This cranberry orange bread with glaze is a tender loaf, just like my banana bread. It's loaded with cranberries and has the perfect balance of sweet and tangy in every bite. It is topped with a sweet orange glaze that sets it over the top!
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🍞A sweet bread for the holidays
Any recipes with cranberries in it, like my cranberry pecan upside down cake, is perfect for the holidays, since fresh cranberries are only available from about October to December.
This recipe can be made at any time of the year though, if you use frozen cranberries. I used frozen ones for this recipe. I couldn't find any fresh cranberries in the store! The only difference to using frozen cranberries, is that you have to let them thaw before starting this recipe. No biggie!
🥘Ingredients
Ingredient notes
- Cranberries - can use fresh or frozen
- Orange zest - make sure you zest the orange before juicing it. If you juice it first, the orange will not be very easy to zest.
🔪Instructions
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt.
In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar together for 2-3 minutes. Beat in eggs until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl when needed.
Mix in orange juice and zest, milk, and vanilla extract. Add flour and stir until just combined.
Toss cranberries with ½ tablespoon flour. Reserve about 10 cranberries, and then fold the rest into the batter. Spread the batter into a 9x5 inch loaf pan and dot the top with the reserved cranberries. Bake for 50-55 minutes at 350°F.
Make the glaze by stirring icing sugar and orange juice together. It should have a slow drizzling consistency. Add more orange juice to thin it out, or more icing sugar to thicken it.
For more step-by-step instructions, view my web story for this recipe!
✔️Expert Tips
- Want to switch out the cranberries? Use blueberries instead.
- Only mix the batter until it is just combined. Overmixed batter would result in a too dense bread.
- Too get more juice out of the orange (this works with lemons too!), roll it under your palm on the countertop, lightly pressing down. The juices will loosen.
- If the top of the bread is browning too quickly, tent it with aluminum foil.
- If you want a vanilla glaze, substitute water for orange juice.
💭Recipe FAQs
Yes, frozen can be substituted for fresh cranberries. Just make sure to thaw them before starting this recipe.
You can fold in ½ cup of pecans or walnuts to this, when folding in the cranberries.
This bread can be stored at room temperature for 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
This bread can freeze as a whole loaf for up to 3 months. Wrap it in plastic wrap and then a layer of aluminum foil before freezing.
Individual slices can also be frozen. Store them in a freezer bag or container for up to 3 months.
Thaw frozen bread by leaving it in the refrigerator overnight.
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📋 Recipe
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Cranberry Orange Bread with Glaze
Ingredients
Cranberry Orange Bread
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour + ½ tablespoon more for dusting the cranberries
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 tablespoon orange juice room temperature
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- ½ cup whole milk room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups cranberries fresh or frozen
Orange Glaze
- 1 cup icing sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons orange juice
Instructions
Cranberry Orange Bread
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan and dust it with flour. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt together.
- In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar together for 2-3 minutes. Add eggs and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl when needed.
- Mix in orange zest and juice, milk, and vanilla extract. Mix in dry ingredients until just combined.
- Toss cranberries wit ½ tablespoon flour. Reserve about 10 cranberries and fold in the rest into the batter. Spread into the prepared loaf pan and dot the top with the reserved cranberries.
- Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. If it is browning too quickly, tent the bread with aluminum foil. Let it cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of the pan to release the bread, and then turn it out of it's pan. Let in cool completely on a wire rack before adding the glaze.
Orange Glaze
- In a small bowl, stir icing sugar and orange juice together until it is drizzling consistency. Add more icing sugar if it is too thin, or more orange juice to thin it out.
- Drizzle, or spread it on the cooled bread. This bread will keep at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Did you try this recipe? Comment below to let me know ☺️