Cranberry Eggnog Bread
Tender moist mini loaves of Cranberry Eggnog Bread, loaded with fresh cranberries and hints of nutmeg and cinnamon topped off with a scrumptious Eggnog Vanilla Bean glaze. It’s the perfect festive Holiday quick bread.
Hi Cranberry lovers! You’ve come to the right place today. I’ve got an amazing new “quick bread” recipe. It’s a delicious festive Holiday bread that any red-blooded, or should I say bright ruby-red-blooded, cranberry-loving fiend would die for!
It requires only a few simple ingredients, lots of fresh cranberries, and is topped off with a lip-smacking, finger-licking Vanilla Bean Eggnog Glaze.
These mini loaves have the perfect “crumb” and each bite is bursting with the sweet tangy flavor of those juicy orbs of delight…known as Cranberries! (I’m a huge Cranberry Fan! In case you couldn’t tell.)
I’m also a huge fan of a quick, easy breakfast bread that is super versatile, can be made ahead of time, frozen, served on Christmas morning, or given away as gifts to friends and neighbors. (Whew that was a mouthful to say! Especially when I’m munching on a slice of this yummy bread!) You can make mini loaves like I have, one large loaf, or even muffins! So many choices. Isn’t it wonderful?
Let’s get baking!
How To Make Cranberry Eggnog Breakfast Bread
Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides of 4 mini loaf pans, or a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan. Then line them with parchment paper.
I know it seems totally unnecessary to do both, but just trust me, it works beautifully. A new little trick I learned about recently.
In a large bowl, whisk together 2- 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg, and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon.
TIP: Whisking not only combines the ingredients, it helps to break up any lumps in the flour and spices. Replaces the need for “sifting”.
Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and set the bowl of dry ingredients aside.
In a medium bowl, combine 2 large eggs, 1 cup granulated white sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and 1 cup of eggnog. Mix well to combine.
Melt 1/2 cup salted butter and slowly whisk it into the eggnog mixture.
Add the eggnog mixture to the flour mixture. Pouring it into the center of the well you made.
Stir until just moistened. The batter maybe lumpy…kind of like me! (Just keeping it real my friends! It’s the Holidays…there maybe a few more lumps than usual!)
Now for the fun part…it’s time to fold in those beautiful ruby gems! Fold in 3 cups of fresh, or frozen-thawed, cranberries into the eggnog batter. Folding helps the berries stay whole and not break up…it also prevents the berries from staining the bread batter.
This is a nice thick batter! So don’t be alarmed if it seems a tad stiff when stirring.
Preparing the batter for baking
Spoon the Cranberry Eggnog batter into the prepared pans.
TIP: To make the loaves look gorgeous, I place 4-5 whole berries on top of the loaf before baking, and press them down about half way.
Place the mini loaf pans on a large baking sheet. This will keep the mini loaf pans nice and level in the oven during baking.
Baking Cranberry Eggnog Bread in Mini Loaf Pans
Bake for 30–40 minutes for mini loaves and 45–55 minutes for one large loaf. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of the loaves. If it comes out clean, it’s done.
TIP: You can also carefully, so as not to burn yourself, press the center of the loaf. If it springs back, it’s done.
Cool the mini pans of bread on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
Remove the slightly cooled bread from their pans, do not remove the parchment paper, and cool completely on the rack.
TIP: Leaving the parchment paper on the loaves gives you a “drop cloth”, so to speak, to catch the glaze when you drizzle it over the tops of each loaf of bread.
How To Make Vanilla Bean Glaze
In a small bowl, combine 1 cup of powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of eggnog, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste. You can substitute regular vanilla if you don’t have vanilla bean paste.
Mix the glaze ingredients until smooth.
Once the loaves are completely cooled, drizzle the vanilla bean eggnog glaze over the top of each loaf.
Now I will say this, the glaze is optional…but I HIGHLY recommend adding it. This is not an overly sweet cranberry bread recipe, so this mild sweet vanilla bean glaze adds just the right amount of sweetness to offset the “tang” of those cranberries.
See how handy that parchment paper is at catching the “over-flow” of glaze! I love the beautiful flecks of vanilla bean in the glaze thanks to the paste. It truly heightens the subtle flavor of vanilla.
Allow the glaze to dry before cutting and serving the loaves of bread, or packaging them up for gifts. It takes about 15 minutes for the glaze to set.
Then dig in!!! Doesn’t that look AMAZING!!
This is no skimpy cranberry bread! It has rightfully earned the title “Cranberry” bread!
I will warn you…don’t go into this expecting to get that burst of “Cranberry-orange” flavor…there is NO orange in this bread. This is a Vanilla Cranberry Bread! The berries are the star of the show!
Here are some of my other Favorite Cranberry Recipes
- Hot Cranberry Turkey Sandwich
- Cranberry Orange Scones
- Cranberry Orange Pancakes
- Cranberry Jello Salad
- Cranberry Orange Cheesecake
- Holiday Pumpkin Cranberry Cake
- Baked Brandied Cranberries
- Zucchini Bread from The Dairy of a Real Housewife
This is such a pretty Holiday Bread. It’s certain to brighten your Christmas morning or the doorstep of any friend you share it with.
