Julie Clark
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Cranberry Pecan Bread
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Enjoy the holiday season with this delightful Cranberry Pecan Bread recipe. A perfect blend of dried cranberries and pecans in a moist quick bread, topped with white chocolate glaze. Ideal for Christmas breakfast, brunch, or as a thoughtful hostess gift.
As the holiday season rolls in, there’s nothing quite like the aroma of freshly baked Cranberry Pecan Bread wafting through the kitchen. This Cranberry Pecan Loaf, with dried cranberries and crunchy pecans, is the perfect holiday comfort food.
Whether you’re pairing it with a warm cup of coffee on Christmas morning, having an afternoon snack or serving it as a delicious dessert, this easy quick bread is a great recipe that promises to be a festive treat. Perfect for holiday gatherings, this bread doubles as a thoughtful, homemade hostess gift any time of year.
About this Cranberry Pecan Bread Recipe:
- Flavor: This cranberry nut bread has a simple flavor. It’s not overly tart since it uses dried cranberries rather than fresh cranberries. The bread itself isn’t very sweet, but the white chocolate bread adds flavor to every bite.
- Texture: This bread is a dense bread kept moist by buttermilk and butter. The cranberries and toasty pecans add texture.
- Method: My favorite pan for quick breads is the 8 1/2″x4 1/2″ loaf pan. The loaves come out beautifully, every time.
Ingredients
This is a straightforward quick bread recipe with simple ingredients:
Pro Tip
This recipe calls for buttermilk, which for one, just gives the bread more of an old-fashioned taste. Plus it makes the bread lighter and more moist.
If you don’t keep buttermilk on hand, here’s how you can make your own buttermilk. Take a 1-cup measuring cup and put a tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice in the bottom. Then fill the rest of the cup with milk. I prefer using whole milk in baking and when making buttermilk to get the best flavor.
How to Make Cranberry Pecan Bread
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 8 1/2″x4 1/2″ loaf pan with cooking spray. Line with a piece of parchment paper for easier removal and best results.
- In a small bowl, thoroughly stir together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set the dry ingredients aside.
- In a separate large bowl, use an electric hand mixer to mix together the sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, folding gently with a rubber spatula. Mix just until blended after each addition and do not over mix the batter.
- Fold in the pecans and cranberries. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes on the center rack, or until the top of the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
For the white chocolate glaze, place the white chocolate chips and heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave the chips for 20 seconds. Stir, then microwave for another 20 seconds.
As soon as the chips start melting, start microwaving for 10 or even 5 second intervals. Melt the chocolate slowly so that it doesn’t burn.
Be careful not to let it get too hot or it will burn. Be patient and stir between each time interval. You will end up with very thick, melted white chocolate. Spoon or drizzle this on top of the bread.
Storage Instructions
- Store the bread in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- This delicious quick bread freezes well, too. Wrap in plastic wrap, then place in another container and freeze for up to 6 weeks.
- Thaw the bread at room temperature, then serve.
Looking for a quick bread with tart fresh cranberries?
Try our cranberry orange bread.
Cranberry Pecan Bread
Sweet, moist quick bread full of dried cranberries and pecans. This cranberry pecan bread with white chocolate glaze would make a great hostess gift.
Servings 10
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Ingredients
For the bread:
- 2 cups all purpose flour 260 grams
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar 150 grams
- 1/2 cup salted butter softened
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk 8 ounces
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 3/4 cup dried cranberries
For the white chocolate drizzle:
- 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
Optional toppings:
- 2 tablespoons chopped pecans for sprinkling on top of the bread
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 8 1/2″x4 1/2″ loaf pan with cooking spray. Line with a piece of parchment paper for easier removal.
- In a mixing bowl, thoroughly stir together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set the dry ingredients aside.
- In a separate bowl, use an electric hand mixer to mix together the sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, folding gently with a rubber spatula. Mix just until blended after each addition and do not overmix the batter.
- Fold in the pecans and cranberries. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes on the center rack, or until the top of the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow the bread to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove it and place it on a wire rack to cool.
- For the white chocolate glaze, place the white chocolate chips and heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave the chips for 20 seconds. Stir. Microwave for another 20 seconds. As soon as the chips start melting, start microwaving for 10 or even 5 second intervals. Be careful not to let it get too hot or it will burn. Be patient and stir between each time interval. You will end up with very thick, melted white chocolate. Spoon or drizzle this on top of the bread. Sprinkle with the extra pecans, if desired.
Video
Notes
- Love cranberry orange flavor? Add orange zest to the quick bread batter.
- If you don’t have white chocolate, sprinkle surface of batter with coarse sugar before baking. This will add just a little extra sweet and sparkle to the top.
- Baking time may change if you use a different size loaf pan.
- Have leftover bread? Slice it up and make French toast with it!
Nutrition
Calories: 447kcal | Carbohydrates: 54g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 72mg | Sodium: 364mg | Potassium: 158mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 33g | Vitamin A: 425IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 83mg | Iron: 1.6mg
I made this Cranberry Pecan bread today to start the holidays off. It came out great! Mine was browning pretty quickly so I lightly covered the top part way through. I didn’t do the glaze on top. The bread is tasty and I will make it again!
Made this for breakfast this morning and we absolutely loved it. I didn’t glaze it because we’re not too fond of overly sweet foods for breakfast and it was still amazing! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Good flavor. I think the baking temp should be lowered to 350, or the baking time reduced. I baked mine for 45 minutes and the bread seemed hard around the edges.
How many mini loaves might I get from one
I made this bread and while good it was a little dry. I am sure this was me but I did tried not to over mix. Is here anything else I could do to keep that moist soft texture? Thanks
Excellent sweet bread. I made it without the topping and my grandson said it was the best thing he’d ever tasted. Will make again.