Think Chocolate Orange Cointreau-Soaked Cranberries…

“Too much of a good thing is simply wonderful!”

– Deborah Fox-Rothschild

This is a wonderful mix of my favourite ingredients…What’s not to love?

Soak the cranberries in Cointreau…mmmm…

Juice the oranges and zest the skins.

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs, beaten
• 100g soft dark sugar
• 100ml sunflower oil
• 2 oranges, juiced and made up to 240ml with milk
• 300g plain flour
• 3tsp baking powder
•  ½ tsp salt
• 50g cocoa powder
• Orange zest
• 2tbs cointreau
• 100g dried cranberries

Sift in the dry ingredients.

Add in the orange zest, then mix.

Time to tip in those liqueur-soaked cranberries.

Add the wet to dry ingredients and mix…don’t worry about the lumps.

Method:

1. Soak the cranberries in cointreau, cover and chill in the fridge for up to 2 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 200°C/400/°F/gas mark 6 and line muffin tray with paper muffin cases.
3. Beat the eggs in a mixing bowl, add the oil, orange juice and milk, then whisk in the sugar, until dissolved.
4. Sift in the flour, baking powder, salt, cocoa power, orange zest and cointreau soaked cranberries. and then roughly mix.
5. Spoon the mixture into muffin cases; two thirds full.
6. Bake for 25-30 minutes until well risen and firm to touch.
7. Leave to cool.
8. Dust with icing sugar to serve.

Into the oven you go!

The chocolate-orange smell is amazing!

To serve, dust with icing sugar and top with candied orange peel.

These muffins are lovely heated for 10-15 seconds in microwave and served with ice cream!

Think I’m getting into a festive-flavour mood…must be the cranberries,

Frances 😊