Cranberry Nut Bread

This Cranberry Nut Bread took me several iterations. I really like the results (finally), but I may continue to try and improve it. I am submitting this recipe to the Christmas Baking for the Holidays Gluten-Free Blog Event. Kate at Gluten Free Gobsmacked started this event and the Christmas round-up will be hosted by Sally at Aprovechar.

A few baking reminders:

• Do not overcook your baked goods- the following quick bread recipe will cook in a shorter amount of time than gluten quick breads.

• Make sure your baking powder is fresh for the holidays! If you have had your baking powder for more than six months throw it out.

• The bread should be wrapped very well or it will dry out. Once the bread has cooled, slice and freeze what you don’t think you will use.

• Sift your dry ingredients well. I always sift my gluten free flour together to make sure I don’t get pockets of one flour. I invested in a sifter for this purpose.

• Measure your flour(s) exactly.

CRANBERRY NUT BREAD

2 cups gluten free flour (I used even amounts of sorghum, tapioca, and brown rice. I did not like teff flour in this bread for some reason- maybe it is just me!)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 Tablespoon orange zest (when I mix it in the flour I make sure it looks evenly distributed and add more if I need it)

3/4 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed (store-bought will not achieve the right flavor)

1/4 cup butter or butter substitute, melted

2 eggs (I found that the bread held together better with two eggs)

1 cup whole cranberries (I tried the bread with both the cranberries whole and sliced in half and liked the cranberries added to the bread whole best)

3/4 cup- 1 cup walnuts chopped- (I added 3/4 to the batter and another 1/4 cup to the top of the bread before I put it in the oven)

a little raw sugar for the top

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a med. bowl, sift all the dry ingredients together. Mix all the liquid ingredients together in a separate bowl. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just moistened. Add the whole cranberries and 3/4 cup of chopped walnuts. Spoon the batter into a greased loaf pan (top with raw sugar and more walnuts if desired) and bake for about 45 minutes. Once the bread is done, let it cool for 10 minutes in the pan before releasing to your cooling rack.

Note: I tried this bread both warm and the next day at breakfast. The flavors of this bread are truly better the next day. I would make it late the night before you want to eat it. Just make sure it is tightly wrapped! Freeze the rest for unexpected company or for a treat to take to Christmas parties.

Credit for this recipe:

Gluten Free By the Bay has a recipe for Cranberry bread that I found when I was FRUSTRATED with making this bread. I relied on that recipe, my mom’s traditional cranberry nut bread recipe, and Elise’s Cranberry Nut Bread recipe to finally get the bread the way I wanted it. My mom’s recipe is almost identical to Elise’s on Simply Recipes- the only difference was the sugar content. When I made the gluten free version of this bread, the recipe needed 2 eggs. Their original cranberry bread recipes called for just one.

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Posted on December 1st, 2007 by Natalie
Filed under: Quick Bread Recipes

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