Tea Room Recipe #23 - The Rose Cottage (Clear Lake, Iowa)

Have you ever made muffins with cream cheese? Doesn't seem that exotic an idea, really, but I had never baked muffins with cream cheese in the batter, so this Cranberry Cream Cheese Muffin recipe struck me as a mighty fine idea!

The recipe comes from one of my recent eBay finds, this charming little spiral cookbook from The Rose Cottage, a garden-themed tea room and gift shop in Clear Lake, Iowa. The book also includes photos of the proprietress and her family and friends. I always love it when folks are thoughtful enough to thank all of those who helped make their success possible.

These muffins were incredibly moist and delicious, with a sponge-cake sort of texture. I liked them a lot and may start incorporating cream cheese into some of my other favorite muffin recipes now!

Cranberry Cream Cheese Muffins

1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1-1/2 cups sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries (I used frozen)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional (I did not add the nuts)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In large mixing bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and combine. Add cranberries (and walnuts, if desired). Spoon batter into greased muffins tins, or line tins with paper baking cups. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Yields 18 muffins.