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My favorite bread of the holiday season is this Cranberry Orange Bread recipe bursting with fresh cranberries and orange. It's sweet, tangy, and topped with a delicious orange glaze.
Cranberry Orange Bread: My Holiday Obsession
Cranberry Orange Bread: My Holiday ObsessionThere isn't a year that goes by without making fresh Cranberry Orange Bread, especially because this recipe makes 2 loaves, perfect for gifting to a neighbor (or freezing for another day).
And if you love the cranberry and orange combo you should definitely check out my Cranberry Orange Muffins and Cranberry Orange Scones, too. Or, some of my other quick bread recipes, like Carrot Cake Loaf, Lemon Poppy Seed Bread, or Banana Bread.
How to make Cranberry Orange Bread:
Combine: Stir sugar and orange zest together then mix in flour, salt, and baking powder. In another bowl, mix buttermilk, oil, eggs, orange juice, and vanilla. Slowly pour the wet ingredients in the flour mixture, mixing until combined. Slice each cranberry in half and gently fold into the batter.
Bake: Pour batter into loaf pans and bake at 350°F for 60-75 minutes. For mini loaves, adjust baking time to 35-45 minutes. Drizzle glaze over cooled bread.
Storing and Freezing Instructions
Store leftovers cranberry orange bread wrapped in plastic wrap or in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
To Freeze: Let the cranberry bread cool completely then transfer to a freezer safe bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
More Holiday Recipes:
- Hot Cocoa Cookies
- Turtle Cookies
- Orange Olive Oil Cake
- Peppermint Sandwich Cookies
- Cranberry Fluff Salad
- Gingerbread Cake
- Peppermint Brownies
- Pepper Jelly
Cranberry Orange Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- orange zest, , from 2 large oranges
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 1 cup oil, (vegetable or canola oil)
- 4 large eggs, slightly beaten
- 2 Tablespoons orange juice, , fresh
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups fresh cranberries, halved
Orange Glaze (optional):
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 Tablespoons fresh squeezed orange juice
- 1 1/2 teaspoons orange zest
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray two 9×5 loaf pans with cooking spray and set aside.
- Dry ingredients: In a large bowl add sugar and orange zest and stir well to combine. Add flour, salt, and baking powder and stir. Set aside.
- Wet Ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, orange juice, and vanilla.
- Combine: Slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring just until combined. Fold in the halved cranberries. Pour batter into prepared pans.
- Bake: For regular loaf pans, bake for 60-75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. For mini loaves, bake for 35-45 minutes. If your loaf starts to get too brown during cooking, place a piece of aluminum foil over the top to finish baking.
- Cool: Remove from oven and set on a cooling rack for 10 minutes. Loosen the sides of the bread with a knife. Carefully remove loaf from pan. Let cool completely on wire rack.
- Glaze: While the bread is cooling, make the orange glaze. In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, orange juice, and orange zest. Whisk until smooth. Drizzle the glaze over the bread. Cut and serve. Wrap bread well and store for 2-3 days at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Recipe adapted from Two Peas and their Pod.
I originally shared this recipe November 2015. Updated November 2019, November 2023 and November 2024.
Made this cranberry-orange loaf and it was delicious! Shared it with a neighbor and it’s their favorite loaf now too!
Thank you for this delicious recipe!
made these 2 loaves to gift the VA cancer ctr where i’ll go tomorrow for my infusion. to me theyre 1st responders so usually make a bundt for the entire office, but thought this way i’d give the front and the nurses their cake! they turned lovely, halving the berries was a mess so rolled them in some flour before folding them in.
tonight i made the glaze and it was so sick added maybe 4-5 T of OJ b4 it was the right consistence! I’ll ask for a small bite tomorrow so i can rate it, but give you 3 stars now just 4 appearance. thx so much, 🙂 Kelli
JUST TOOK 2 LOAVES OUTTA MY OVEN AND THEY LOOK/SMELL LOVELY. I BAKE FOR 1ST RESPONDERS AND THESE WILL GO TO VA CANCER SPECIALISTS WHERE I’LL GO THUR FOR MY INFUSION; I USUALLY BAKE A BUNDT, BUT DECIDED TO GO WITH 2 LOAFS, 1 FOR EACH SIDE OF THE OFFICE!
ILL TRY AND GET A TASTE WHILE I’M THERE, HAVE BAKED AN ORANGE CRANBERRY BUNDT BEFORE BUT WASN’T IMPRESSED!
DID ADD SOME FLOUR AROUND THE BERRIES, BUT THE RECIPE WAS A BIT CHALLENGING! THX SO MUCH:) KELLI
I tried this recipe and it was amazing! I love the combination of the tart cranberries and the sweet orange glaze. Plus, it was super easy to make which is always a plus in my books.
How would you change baking time for an 8×4 loaf pan? I’m making 6 as gifts and the store was all out of mini loaf pans!
I like it
This recipe is so yummy! I decided on a whim to make 8 mini loaves for my neighbors for Christmas, although I had never made this recipe before. Everyone commented how beautiful AND delicious it was! I doubled the recipe and it was perfect for the 8 mini loaves. Mine needed about 55 mins in the oven. I am going to start making this a yearly gift for neighbors, essential workers, etc!
Made this recipe twice – cranberries all float to the top. Can’t remove from pan – tried both nonstick spray and butter/flour. Decreased milk and added more orange juice to increase the orange flavor (kept liquid quantities the same)
If I remember right , my mother chopped her cranberries a little, maybe that could be the reason they float, I am going to make this for the first time also and I am going to chop my a little.
Coat the cranberries in flour, prevents them from sinking!
Try coating the cranberries with a light dusting of flour before adding them to the batter.
This recipe was so tasty and came out great. I did however find that the cranberries all floated to the top and are not evenly distributed. How can I prevent that in the future?
roll the cranberries in flour so they are evenly dusted with a light coat and then add them in to the wet mix.
This was my first cranberry bread. I made yesterday and was really happy with this recipe. The combination of the tartness of the cranberries and the sweetness of the frosting was delicious. Bread came out of the oven soft and moist. Advised from other reviewers, I dust the cranberries with flour which helped to have the cranberries evenly all over the bread. I will keep this recipe as one of my faves. Thank you very much for this awesome recipe.
The bread came out perfectly. The recipe was very easy to follow. The texture was very good, fluffy not gooey as some breads turn out. The cranberries balanced the sweetness. It’s a perfect bread for breakfast or afternoon snack. My husband loves it!
Came out perfect! I coated the cranberries in flour as was suggested in a comment and they stayed evenly suspended in the loaf during baking. Perfect sweetness, many times sweetbreads are too sweet but this was just right with the tang of the cranberries. Nice hint of orange also as I have had some where the orange takes over the flavor but this was well balanced. Thank you for a great recipe!