Enjoy tart cranberry and delicate almond flavor in every bite with these easy low carb cranberry almond crumb muffins.
Making delicious and low carb keto muffins is easier than you think. Carefully chosen gluten free ingredients result in moist full-sized bakery style muffins that will have you savoring every bite.
Muffins are like a warm cozy hug. I love to make all sorts of seasonal low carb muffins when the weather turns colder. In addition to these cranberry muffins, other fall favorites are low carb pumpkin spice muffins, apple crumb muffins and chocolate cranberry relish muffins. Alongside a steamy cup of coffee, I can’t think of a better way to kick off a fall morning.
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Don’t wait! Make the most delicious low carb cranberry almond crumb muffins today!
Some low carb muffin recipes are dry and crumbly, but these cranberry almond crumb muffins are anything but dry! They’re moist and bursting with the bright tart flavor of cranberries in each and every bite. The crumb topping and sliced almonds provide a nice contrast to the delicate muffins.
Not only are these cranberry muffins low carb, but like most keto baked goods this cranberry muffin recipe is gluten free and dairy free, too. Plus each muffin has more protein than an egg. A nice amount of fat and fiber keeps tummies full longer to help one power through the day.
But the thing I like best about these muffins is how easy they are to make! Just whisk the dry ingredients together and the wet ingredients together and combine the two. That’s it! No muss or fuss.
Ingredients for Low Carb Cranberry Almond Muffins
I put a lot of thought into the ingredients I choose for my recipes and each low carb ingredient has a purpose. Chopped fresh cranberries deliver a tart bright flavor to every bite of this low carb muffin recipe. To maximize the cranberry taste, I chopped the cranberries in a mini food processor.
NOTE: I don’t know if frozen berries work because I haven’t tried, but I would process them just before adding them to the batter.
While most traditional muffin recipes are made with flour, a mix of gluten free almond flour and coconut flour is a must for these cranberry muffins. If you’re new to low carb baking, almond flour is a staple for most low carb muffin recipes. Made from finely ground blanched almonds, almond flour is protein packed and low in carbs, but tends to be heavy. Mixing in some coconut flour helps lighten the muffins, giving them a better rise and texture.
Next, low carb sugar. I’m using an erythritol based sweetener for this muffin recipe. Erythritol based sweeteners are perfect for low carb diets because the body can’t break down or absorb them. This means they have zero calories and don’t affect blood sugar.
I prefer erythritol blends that are mixed with either stevia or monk fruit extract to measure 1:1 with regular sugar. Erythritol does have a cooling effect so I use as little as possible and add a little stevia glycerite to bump up sweetness. (Read more about low carb sweetener choices here and how to combine them.)
Psyllium powder and coconut flour are high in fiber and very absorbent. Adding both psyllium powder and coconut flour to the muffins allows the addition of more liquid and eggs, increasing yield. I chose full fat coconut milk which serves as the fat in the recipe and adds moisture. The result? Perfectly moist, regular sized muffins instead of the dreaded short muffin you get from many low carb and keto muffins recipes.
The result? An easy to make, delicious cranberry almond muffin to serve all fall and into the holiday season. Even Santa would approve.
Cranberry Almond Crumb Muffins (Low Carb)
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients (divided use)
- 2 cups almond flour (185 g)
- ½ cup coconut flour (50 g)
- ½ cup low carb sugar (115 g)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons psyllium husk powder (20 gm)
- 1 ½ cups fresh cranberries chopped, (115 g)
Wet Ingredients
- 6 large eggs
- ½ cup full fat coconut milk (118 ml)
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon stevia glycerite
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
Crumb Mixture
- â…“ cup reserved dry ingredients (35 g)
- ÂĽ cup sliced almonds small handful
- 2 tablespoons low carb sugar
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil melted (or butter)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and adjust the rack to the lower third. Line a muffin pan with paper liners or spray well with baking spray. Chop the fresh cranberries in a food processor and set aside.
