Orange Cranberry Bread

Cranberries symbolize the arrival of fall and the approach of the holiday season which is seemingly sneaking up on me.  As a young girl I was never very fond of the jiggly "stuff" that came out of the can in a sort of gigantic bullet shape - except on a leftover turkey sandwich.  However, the discovery of a new world of cranberry delights has opened my eyes and reined me in as a cranberry fan with freshly made sauces and relishes, muffins, cakes and breads.  With the ability to purchase the berries in a dried form, cranberries aren't just for Thanksgiving anymore!

Slightly sweet Orange Cranberry Bread marries the citrus/tart flavors in a bread that easily comes together with the touch of a button in the trusty bread machine.  Bright with orange juice and orange peel this bread is a perfect blend of fall flavors, but it's fresh, light tastes feature themselves just as nicely on your spring Easter table.

Toasted with a smear of butter the bread is a pure delight.  Soaked in an egg batter with cinnamon and topped with pure maple syrup the bread becomes decadent!  Liv and her brother both asked for seconds this morning as they gobbled their Orange Cranberry French Toast with weekend gusto.

Orange Cranberry Bread

1 1/4 cup orange juice (room temp)

1 Tbs butter

1 tsp salt

3 1/4 cups bread flour 

1 1/2 Tbs sugar or honey

1 tsp orange zest

2 tsp yeast

3/4 cup dried cranberries

Program machine for a 2 pound loaf on the light crust setting.

Add ingredients (except the cranberries) into your machine in the  order recommended by your manufacturer.  Add the cranberries at the machines recommended "addition" time.

The bread will brown easily and would do will on a sandwich setting if your machine has it.  I don't have a sweet bread setting, but this might work well also due to the high sugar content.  

Alternatively the bread will come out wonderfully mixed either by hand or in a stand mixer and baked in the oven.  However I have always used my machine and do not have a recommended oven baking temperature.