Orange Cranberry Bread (2024)

Published: Nov 10, 2020 · Modified: Dec 28, 2020 by Abeer Rizvi · This post may contain affiliate links · 48 Comments

Easy cranberry bread recipe with orange glaze, homemade with simple ingredients. Loaded with fresh cranberries and oranges. Soft, moist but still firm. Perfect for breakfast, brunch or dessert during Christmas holidays or even Thanksgiving.

I love the combination of sweet and tart flavors in this bread. The cranberries not only add flavor, but such a beautiful pop of color making it so pleasant to look at and display. Sweet Potato Bread and Easy Pumpkin Bread {With Cake Mix} are also excellent holiday dessert choices during this festive time!

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How To Make Cranberry Bread Recipe From Scratch?

1. Mix together sugar, orange zest, vanilla extract, flour and baking powder- Until roughly combined.
2. Separately, mix together eggs, butter, buttermilk, orange juice- And mix until smooth.
3. Dump the wet mixture into dry wet mixture- And mix until just combined.
4. Add cranberries- Gently stir them in.
5. Spread batter- In loaf pan.
6. Bake- until bread is cooked through.
7. Make orange glaze- By mixing together powdered sugar, orange juice, and orange zest.
8. Transfer bread- To a serving dish.
9. Drizzle glaze over the warm bread- And let it set.
10. Enjoy- Cut slices and dig in!

Storage

Refrigerate- In a sealed container for up to 3 days.

Freeze- Wrap well and store in a freezer safe bag or container for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature for an hour or in the fridge overnight.

Variations For Cranberry Orange Bread

Cranberry nut bread/ Cranberry walnut bread- Mix in chopped nuts such as walnuts, pecans, or almonds.

Pumpkin cranberry bread- Add pumpkin puree to the batter for even more flavor.

Add lemon juice and lemon zest- This adds another layer of tartness that balances the cranberry and sugar well.

Try other toppings- Such as Lemon Buttercream Frosting, Cream Cheese Frosting, or Homemade Whipped Cream.

Add fillings- Cut the bread in half and add fillings like Lemon Curd or whipped cream or even jams and preserves. Pie fillings are a great choice too because they are usually so thick. Try this Raspberry pie filling.

Try adding other dried fruits– Such as roughly chopped raisins, apricots, mangoes, apples and so much more.

Add shredded coconut– That gives these the bread even more texture and a tropical flavor.

Try other extracts- Like almond, caramel, or cinnamon.

Addherbs– Mix in crushed dried herbs such as rosemary, lavender, or rose.

Consider adding mini chocolate chips- Such as milk chocolate, semi-sweet, dark, or white chocolate chips.

Tips And Techniques

Fresh cranberries vs. Frozen cranberries- Fresh will always be the best option. Frozen cranberries releases a lot of water during baking and that creates an odd texture.

Can I use dried cranberries instead of fresh cranberries? Yes, you can. The bread will just have a chewy texture from the dried fruit instead.

How do I know when the bread is done? It's done when an inserted toothpick in the center comes out clean.

The top is browning, what do I do? If the top starts to brown too quickly, you can cover the bread with aluminum foil paper in the final 10 minutes.

Adjust flavors- Add more or less extract and zest, according to your preference.

Don’t over-bake-This will make the bread very dry and crumbly.

Grease and flour pan– Because this prevents the bread from sticking to the pan. You can line the pan with parchment paper instead of greasing it, if you prefer that method.

Don't over-mix- Because that makes the bread very gummy and dense.

Use unsalted butter- Because it prevents the bread from becoming too salty.

Homemade buttermilk substitute - Mix together 1 cup whole milk with 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice. Let it sit for 5 minutes. Stir and then, use it in this recipe.

More Cranberry Desserts

• Cranberry Pie {No Bake}
• Cranberry Orange Cookies {Shortbread}
• Cranberry Orange Scones {With Orange Glaze}
• White Chocolate Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
• Coconut Cranberry Cake {With Cake Mix}
• Apple Cranberry Crisp {Cranberry Crumble}