Cranberry Orange Christmas Bread

I do not even know how to begin this blog post except with the phrase "Oh. My, Word." Something absolutely amazing has happened and it has left me searching for words to describe it. Everything I have come up with just doesn't portray how delicious the following recipe turned out. 

This is the story of Cranberry Orange Christmas Bread. It all started last week when I baked Christy's Cooking Creations Cranberry Apple Cider Bread with my kindergarten class. It was a special Thanksgiving treat. As the loaves baked, the scents of cranberry and apple cider floated into the hallways. Teachers continuously stopped by and to ask, "What are you baking today?" The teachers casually dropped hints of where I should put any leftovers.

Back home, I wanted to bake Cranberry Apple Cider Bread for Husband. Except while gathering the materials, I realized I was missing one major key ingredient...apple cider! One item I did have on hand? Oranges! Remembering from my childhood my mom's yummy, sticky cranberry orange muffins, I knew I wanted to try Cranberry Orange Christmas Bread. 

Ingredients for the bread:

- 1 1/2 cups of flour

-1 tsp. ground cloves

-1 tsp. baking soda

-1/2 tsp. baking powder

-1/2 tsp. salt

-1 cup cranberries, fresh

-1/2 cup orange juice, fresh squeezed

-zest of one orange

-1/2 cup brown sugar

-1/4 cup oil

-1/4 cup sour cream

-2 eggs

-1/4 tsp. vanilla

Ingredients for the glaze:

-1 cup powdered sugar

-1 T. orange juice, fresh squeezed

In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and ground cloves. Set aside.

Zest one orange into a larger mixing bowl. (Star Wars pajama pants again?!) 

Add to the zest 1/2 cup of fresh orange juice. I just juiced the orange I zested and reserved 1 tablespoon for the glaze. I'm sure store bought orange juice would work just fine if you do not own a juicer. 

Whisk together the orange zest, orange juice, eggs, sour cream, oil, vanilla, and brown sugar. 

Stir the flour mixture into the wet bowl. Stop stirring once the mixture is just combined. 

Fold the cranberries into the mixture. I had a few extra cranberries left over so I threw those inside as well. You can't go wrong with too many cranberries!

Grease a bread pan with cooking spray or butter. I used butter and had to really jimmy the bread out of the pan once it baked. 

Bake the bread for 40 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Check the bread 30 minutes in to make sure it does not over cook. I accidentally had the temperature too hot and almost over cooked the bread but caught the mistake with minutes to spare. The bread should bake evenly at 350 without any problems. Let the bread cool in the pan for about 1 hour. 

After the bread has cooled, remove it from the pan and put it onto a serving platter. Stir together the powdered sugar and orange juice. If needed, add a splash of milk to create the right consistency. Gently drizzle the glaze over the top of the bread. 

I set the bread as the centerpiece onto a simple white platter. On the left side I placed sliced oranges and on the right cranberry compote. Cut pine branches were used as filler to compliment the red cranberries. On top of the glaze,I garnished the loaf with a cut piece of orange and two cranberries. The entire presentation setup took about 10 minutes and is quick enough for Christmas morning. 

If you try out this recipe for Cranberry Orange Christmas Bread, I promise you will not be disappointed. It just might even end up on your Christmas morning breakfast menu! 

Are you planning a special Christmas morning breakfast?

If so, what is on your Christmas morning menu?

If you are looking for an easy meal idea for the end of the week, make sure to check out Slow Cooker Taco Soup. 

Did you catch yesterday's recap of our day trip to Rothenberg o.b. Tauber, Germany? We spent Saturday touring the medieval city and Christmas market!

Happy Wednesday,