As always… Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting with me. I’d love it if you could stop by for a slice and a cup of cocoa! Since that isn’t possible, make a few loaves to share with those you love. Enjoy!
Happy Nesting!
Cranberry Eggnog Bread
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 cup eggnog
- 1/2 cup salted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 cups fresh cranberries; of thawed frozen cranberries
Vanilla Bean Eggnog Glaze
- 1 cup confectioners sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Eggnog
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides of 4 mini loaf pans, or a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan. Line each pan with parchment paper after spraying with non-stick baking spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine eggs, sugar, eggnog, and vanilla. Add melted butter. Slowly add melted butter and mix until combined. Add egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just moistened (batter maybe lumpy). Fold in cranberries.
- Spoon batter into the prepared pan(s). Bake mini loaves on a baking sheet for 30-40 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick into center of the loaves. Toothpick should come out clean. For the Large Loaf bake 45-55 minutes. Cool in the pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. DO NOT REMOVE parchment paper. Cool completely.
- In a small bowl combine confectioners sugar, vanilla bean paste, and eggnog. Mix with wire whisk until smooth. Drizzle Vanilla Glaze over the top of each cooled loaf. Parchment paper will catch any overflow. Allow glaze to set up for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
Absolutely the best🤪👍❤️
Hi Sheila!
Thank you so much! I hope you have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Norine
We really enjoyed this lovely quick bread! so easy to put together, (I like not having to get my mixer dirty), moist and tasty! I was afraid 3 cups of cranberries might be too much for the grands, so I used 2 cups of thawed berries and roughly chopped the huge ones. I have several bags of cranberries in the freezer, and I will be making this again. Thanks for sharing this keeper!
Hi Laurel!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe! I love anything cranberry and have bags in the freezer to use year round. Sounds like we are on the same wave length on that front! Love a friend with a freezer full of cranberries. lol Thanks for stopping by and sharing. I hope you have a great week.
Norine
I asked a question and didn’t check before I sent it. I was just wondering if this bread could be frozen before serving?
Hi Noreen!
First off…love your name! Yes it can be made ahead of time, wrapped in plastic wrap, and thawed the day before. It will be delicious! Enjoy and a Happy New Year to you and your family!
Norine
I would like to make this for Christmas dinner. Is there something I can make ahead of time and freeze to thaw out the day before the dinner?
Stumbled cross this recipe and decided to try it for holiday gift giving. I made mini loaves. It has a nice crumb and flavor. I did chop up the cranberries a bit, then added to the batter. I think they dispersed better in the batter. I didn’t have any trouble with cracking or splitting like another review, but the loaf did pull apart along the rim of the baking pan in one of three loaves. I didn’t grease the rim. I would recommend doing that or use parchment paper so you could lift the loaf out of the pan after baking. It was too sweet for my tastes. I would definitely make again but cut back the sugar to 1/2c to accommodate for the sweetness in the eggnog. Thanks for sharing the recipe. Overall is a solid gift giving recipe.
Best bread ever! Love the flavor. The cranberries add sweetness and help keep the bread moist while the egg nog adds the final touch. Excellent recipe! Hope I can find egg nog year round so I don’t have to wait for the holidays to enjoy this bread again.
Hi Cheryl!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe! I love it too! You described it perfectly! I may have to hire you to come write for me! 😉 Have a wonderful Holiday! Thanks for stopping by and sharing! Come back soon.
Merry Christmas,
Norine
So far it’s a good bread. Will find out what my co-workers think about it tomorrow. This could be a go too recipe for the holidays. Had to bake for extra 15 minutes. Total time 55 minutes. It was no surprise I used only two pans.
Hi. I don’t see where it says to include the melted butter in the process? I’m guessing it’s with the mixing of the wet ingredients?
Hi Susan!
Thanks for catching that mistake! I try so hard to proof-read multiple times, but some times something sneaks past me! I’ve corrected the mistake and apologize for the overlooked melted butter. Hope you enjoyed this recipe! I’m craving a few loaves of this myself right now. Please come back soon, and Thanks again.
Norine
I made this recipe and it started to crack when I lifted it out of the pan. It tasted good but could not slice it before it broke apart because it was already already breaking apart. Help! What did I do.
Mary Lou
Hi Mary Lou!
I’m not sure what you did? I haven’t had an issue with this bread cracking and breaking apart. I can make a couple of suggestions, but without being there and seeing the processes I may not be able to nail the exact reason. First thought is how long did you let it cool? Completely allow it to cool may prevent it from cracking. Next, did you line the pans with parchment paper? I find that it helps prevent sticking and makes it easier to get the loaves out of the pans without them cracking or splitting. Was the bread dry? Was it overcooked, even slightly, can cause a loaf to crack and split. Also I make these loaves in smaller bread pans. It makes them easier to handle. Last thought…if you made these in a standardized loaf pan, with a lot of Cranberries, the berries could be the culprit. The berries break up the consistency of the bread making it easier to crack. This is another reason I think the smaller loaf pans work best with this recipe. You could try adding less berries…but how sad would that be? I hope some of these idea’s help? Let me know if there is any other helpful tips I can give. Thanks for stopping by and sharing with me. I hope you’ll give this recipe another try.
Happy Nesting!
Norine