Soulitinerary

This Orange Cranberry Bread is moist, tender, and perfectly balanced with fresh citrus and tart cranberries!

There’s something deeply comforting about slicing into a loaf of Orange Cranberry Bread while it’s still warm, the bright citrus aroma hitting first, followed by little pops of tart cranberry in every bite.

Ingredients For The Orange Cranberry Bread

For The Bread (1 Standard Loaf)

Dry Ingredients

• All-Purpose Flour – 2 cups (260 g), spooned and leveled. If you scoop straight from the bag, you pack flour and get a dry loaf. I don’t want that for you.
• Baking Powder – 2 tsp
• Baking Soda – ½ tsp
• Fine Salt – ½ tsp
• Ground Cinnamon – 1 tsp. This doesn’t make it “cinnamon bread.” It makes the orange taste warmer and deeper.
• Ground Nutmeg – ¼ tsp (freshly grated if you’re feeling fancy)

Cranberries

• Fresh Cranberries – 1½ cups (about 165 g), rinsed and dried. If using frozen: don’t thaw. Frozen berries go straight into the flour coat.
• Orange Juice – 1 tbsp (to lightly moisten the cranberries before coating)
• All-Purpose Flour – 1 tbsp (to coat cranberries)

Wet Ingredients

• Unsalted Butter – 6 tbsp (85 g), melted and cooled slightly
• Neutral Oil (Avocado/Canola/Vegetable) – ¼ cup (60 ml). Oil keeps it moist even on day three when you “forget” it exists. (You won’t.)
• Granulated Sugar – ¾ cup (150 g)
• Light Brown Sugar – ¼ cup (50 g), packed. Adds moisture and that bakery depth.
• Eggs – 2 large, room temperature
• Sour Cream Or Full-Fat Greek Yogurt – ½ cup (120 g), room temperature
• Fresh Orange Juice – ½ cup (120 ml). From 1–2 juicy oranges.
• Orange Zest – 2 tbsp, finely grated. Zest is the real orange flavor. Juice is the vibe. Zest is the punchline.
• Vanilla Extract – 2 tsp
• Orange Extract – ½ tsp (optional but powerful)

For The Orange Glaze

• Powdered Sugar – 1 cup (120 g), sifted if lumpy
• Orange Zest – 1 tsp
• Fresh Orange Juice – 2–3 tbsp
• Pinch Of Salt – yes, seriously. It makes the sweetness taste intentional.

Optional “Bakery Flex” Add-Ins

• Chopped Pecans Or Walnuts – ½ cup, toasted
• White Chocolate Chips – ½ cup. This turns your loaf into a dessert that pretends it’s breakfast.

Orange Prep: Don’t Skip This Tiny Ritual

• Zest First, Juice Second: Before you juice your oranges, zest them. Once you cut and juice an orange, zesting becomes a slippery circus act.
• Rub Zest Into Sugar (My Favorite Trick): In your large bowl, add the granulated sugar and orange zest. Use your fingertips to rub them together for 30 seconds until the sugar looks slightly damp and smells like a citrus grove.

This step makes the zest release its oils into the sugar. Translation: bigger orange flavor without weird bitterness.

The Loaf Walk: How To Bake It Like You’ve Done This Forever

1) Prepare The Pan Like You Respect Your Future Self

• Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
• Grease your loaf pan lightly with butter or nonstick spray.
• Line it with parchment paper, leaving overhang on both sides so you can lift the loaf out easily.
• Grease the parchment lightly too.

You’re building a non-stick runway for your bread. No tearing. No loaf trauma.

2) Coat The Cranberries So They Don’t All Sink Like Tiny Red Anchors

• Put cranberries in a bowl.
• Drizzle with 1 tbsp orange juice and toss. This makes the flour actually cling.
• Sprinkle 1 tbsp flour over them and toss until every berry is lightly coated.
• Set aside.

This gives the berries grip inside the batter instead of letting them plummet.

