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 ¼ to ½ 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
- ½ cup sour cream
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups almond flour
- ½ cup Swerve Sweetener
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
- ½ cup 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 ¼ to ½ 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
Jude Huebner says
I’ve been making a triple batch of these almost every week since before Thanksgiving of last year. Of course, it’s way too much for my blender but my mighty hand mixer does just fine. I add a sprinkle of Swerve granular on top before putting them in the oven…so good! They freeze well but I haven’t had to freeze many. Both of my daughters love taking home a dozen when they visit. Thank you for the great recipe!
Liz says
Can these be made as coffee cake muffins? I thought i would leave out any fruit and a struesel type of topping before baking. I also thought I could make one using just Apple pie spice? Excuse my ignorance, I am new to keto.
BettyAnn says
How can there be 20grams of fat per muffin as stated in the info if there is only 1/2 cup of sour cream in the whole recipe?
Carolyn says
Almond flour, my friend. Almond flour.
Kristeen Downs says
Can I use paper liners if I spray them with something like Baker’s Joy?
Carolyn says
I think they will still stick, to be honest.
Jude Huebner says
I use parchment paper liners and they work perfectly!
Tracy Guenther says
I have made these twice! They are the best!! I’m. Spice girl so I added more cinnamon and added some cloves and nutmeg! I also had to add a little more cranberries. These are perfect !!
Carol Moore says
Hi, Carolyn,
I just dried 2 bags of cranberries for your keto-dried cranberries, so I’m set for A LONG time! Would you sub 1/2 cup of dried for the fresh in this recipe? LOVE, LOVE, LOVE all your goodies!!!!
Susan says
I submitted the ingredients to Carb Manager. It came out to 3.8 Net carbs/muffin.
Larry Korson says
Made these last night with blueberries
These are so great
Sooooo happy to have found them
Grant Schley says
I don’t love it but I do if that makes any sense. I don’t love almond flour trying to get used to it. Could not be easier…. I used swerve brown sugar and zap the brown sugar with the wet ingredients in the blender. Mary cranberry batch and they’re okay but I don’t love cranberries then I made a batch with blueberries and I like that much better… I’m going to try it with coconut flour next
Maribel Rivera says
Thank you for the recipe. I made it in a square pan and it turned out really good.
JudytheBaker says
Hi Carolyn,
this looks so interesting, but 4 eggs for 6 muffins sounds like a lot. Does it have an eggy flavor? Can I sub liquid egg whites for part? I am not shopping much. But I do have almost a case of egg whites
My Ninja doesn’t have blades at the bottom, so I’d have to double the recipe to be worthwhile. Would that work?
Baker Judy says
DUH!!! This makes TWELVE muffins.
Just had to make them this morning. Like you, I squirrel awway bags of cranberries. I think that next time I will add more Swerve if I use cranberries.
Love, Love, Love the light texture. This is so great to mix up. I think that I have less cleanup, which is a plus.
My new go-to recipe for muffins. Great for breakfast.
Julia says
They look delicious! I am going to use paper cupcake liners.Do I have to spray the liners before putting in the batter?Thank you
Carolyn says
I really don’t recommend paper liners, as I think the muffins will stick to them quite a bit. I don’t know if greasing will help but it’s certainly worth a try.
Coffeeshopkitty says
Is the Swerve necessary for structure or can I leave it out? I want to make these savory with a little green onion.
Carolyn says
I’ve made savory muffins with this recipe! Check out my garlic bread muffins.
Coffeeshopkitty says
Perfect! Thank you!
Nataliya says
Hi Carolyn! Thank you very much for the amazing recipe ! I have a question …can you please tell what would nutrition value be if you don’t add pecans to the batter? Thank you!
Evelyne says
This is the best keto muffin recipe so far that I’ve tried. Thank you!
Suzanne says
These look delicious! Thank you for sharing!
carol walter says
Awesome. So glad I finally got around to making them. I used Pyure and the seasonings that I use in my favorite French breakfast puffs… Nutmeg instead of cinnamon in the batter and a sprinkle of cinnamon/sugar-sweetener on top. My batter was very thick, just like the French breakfat puffs so I didn’t add more water. the texture is perfect and moist and a bit heavy, just like I like my muffins. I saved half of the batter to add blueverries, but I like the cranberries so much that I may just leave the bliueberries in the freezer. I added a dollop of cream cheese, cream,Pyure and lemon juice instead of glazing them as I originally planned. Hub and I decided we could serve these to anyone and they would not know they were low carb.
Charlotte Heineken says
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!!
Carolyn says
Thanks, Charlotte!
wendy says
Delicious but don’t leave them in for 25min! 15 min tops or you will have lumps of coal.
Carolyn says
Hi Wendy, I make these muffins all the time as do many of my readers. You may want to check your oven temperature as it sounds VERY off. Grab yourself an inexpensive oven-safe thermometer.
Claire says
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 in Canada