Orange-glazed Cranberry bread has a moist and tender crumb and is loaded with juicy cranberries. It has the perfect balance of sweet and tangy and just like our famous Banana Bread, this loaf stays moist for a few days (in case you needed a homemade Christmas gift idea).
This is a copycat version of my favorite bakery’s cranberry loaf and this one turned out even better – more cranberries and the orange glaze makes it truly special. You’ll love every bite.
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We love cranberry recipes during the holidays like Sugared Cranberries, Cranberry Bundt Cake, and of course this Cranberry Bread recipe. If you love tangy and juicy cranberries, this recipe is a must-try!
Cranberry Bread Video Tutorial
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Ingredients for Cranberry Orange Bread
- Flour – use all-purpose to give the bread structure
- Baking powder – leavening to make the loaf rise
- Salt – balances the sweetness
- Milk – best at room temperature
- Orange zest and juice – be sure to zest the orange before juicing it. Reserve a teaspoon of zest for the glaze.
- Butter – Adds moisture to the loaf. Use unsalted butter softened at room temperature.
- Sugar – to balance the tanginess of the cranberries
- Eggs – give the bread a moist, tender crumb
- Cranberries – rinsed and dried then tossed in 1/2 Tbsp of flour to keep them from sinking in the batter (see substitution options in common questions section)
How to Make Cranberry Bread
- Whisk dry ingredients – whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
- Combine wet ingredients – in a measuring cup, stir together milk, orange juice and zest.
- Cream butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl then beat in eggs until well combined.
- Combine batter – Add flour mixture in 2 additions, alternating with the milk mixture, mixing just until combined.
- Flour cranberries – rinse and dry cranberries then toss them with 1/2 Tbsp flour to coat. Fold in cranberries just until incorporated. Spread batter into buttered and floured 8.5×4.5 bread pan.
- Bake the bread for 45-50 minutes until golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Pro Tip: Tossing cranberries in a little flour coats them lightly and prevents them from sinking to the bottom of the loaf as it bakes. This ensures cranberries are evenly disbursed in the finished loaf.
The Best Glaze for Cranberry Bread
Orange and cranberry are complimentarily flavored just like peanut butter and jelly. Topping the cranberry bread with orange juice and the orange zest-infused glaze makes this bread irresistible. I’m not sure if it’s breakfast or dessert but I’ve served it both ways. All you need for this easy 3-ingredient glaze is:
- Powdered sugar – I spoon it into the cup and level the top for a consistent measure.
- Orange juice – Freshly squeezed is best and don’t worry about straining. A little pulp won’t hurt the bread.
- Orange zest – do not skip the zest. It adds deep orange floral notes to the glaze.
Common Questions
Yes, you can use frozen cranberries in the same quantity and add them frozen (do not thaw). You may need to bake just a few minutes longer or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
You can substitute with 2/3 cup dried cranberries and reduce the sugar in the recipe to 2/3 cup since dried cranberries aren’t as tart. The dried cranberries will be juicer if you soak them in very warm water for 10 minutes then drain and pat dry before using.
You can make this a cranberry nut bread by folding in 1/2 cup of coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans when adding the cranberries to the batter.
This sweet bread is total comfort food. All you need is a mug of tea or coffee to go with a thick, fresh slice of cranberry bread.
Make-Ahead
- Room Temperature – wrap cranberry bread loosely in plastic wrap or store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Refrigerate – you can cover and store the loaf in the refrigerator for up to a week.
- Freezing – cool the loaf completely to room temperature then place in a freezer-safe zip bag, removing any excess air. Freeze up to three months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving.
Pro Tip: Cranberries are only available for a season in grocery stores so buy extra and store them in the freezer so you can keep enjoying this cranberry bread year-round.
More Cranberry Recipes
These are our best cranberry recipes using both fresh and dried cranberries.
- Cranberry Sauce
- Sparkling Cranberry Pineapple Punch
- Cranberry Orange Scones
- Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Cranberries
- Cranberry Apple Danish
Cranberry Bread with Orange Glaze
Ingredients
Cranberry Bread Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup milk, room temperature
- Zest of 1 large orange, divided
- 1/4 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed
- 6 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries, rinsed and patted dry
- 1/2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
Orange Glaze Ingredients:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 Tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice, or to reach desired consistency
- 1 tsp orange zest, reserved from the orange above
Instructions
How to Make Cranberry Orange Bread:
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350˚F. Butter a 6 cup (8 1/2 by 4 1/2 bread loaf pan)* then dust with flour, tapping out the excess flour.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together: flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a measuring cup, combine together milk, zest of 1 orange (Reserve 1 tsp zest for the glaze), and orange juice. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and granulated sugar on medium/high speed (2-3 minutes on high speed). It won’t be smooth, just combined. Beat in 2 large eggs, mixing until well incorporated.
- Add flour mixture in 2 parts, alternating with the milk mixture and mixing on medium/low speed just until incorporated with each addition. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
- Toss cranberries with 1/2 Tbsp flour then fold them into the batter just until incorporated. Spread the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 45-50 min at 350˚F until golden on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in pan 10-15 minutes then run a cake release tool or knife around the edges and transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool completely before glazing.
To Make the Glaze:
- In a separate bowl, stir together powdered sugar, orange juice and reserved teaspoon of zest. Stir until smooth. It should have a drizzling consistency. Add more orange juice to thin it out or powdered sugar to make it thicker.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Can you make these as mini muffins? How long and at what temperature should they bake?
Hi Louise! I think you could but you’d have to experiment with it. If you do bake them, watch them closely to ensure they don’t over bake.
