lovely little recipe: cranberry coconut muffins {yum}

{personal image (c) jacin fitzgerald}

remember the cranberries i picked up a few weeks back while i was in cape cod for e+a’s wedding? well i ended up with about 6 pounds of them, not sure what to do with them all. i sent half to my cousin in an overdue care package, and kept the other half for baking and possibly some decor. i’ve never used fresh cranberries before, only the craisins that come in the little ocean spray bags for salads, etc, so using the real deal was actually pretty exciting (doesn’t take much, folks).

pat and i have a shared love for anything with coconut involved, so i tried my hand at coconut cranberry muffins - the end result was absolutely delicious, so i wanted to share the recipe with you here today. let me know if you try it out and what you think!

cranberry coconut muffins

{yields 18-24 muffins}
recipe derived from a version i found on taste of home

ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups shredded, non-sweetened coconut
• 1 cup sugar
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons grated orange peel
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 3/4 cup orange juice
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1-1/2 cups coarsely chopped cranberries

directions

• In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, salt and orange peel. Cut in shortening until crumbly. In a small bowl, the orange juice, eggs, and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in cranberries.
• Fill paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 375° for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the middle comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes before removing to wire rack. Serve warm.