Makes 2 loaves
My sister Diana is the queen of the quick bread. She brings them to every gathering, always slicing and serving them up with a smile. A few other things about Diana: She is a mother of 3, has her PhD from an Ivy League university and is a professor in the medical school at Brown University. HOW DOES SHE DO IT? Well, she bakes more than one bread at a time, which is why this recipe makes 2 loaves. Eat one, freeze one—that’s her trick. Few things stand the test of time in a freezer like a quick bread, and defrosting one in a PINCH automatically makes you the best mom ever.
Diana shared some of her best quick bread recipes with me to play with, and this is one of my favorites. I made a few adjustments, only to make it a bit easier and align with a few classic Grossy baking traditions. One bowl, wooden spoon, easy-peasy!
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Cranberry Walnut Bread
What You’ll Need
- 4 cups all-purpose flour*
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons orange zest
- 1 1/2 cups orange juice (freshly squeezed)
- 4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
- 2 beaten eggs
- 12 oz fresh cranberries** lightly chopped (save a few whole for the top of bread)
- 1 – 1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts (depends on how much you like walnuts, love!)
What You’ll Do
- Preheat oven to 350º.
- In a medium bowl, combine 4 cups all-purpose flour*, 2 cups granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 3 teaspoons baking powder, and 2 teaspoons salt using a wooden spoon.
- Add 2 tablespoons orange zest, 1 ½ cups orange juice, 4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, and 2 beaten eggs to bowl, stirring with wooden spoon to combine.
- Add 12 oz (about 3 cups) chopped cranberries and however many chopped walnuts make you happy to the bowl, and stir until they are distributed into the batter.
- Grab two loaf pans and spray each with baking spray. Line each pan with a sheet of parchment that is cut to the width of the long side of your pan. Leave extra flaps of parchment over the long side of the pans. These will be handles that make getting the bread out of the pan a cinch!
- Place half of your batter in one pan and half in the other. Spread batter evenly in pans. I toss a few whole cranberries on top just to make the bread as dramatic as possible! Place in oven for 45-55 minutes, or until a knife comes cleanly out of the bread.
- Do you have an oven thermometer? You need one!
- Remove fully baked bread from oven and let it cool on a rack in the pan. When cooled enough, use the parchment handles to remove bread from pan.
- Slice and serve with butter, cream cheese, or anything in your dreams!
Enjoy!
This recipe makes two loaves, and that’s mostly so I can freeze one for later. If you only need one loaf, use simple math to get those measurements. Quick breads like this one are the perfect thing to freeze. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze until needed, then defrost and revel in how glad you are you had a frozen cranberry bread in your freezer!
*Gluten free All-Purpose 1:1 flour can be used.
** Frozen cranberries also work! Just defrost them and drain liquid before adding to batter.
Make It Step By Step With Me:
1. Grab yourself a bowl my dear! Also preheat your oven to 350º.
2. In a medium bowl, add 4 cups all-purpose flour*, 2 cups granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 3 teaspoons baking powder, and 2 teaspoons salt.
3. Combine with a wooden spoon.
4. Add 2 tablespoons orange zest, 1 ½ cups orange juice, 4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, and 2 beaten eggs to bowl.
5. Stir with wooden spoon to combine.
6. Add 12 oz (about 3 cups) chopped cranberries, and however many chopped walnuts make you happy to the bowl.
7. Stir until they are distributed into the batter.
8. Grab two loaf pans, spray them with baking spray. Line each pan with a sheet of parchment that is cut to the width of the long side of your pan. Leave extra flaps of parchment over the long side of the pans. These will be handles that make getting the bread out of the pan a cinch!
9. Place half of your batter in one pan and half in the other. Spread batter evenly in pans. I toss a few whole cranberries on top just to make the bread is as dramatic as possible! Place in oven for 45-55 minutes, or until a knife comes cleanly out of the bread.
10. Remove fully baked bread from oven and let it cool on a rack in the pan. When cooled enough, use the parchment handles to remove bread from pan.
11. Slice and serve with butter, cream cheese, or anything in your dreams!
Enjoy!
