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Cranberry Walnut Bread

Cranberry walnut bread with bright cranberries and toasted walnuts folded into a golden quick-bread loaf. Baked until set in the center and a toothpick comes out clean, then cooled for clean slicing.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 340
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Dry ingredients
  • 2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1.5 tsp baking powder
  • 0.5 tsp baking soda
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp orange zest
Wet ingredients
  • 0.75 cup orange juice
  • 1 large egg
  • 0.25 cup butter, melted
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Add-ins
  • 1.5 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, roughly chopped
  • 0.75 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan
  • 1 stand mixer

Method
 

Prep and mix
  1. Preheat oven to 350F, then grease and line a 9x5-inch loaf pan (visual cue: pan is ready with parchment lining if needed).
  2. Whisk all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and orange zest until evenly combined (visual cue: the dry mix looks uniform in color).
  3. Whisk orange juice, large egg, melted butter, and vanilla extract together until smooth (visual cue: liquid mixture is glossy and fully blended).
  4. Stir wet into dry just until moistened (visual cue: no large dry flour pockets remain; batter will look thick).
  5. Fold in fresh or frozen cranberries, roughly chopped and walnuts, toasted and chopped, then spread the batter into the loaf pan (visual cue: fruit and nuts are evenly visible throughout).
Bake and cool
  1. Bake at 350F for 55-60 minutes until golden and a toothpick comes out clean (visual cue: top springs back slightly and edges look set).
  2. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes (visual cue: loaf firms up enough to hold its shape).
  3. Turn out onto a rack and cool fully before slicing (visual cue: loaf is no longer steaming and slices stay clean).

Notes

For best texture, mix the batter just until moistened—overmixing can make the loaf dense. Store airtight at room temperature up to 3 days or refrigerate up to 5 days; freeze sliced portions up to 2 months. For a dairy-light swap, use plant-based butter that measures like butter (solid style) so the loaf browns similarly.