Cranberry Orange Bread Recipe
This cranberry orange bread recipe is a really simple sweet bread recipe that looks festive on your holiday dessert table. This delicious cranberry bread is great for Christmas or on the Thanksgiving table.
Sweet bread is one of my favorite things to bake in the winter. I love how the aromas fill my home and linger all day. Plus, I can enjoy it for dessert, breakfast, or even a snack.
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Easy Cranberry Orange Bread
What flavors taste the best with cranberries? I think orange does. In fact, if you make a few extra loaves, you can give them away as homemade gifts. Believe me, it tastes so delicious, everyone will be asking you for the recipe.
What You Need From The Store
All of the exact ingredient amounts are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. First, here is a short list of what you’ll need from the store before you make it.
- Flour
- Salt
- Baking Powder
- Granulated Sugar
- An Orange
- Buttermilk
- Canola Oil
- Eggs
- Vanilla Extract
- Fresh Cranberries
Frequently Asked Questions
Feel free to scroll down the printable recipe card. First, I’m going to answer a few questions people ask about this sweet bread recipe.
How Do You Make Gluten-Free Sweet Bread?
It’s really simple to make this a gluten-free recipe. All you have to do is use gluten-free flour instead of all-purpose flour. Everything else is safe to eat.
How Do You Store The Bread?
You can store this bread, covered, at room temperature. It will last about a week this way. If you want it to last longer, store it in the freezer. Completely cover it in aluminum foil and then store it in a zippered freezer bag. It will stay fresh for up to 4 months in the freezer.
Why Is The Cranberry Bread Crumbly?
If your sweet bread is too crumbly, this means you used too much leavening (baking powder). Cut back a bit and make sure you measure it precisely.
Why did the middle of my bread sink?
If the middle of the bread sunk, this means that it was too soggy and you used too much liquid. Make sure you measure all the ingredients precisely. If it is too soggy, add more flour.
Can I use dried cranberries?
This recipe tastes the best with fresh cranberries. Dried fruit won’t have the same texture and will be too crunchy in the bread. If you only have dried cranberries, you can still use them, you just have to rehydrate them first. Soak them in hot water and let them stand for about 20 minutes. Then, strain them and they will be ready to use in the bread.
More Holiday Dessert Ideas
If you enjoyed this orange cranberry bread, you will love these holiday desserts too!
Cranberry Orange Bread Recipe
Here’s the complete recipe in a printable recipe card. Don’t forget to pin this post to your favorite Pinterest board! You’ll definitely want to make it again later!
Cranberry Orange Bread
Equipment
- 9×5 loaf pan
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 orange zested
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 2 eggs
- 1 tbsp orange juice
- 1 1/2 cups cranberries fresh
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9×5 loaf pan with pam baking spray.
- Using a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, salt, orange zest, flour, and baking powder until combined.
- Using another large bowl, beat together the buttermilk, eggs, oil, orange juice, and vanilla until combined.
- Gradually whisk in the dry ingredients until combined.
- Fold in 1 C of the fresh cranberries.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan.
- Sprinkle the ½ C of cranberries on top of the batter.
- Bake in the oven for 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow the bread to cool completely before serving.
Nutrition
Susan B
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Why doesn’t the cranberries mix into the batter? Everything comes to the topafter I fold it in.
Hi Marge! I wasn’t sure why this happened but it turns out cranberries have pockets of air in them which causes them to float. I found this article that says to coat them with flour before folding them into the batter. Don’t over mix. Maybe try this next time. https://www.chowhound.com/post/deal-rising-sinking-fruit-cakes-baked-items-754104 Tossing them in flour will also help them or other fruit to not sink.
wow delicious, can i subtitute canola oil with palm oil.
Yes, that shouldn’t be a problem.
What if fresh cranberries aren’t in season, can you use dried cranberries?
Yes, you can used dried but I would only put about half of the amount in the recipe. I would try rehydrating them first. Put them in a bowl with water and microwave until they plump a bit. Also, you could use frozen.
Let me know how it turns out