Orange Cranberry Bread

This year has been a very long, strange year.  It started out with the Corona Virus Pandemic. Because of the pandemic, everyone has been advised to stay home as much as possible. We all wear masks when we have to go out, hoping to reduce the spread of this disease.  For several months, Allan worked from home. He had a lot of Zoom meetings and functioned quite well. He returned to the office in September. Church was canceled and we were told that we could hold our own meetings at home. Later in the year, they started having meetings again, allowing  only groups of under 100 to gather. Others are allowed to join the meetings through Zoom.  In June, I was diagnosed with Endometrial Cancer and had a Hysterectomy. I didn't require any further treatment, but my doctor said I have a compromised immune system, so we are opting to attend Church through Zoom. Having Allan working from home was a huge blessing when I had my surgery. In November, there was a huge spike in cases and deaths from the pandemic, and government leaders suggested that all holiday celebrations be limited to only household members. We have tried to comply with those recommendations, however, we did visit with each of our local kids' families for Christmas and deliver gifts to them. It was a welcome change to visit with each of them.

Normally, sometime during the holidays, we have a big breakfast, with whatever family can come. We serve quiche, hash browns, various types of bread (including orange rolls, poppyseed bread, banana bread, and cinnamon rolls). This year I found this recipe for Orange Cranberry Bread. It is moist and delicious. Allan says it reminds him of Orange Rolls, but it is more dense and crumbly. Because of the pandemic, we didn’t have it this year. It will definitely be added to any future holiday breakfast menu.

ORANGE CRANBERRY BREAD

Ingredients 

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking powder

1 cup sugar

zest of 3 large oranges

3/4 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup oil

2 eggs

1 Tbsp. orange juice fresh

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup fresh cranberries chopped or halved

Flour to coat cranberries (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a loaf pan with parchment or grease it well.
2. Combine flour, salt, baking powder and sugar in a bowl. Set aside.
   In a large bowl, whisk together orange zest, buttermilk, oil, eggs, orange juice and vanilla. 
3. Lightly shake cranberries in 2 tablespoons of flour. This is optional. But cranberries will naturally float to the top of the bread batter. Dredging them in flour will help keep them evenly dispersed throughout the bread.
4. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet and gently fold together. Just before it's combined, add in cranberries and stir JUST until combined. 
5. Pour into prepared pan and bake for about an hour, or until an inserted knife comes out clean. 
   

Orange Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

1-2 Tbsp. fresh orange juice

 

-Slowly add in orange juice to powdered sugar and whisk.  Only add as much juice as needed to get a thick but pourable consistency. 

-Let glaze dry before wrapping the bread.