- Dry Ingredients: Measure the first 6 ingredients into a medium bowl - NOT the psyllium husk powder. Whisk well to break-up any lumps and to evenly distribute the ingredients. Remove â…“ cup of the dry mixture and put in a small bowl and set aside for the crumb topping. Add the psyllium husk powder to the muffin ingredients and stir again. Dump the chopped cranberries on top.
- Wet Ingredients: Combine the eggs, coconut milk, white vinegar, vanilla extract, almond extract and stevia glycerite and blend with a fork or a hand mixer.
- Combine: Pour into the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until thoroughly combined. Let the batter sit for 5 minutes.
- Fill: Into the small bowl with the reserved dry mixture, add the rest of the ingredients for the crumb topping. Gently mix with your fingers or a fork. Evenly spoon the cranberry muffin batter into the muffin wells, making sure to mound in the middle. Sprinkle the crumb mixture over the tops of the muffins and place into the oven turning the heat up to 400 degrees.
- Bake at 400 for 6 minutes and then turn the oven back down to 350 baking 15-20 minutes more or until the muffins are done. The cranberry muffins are done when the tops are nicely browned and a toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out clean.
- Each muffin is 4.46g NET CARBS.
Mandy
Didn’t have a muffin pan so I cooked it in a glass dish, delicious!
Sadie
Oh my gosh! These muffins are so good! I had one for breakfast and was surprised how filling it was. I'm the only one in my family who does low carb, so I froze half of the muffins. Well, let me tell you that my daughter had a bite and she wants them for breakfast, too. Lol. We ate them warmed with butter. Mmmm. Thank you for this recipe. It's a keeper.
Cathrine
These are amazing. I used frozen cranberries that I chopped up in food processor. Will definitely make them again
Angie
These muffins taste amazing! Thank you,
JC
Excellent recipe! Great Blog! My wife loves it! This blog help her to her journey of losing a lot of weight! She lost 30 pounds! Now I understand why she always see this blog every single day.
Bonnie
Just made these muffins. I skipped the almond extract (not my favorite) and added chopped pecans to the batter and topping. The flavor, crumb and texture are spot on. My husband declared these muffins a keeper!
Linda T
The preamble mentions xanathan gum but it is not listed in the (very delicious sounding) recipe. Can you please specify how much is added to the fry ingredients?
Kim Hardesty
Hi Linda. Please excuse the mistake. I was rewriting this post as I was testing another muffin recipe and became momentarily confused. I have removed that portion from the post. The psyllium powder takes the place of the xanthan gum in this recipe by binding the gluten free ingredients while allowing more liquid to be added to the recipe for a larger muffin size. Thank you for your question. -Kim
Lise
These muffins are amazing!! My husband who normally won't touch my low carb baking LOVES these. I'm starting on another batch. This time I'm going to use cranberries and sugar free chocolate chips. Yum!
Jamie
Hi Kim! You mentioned that you made a Cranberry Almond Pie before you went low carb. Have you ever adapted it to be low carb? If not, do you have the original recipe that maybe I could tweak a bit? Thanks so much!
Kim
Hi Jamie. I did low carb it and shared it when I first began blogging. The photos were so terrible that I deleted the post several years ago. I'll see if I can make another version. -Kim
Heather | Cook It Up Paleo
I absolutely love cranberries; putting them in muffins sounds soo delish!
Kim
Thanks, Heather. It's a good recipe. Paleo folks could probably add more cranberries for a great punch of flavor! -Kim
Barbara
Enjoyed these muffins ! I cut the cranberries down to half a cup and quartered them by hand. I added in a 1/4 cup of sliced almonds into the batter. Yummy. I froze some as well. Next time, I would add a tad more sweetness. Easy to make !
Kim
Hi Barbara. Thanks for leaving a comment. I love the changes you made - sounds yummy! Thanks for sharing and have a great week. -Kim
Kim
Cindy, were you looking for a muffin with less net carbs? I actually reworked the recipe and improved it. The original recipe had 3 net carbs. I do not know what nutritional value for Barbara's tweaked recipe would be, but she used the original recipe. I'll post the original recipe in the notes section of the re-worked recipe. -Kim