Cranberry Orange Bread with Lemon Glaze
Bursting with cranberry and orange flavors and studded with pecans, this Cranberry Orange Bread with Lemon Glaze is not only pretty but totally scrumptious! This tasty fresh cranberry recipe is quick and easy to make. It’s perfect as an edible Christmas or holiday gift.
Cranberry season has finally arrived!
Now I am getting a bit excited because I know that the Christmas holidays are just around the corner. I can even tune in to one radio station where we live and there I can hear Christmas songs already as they have started playing Christmas carols since November 1.
Yes, you read it right. I know you may think it’s a little early to play Christmas carols in November – after all, there’s still Thanksgiving to celebrate before the Christmas season, but for me, it’s no problem at all.
In fact by Filipino standard, this is quite late. In the Philippines, once the months ending in BER begin – that’s a clear signal – the holiday season has began which means – radio stations and malls begin to play Christmas carols already.
Slowly but surely you will hear the airwaves being saturated by anything that has a Christmas theme. As early as the beginning of November some may even start decorating their houses with Christmas lights and other holiday trinkets and stuff.
Well, we don’t do that in our house here in MI though if I were in the Philippines, I’d probably join in the early preparations and celebrations. Why not?
Anyway, we digress. Every year I make some Cranberry Bread as it such a lovely looking Christmas bread. This year is no different.
Once I saw those fresh cranberries on the grocery, my first project was this and yes, I have made three loaves already. That’s how much we love it!
You can make this loaf without the glaze as it is already delicious on its own but hubby and I agree that the sweet-tangy taste from the Lemon glaze sure adds extra flavor that makes it even better! Please enjoy!
INGREDIENTS TO MAKE CRANBERRY ORANGE BREAD
- All-Purpose Flour
- Sugar
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- fresh or frozen Cranberries, coarsely chopped
- Pecans or Walnuts (optional, if you don’t like nuts or allergic to it)
- Oranges (use both zest and juice)
- Vanilla Extract
- Butter
For the Lemon-Glaze
- confectioner’s Sugar or powdered sugar
- Lemon juice
Pretty easy to find ingredients, right? Make it for fall for a delicious breakfast bread or pair it with coffee or tea as a yummy snack option! I love spreading cream cheese on it – so good!
So the bread does not dry out, make sure that you store it in an airtight container after it’s cooled down.
Check out these other delicious recipes that make use of fresh or frozen cranberries!
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Cranberry Orange Bread with Lemon Glaze
Ingredients
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped or left whole
- ½ cup Pecans or Walnuts, coarsely chopped
- 3/4 cup Orange juice (fresh or from a bottle)
- 1 piece orange, zested
- 4 tbsp melted unsalted Butter (or use oil or sour cream, if you want more moisture in the bread)
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
For the Lemon-Glaze
- 1 cup confectioner’s Sugar (powdered sugar)
- 2 tbsp Lemon juice, or to taste (adjust amount depending on the tartness and thickness of the glaze that you prefer)
- 1 tbsp Milk or Half and Half (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter one 9×5 or 2 (7.5 x 3.5) loaf pans and line them with parchment paper. Set aside. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk until thoroughly mixed. Take out about 2 tablespoons of the flour mixture and mix with the chopped cranberries.
- Stir together the sugar, orange juice, orange zest, and melted butter. Add the beaten eggs and vanilla extract. Slowly add the flour mixture to the wet mixture. Blend or stir until everything just until moistened. Fold in the chopped cranberries and nuts.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 60-65 minutes (for the 9×5) or 40-50 minutes (for the 7 x 3) or until a tester comes out clean. Leave to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely before adding the glaze.
For the Lemon-Glaze
- Place the powdered sugar, lemon juice and milk (or half and half) in a mixing bowl. Mix until it reaches a smooth and pourable consistency. Drizzle on top of the loaf.
Notes
Nutrition
Last updated on November 18th, 2025 at 11:00 pm
I am a huge Cranberry & Orange fan! This is on my TO MAKE LIST!
hi there, I'm so excited to make this! looks fantastic. can you pls tell me about freezing options? how would you go about freezing it? I like to make baking ahead of time
Unless the intention is to eat the whole bread in one go, I would suggest freezing per slice wrapped in cling wrap or you may find this article handy – http://www.momables.com/how-to-freeze-bread/ – There are other resources on the internet, too. Hope you enjoy it!
thx so much!!
Any possibility this would turn out well using Craisins?
I haven’t done it with craisins but I cannot see why it won’t work. Simply use 3/4 cup of the craisins instead of 1 cup. Do let us know how it goes. Thanks for stopping by Carol.
Infused with so many flavors. Looks delicious and moist and I love that it has nuts too. This is just perfect for an any time snack.
I love fruity sweet bread recipes and this bread has all my favorites with the cranberries, oranges, and hints of lemon.
A flavor explosion going off in this Cranberry Orange bread! Can’t wait to make this for my family.
Thank you so much for this easy recipe for cranberry orange bread! We loved it at home!
My sister-in-law gifted us a loaf of your cranberry orange bread. It’s tender, moist and amazing! This is the perfect recipe for gift-giving during the upcoming holiday season.
Great recipe….I added 1 cup white chocolate chips and changed vanilla to orange extract. This recipe makes about 11 muffins baked at 375F.
So glad you enjoyed this! I should do this in muffin form next time. Thanks for letting us know.
Have you tried this gluten free?
I haven’t done so though I cannot see why it won’t work with a gluten-free flour mix. You may have to add a little xantham gum so it’s not crumbly. Or search for a gluten-free version online and adapt this. Please let us know how it goes should you try it.