Hi Natasha, I can’t have citrus so some recipes call for oranges or juices or pineapples or juices so I have been just not adding it to my recipes but this is what I deal with in baking and cooking, by tge way love your recipes.
That should be alright, thanks for sharing and I hope you’ll love the recipes that you will try!
I enjoy your recipes but I enjoy more when u show a video with it Thank you
Thanks for the feedback, Reyna. Some of our recipes are only written but hopefully, we can do more videos in the future.
Can i use dried cranberries intead of fresh? We don’t have fresh cranberries in our place.
Thanks for your reply.
Hi Emma, yes you can. Please check this part of the recipe “Can I Substitute Dried Cranberries” for more tips.
Can you frozen concentrated juice? So far this year the oranges I bought aren’t very juicy and no flavor
I haven’t tested that but I think that’s alright.
I’m allergic to cranberries are their any other fruits I could use?
Hi Anna, I haven’t tested that but one of the readers shared this comment “Great recipe! I didn’t have cranberries and oranges but I did have strawberries and lemons, so I made some quick substitutions and turned it into a lemon strawberry loaf cake. Absolutely delicious and a big hit with my husband. Thank you!” I hope that helps.
I made this Cranberry Loaf quite a few times last year (as presents, till the stores ran out of cranberries). Absolutely wonderful.
Glad you like this recipe, Sue! Thanks for the review.
This cranberry orange bread is life changing! The perfect combination of tart and sweet. Absolutely delicious!
So glad you liked it, Lynne! Thank you for the review.
I made this amazing recipe last year around the Holidays for self indulgence and as gifts. It was so tasty and got rave reviews!!! To my surprise I had not added your recipe to my “Holiday Baking” file last year so I hoped to find it again and I have!!! Awesome…so delicious!
Thank you for sharing with us, Tammy! I’m so glad you loved it. It makes a perfect gift. 🙂
I have made many Orange Cranberry loaves and this is by far the best. Thank you so much for the recipe. I made it exactly as posted today served it for friends and will make another one tomorrow for ourselves. A beautiful loaf for a gift. 🤗
You’re very welcome! So glad you love this recipe. It makes a wonderful gift!
Has anyone made this recipe in the mini loaf pans? temp? time?
thanks
Hi Sharon, I’ve tried minis also and they turn out so cute. It was just a test though and I didn’t record how long it took, I wish I did. If you do bake, watch it closely to ensure they don’t over bake.
I have made this recipe several times. It is really exceptional!
In the past I had always let the cranberries defrost. This time I forgot to set them out…no problem, Natasha says frozen work fine. Ultimately they did BUT…the frozen berries stiffened the batter so much it was difficult to to get into the mini loaf pans. Just a heads up.
End result was the same and well worth the struggle!
Thanks for your comments and feedback. Make sure you use frozen berries and not thawed ones. You may also need to bake it a few minutes longer.
I made this bread today.
It’s so delicious!! I don’t have that bread loaf pan so I used my 8×8 baking dish plus small rounded one. It came out just perfect!
I made one addition to it, chopped walnuts. The glaze is also very tasty and the whole bread smells so good! I share it our neighbors and got thumbs up from them too.
Thank you Natasha!!!!
Yay, that’s wonderful feedback! Thank you for sharing that with us.
It’s no longer 5-7 dollars to make! UNLESS you already have everything at home. Great recipe but I increased the cranberries to 2 cups (chopped) and added 1/2 cup chopped pecans. Good stuff!!!!
Bread was wonderful! I like the tangy with the sweet. Will be making again.
Thank you 🙂
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Crystlal!
I have to say, this blog is exceptional. I have been a food writer for 22 years and Natasha’s Kitchen is outstanding! She never steers me wrong. The cranberry loaf was gorgeous! Perfectly cranberry & citrus forward with a moist subtly sweet cake base. The glaze tied it all together with the orange zest throughout! Can’t wait to try the next recipe! Awesome!
I’m so happy you love our recipes, Jen! Thank you so much for the fantastic review and your encouraging words. I am smiling big reading your comment
Hello Natasha,
I have made many cranberry bread recipes and I love all your recipes the best. Can I make this bread with pastry flour? I use pastry flour for all of my baking and I have not tried any breads with pastry flour.
Hi Ellen! So glad you love my recipe. I have not tested pastry flour to advise on instructions or to know what the outcome would be like. Let us know if you experiment with it.
I made your cranberry bread today.
I used pastry flour and followed the recipe exactly. It turned out wonderful. This is a keeper for sure. Thank you Natasha.
That’s wonderful, Ellen! Thank you for sharing.
I live above 5000′ and and I would like to know Is there anything else I need to do to to make sure this is the moistest banana bread I’ve ever eaten I’m going to do the cranberry Orange?
Hi Celie, I don’t have experience with high-altitude baking but you can find more tips on High Altitude Baking HERE. I hope this helps and it all works out well for you!
I watch heaps of your recipes on YouTube. I wasn’t aware about this detailed section, but you made me aware of it when I had a question about the cranberries on this recipe . So thanks Natasha for that. And thanks for all your recipes, all the ones I’d made so far have been a success, I will be making this loaf over the weekend, and I already know it’ll be best. Thanks, ma’am.
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it & I’m so glad you found my videos and blog!
An I bake these as muffins? Same temperature and cook time? Love your recipes.
Hi Sandy, I have not tested this but I think it could work. You may also like my blueberry lemon glaze muffins.
Can I use dried cranberries for this cran/orange bread? If so then how much?
Hi Margaret, yes you can. Please check this section in this recipe “Can I Substitute Dried Cranberries?” as I have provided some tips. I hope that helps!