Cranberry Orange Bread

With notes of sweet and tart cranberry and a bright hit of citrus, this cranberry orange bread is the perfect recipe to bake for Christmas. And with a crusty sugar topping made from orange zest and sanding sugar, each bite has a bit of crunch. Whether it’s for the holidays or any other day, you’ll love this bread!

This easy bread is the perfect Christmas recipe to bake.

Quick bread is a common name we now give to any sweet cake-like bread. The word quick means no yeast is used, and instead, the bread is leavened with baking powder and/or baking soda. This recipe uses tart cranberries for a seasonal treat that is not too sweet but instead offers a well-balanced flavor. With fresh orange, tart cranberries, and toasted walnuts, this bread a simple way to enjoy a fruit that only comes in season for a short time every year. The instant you smell this bread baking, you will make it a tradition.

Everything you’ll need to make this recipe.

• Orange juice adds some additional sweetness to the recipe, along with acidity and brightness. Citrus has the ability to bring out other flavors like cranberry.
• Orange zest holds all the essential oils of the orange. The zest will intensify the orange flavor.
• Cranberries are tart on their own but work well with the sweet batter of quick bread. The cranberries will be sweetened with sugar but still maintain their tart flavor for a perfect balance.
• Walnuts add a great texture to the bread. Be sure to toast the nuts before chopping and adding them to the batter. The toasted nuts will have more flavor and will stay crisp when baked.

Here’s how to make this recipe.

1. Mix together the wet ingredients. In a bowl, combine the butter and sugar. Cream this with a hand mixer until the mixture is combined. Then add in the egg and let it combine with the butter and sugar. Add in the orange juice and orange zest and mix those into the batter as well.

2. Mix in the dry ingredients. To the batter, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Using the hand mixer, mix everything together, without overmixing, until just combined.

3. Chop the cranberries and walnuts. In a small food chopper or food processor, add the cranberries. Pulse the chopper or processor until the cranberries are broken down but not mush. Most of the cranberries should be broken down, with a few larger pieces remaining. Separately, toast the walnuts in the oven at 350°F until they’re fragrant, about 8 to 10 minutes. Once toasted and cooled, chop into small pieces. To the batter, add the chopped cranberries and chopped walnuts. Gently fold these two ingredients into the batter with a spatula or spoon, aiming to avoid mixing too much. The cranberries may exude some of their juices, turning the batter slightly pink, which is perfectly normal.

4. Prepare the top of the bread. Grease a loaf pan and line it with parchment paper. Grease the parchment paper once in the loaf pan as well. Pour the mixed batter into the loaf pan and smooth the top to ensure everything is level. Using a spatula or knife, make a slice down the center of the top of the bread, which will give the bread a natural cracking point while baking. Separately, in a small bowl, combine the sanding sugar and orange zest. Mix together until evenly combined and sprinkle on top of the bread in the loaf pan.

5. Bake the bread. Place the bread in the oven and bake at 350°F for 30 to 40 minutes until a skewer inserted into the center comes out mostly clean. Remove it from the oven and let it cool completely before slicing.

These pro tips will make this recipe a success.

• While many recipes that begin with creaming butter and sugar will instruct you to mix until light and fluffy, this recipe has a different ratio of butter to sugar. Thus, when creaming the butter and sugar, do not expect a light and fluffy texture this time.
• To zest the orange, place the orange in one static hand and use the other hand to pull the Microplane across the surface. This will collect all of the orange zest in the confines of the Microplane, which can then be tapped out easily into the bowl with all of the other ingredients.
• When mixing the dry and wet ingredients, be sure not to overmix them. Use the stand mixer until everything is just combined, meaning that a few streaks of flour are left in the bowl. Then use a spatula or spoon to work everything together until mixed well, which will avoid adding in too much air.
• To ensure the walnuts have lots of flavor in this bread, make sure to toast them before adding them to the batter. Nuts will not toast when they’re baking inside of batter or dough, so to ensure they have loads of flavor, they must be toasted beforehand.

You’ll love these other Christmas recipes.

• Gingerbread spice cake
• Chocolate-covered cherry cookies
• Candy bar cookies
• Cranberry apple pear crisp
• The best peppermint bark
• Glazed party mix
• Chocolate waffle cookies
• Christmas sugar cookies
• Peanut butter balls
• No-bake peppermint cheesecake