozen works just fine.
Thanks! I was just about to ask 🙂 I have some frozen cranberries left over from your recipes in the fall/winter. Have a great week!
Saw this first thing this morning and ran out to buy cranberries. Just made them and have to say these are the best muffins I’ve ever made. Blending them changed the texture in the best way. All muffins will now be blender mufffins in my house.
Wonderful, thanks so much!!!
Aren’t they SO light and fluffy?
Carolyn,
Does the listed nutritional info include the nuts or no?
Thanks for a cranberry recipe. They are my fall addiction. I don’t care about pumpkin spiced anything…I just want CRANBERRIES!
It does include the pecans. I typically include the optional items.
I’m confused…..I entered the recipe in My Fitness Pal, and the nutritional info is different–says each muffin is only 124 calories! Carbs and fiber are lower with net carbs of 3, and protein is about 1/2. I can’t figure out why……It wouldn’t upload directly, but once I entered everything it recognized the source, so I think I entered the ingredients correctly. 12 muffins and 1 serving is one muffin, right?
( I didn’t rate the recipe because I haven’t tried it yet–tried something different first–but I plan to soon.)
Hi Donna, My Fitness Pal is notoriously inaccurate so I don’t know why the numbers are different but i would trust mine over theirs. Mine pulls from the USDA database. Almond flour alone has about 160 calories per 1/4 cup and there is 1/4 cup per muffin so it would definitely be higher than 124 calories!
What app do you use to calculate nutritional information?
I use a paid software called MacGourmet. I don’t use free online apps like My Fitness Pal because they are notoriously inaccurate.
These look so good! Would they work with only 3 eggs?
I am not sure. I didn’t try them that way. The batter may be a lot thicker.
Is it necessary to use a blender? Or is the blender just to make the process quick and easy?
I suppose it’s not completely necessary but there is something about whipping it up in the blender that lightens the consistency and gives you fluffier muffins.
Good to know, thanks!
That may be so but after I see how these come out (they are in the oven now) and if I want to make them again, I am using a mixer. Too much trouble and waste to try and get this semi thick batter out from around the blender blade.
I found the blender to be a problem. Mixture was too thick and my Kitchen Aid blender was struggling…
Add a bit more liquid to help it along! No more than 1/4 cup.
Oooooh these look super simple and yummy! I think I even have all the ingredients….except maybe pecans…I’m going to make these today!!! Thank you!! 🙂