3) Mix The Dry Ingredients Like A Calm, Competent Adult

In a medium bowl, whisk together:

• Flour
• Baking powder
• Baking soda
• Salt
• Cinnamon
• Nutmeg

Whisk for a full 20 seconds. You’re distributing leaveners evenly so you don’t get random bitter bites.

4) Build The Wet Base With The Right Order

In your large bowl (with your orange sugar already smelling incredible):

• Add melted butter and oil. Whisk until glossy and smooth.
• Add brown sugar. Whisk again until it looks like wet sand turning into syrup.
• Add eggs one at a time, whisking well after each egg for about 10 seconds.
• Add sour cream (or Greek yogurt). Whisk until creamy and fully blended.
• Pour in orange juice, vanilla extract, and optional orange extract. Whisk until smooth.

Your mixture should look like a thick citrus custard. If it looks broken, your ingredients were cold. It still bakes fine, but room temp gives you the prettiest batter.

5) Combine Wet And Dry Without Overmixing (This Is Where Most Loaves Get Ruined)

• Add half the dry ingredients to the wet bowl.
• Use a spatula to fold gently—slow scoops from the bottom, turning over the top.
• Add the remaining dry ingredients and fold again.
• Stop folding the moment you stop seeing dry flour.

Your batter should look thick and plush. Overmixing makes the loaf tough because gluten gets too excited. We want tender. We want soft. We want “one more slice.”

6) Fold In Cranberries So They Stay Proud And Suspended

• Add your floured cranberries to the batter.
• Fold gently just until evenly distributed.
• If you’re using nuts or white chocolate, fold them in now too. And yes, you’re allowed to taste the batter. You’re the chef. You own the kitchen.

7) Fill The Pan The Right Way (So It Bakes Evenly)

• Spoon batter into the prepared loaf pan.
• Smooth the top with a spatula.
• Tap the pan gently on the counter 2–3 times to pop air bubbles.

Optional: Sprinkle a few extra cranberries on top for a bakery look.

8) Bake With Patience, Not Panic

• Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 55–70 minutes.
• At the 45-minute mark, loosely tent the top with foil if it’s browning too fast.

How you know it’s done:

• A toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
• The top is golden and set.
• If you press lightly on the center, it springs back.
• If the toothpick comes out wet, keep baking and check every 5 minutes. Don’t keep opening the oven every 2 minutes like a worried parent. Let the heat do its job.

9) Cool It Correctly So The Loaf Doesn’t Collapse Or Turn Gummy

• Let the loaf cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
• Use parchment overhang to lift it out.
• Place on a cooling rack and cool for at least 45 minutes before glazing.
• Glazing a hot loaf is basically pouring sugar on steam. The glaze melts off and your bread gets sticky in the wrong way.

The Glossy Citrus Crown

• In a bowl, whisk powdered sugar with orange zest and a pinch of salt.
• Add orange juice 1 tbsp at a time, whisking until thick but pourable.
• You want a glaze that drips slowly off a spoon—not water that runs away like it has errands.

Glaze Consistency Fixes

• Too thick: add ½ tsp orange juice.
• Too thin: add 1 tbsp powdered sugar.

Glaze The Loaf Like You Want People To Compliment You

• Place the cooled loaf on a rack with parchment underneath (to catch drips).
• Spoon glaze over the top slowly.
• Let it set for 15–20 minutes before slicing.
• If you slice too early, the glaze smears. Still delicious. Just less photogenic.

Serving Ideas That Make This Feel Like A Moment

• Warm slice + salted butter = comfort food diplomacy.
• Slice + cream cheese = breakfast that pretends to be responsible.
• Toasted slice + drizzle of honey = dangerously good.
• And if you’re packing it, wrap slices individually. This bread stays tender, but individually wrapped slices stay fresh and “grab-and-go” friendly.

This Orange Cranberry Bread is the kind of loaf that makes ordinary mornings feel festive and ordinary evenings feel like you did something nice for yourself on purpose. Bake it once, and you’ll start “keeping cranberries around” like it’s a lifestyle. And honestly? It is!!!