Thanksgiving morning. I'm six years old. Noelle, with her big brown eyes, nestles beside me in my bed. I speak to her in the secret language that only sisters know, and I kiss her square on the forehead before tiptoeing out into the hallway.
My older sisters, both beautiful and mysterious in their young adulthood, slumber away in their respective bedrooms. My father, always an early-bird, is raking leaves in the front yard. Where my mother is...I don't know. But that is perfect, exactly what we want.
Resting on the kitchen counter, the counter I've sat on, stirred on, is a pile of foil. Loaf after loaf of quick bread stacked one on top of the other. I gamble by grabbing the closest wrapped package, and I slide across the wood and tile floors that lead me back to my bedroom.
Noelle is sitting up now. Her head covered in fine-baby girl curls, her mouth breaking into a gap-toothed smile. I have it! I whisper-shout, and she laughs because my sister will one day grow up to be a woman of joy.
We sit on our bed and carefully unwrap our stolen goods. Will it be banana bread? Cranberry Bread? Or one of those dried fruit loaves from the neighbor (we both pray those are already gone).
Delighted, we see plump cranberries encased in a moist, lemon crumb. No knife is needed; we use our hands to break off bite after bite. I'm sure we looked at a book together. I'm sure I traced my finger along the words I was just learning to recognize, to then speak out loud. We would eat turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes later that day, but for Noelle and me...our feast was now.
My older sisters, both beautiful and mysterious in their young adulthood, slumber away in their respective bedrooms. My father, always an early-bird, is raking leaves in the front yard. Where my mother is...I don't know. But that is perfect, exactly what we want.
Resting on the kitchen counter, the counter I've sat on, stirred on, is a pile of foil. Loaf after loaf of quick bread stacked one on top of the other. I gamble by grabbing the closest wrapped package, and I slide across the wood and tile floors that lead me back to my bedroom.
Noelle is sitting up now. Her head covered in fine-baby girl curls, her mouth breaking into a gap-toothed smile. I have it! I whisper-shout, and she laughs because my sister will one day grow up to be a woman of joy.
We sit on our bed and carefully unwrap our stolen goods. Will it be banana bread? Cranberry Bread? Or one of those dried fruit loaves from the neighbor (we both pray those are already gone).
Delighted, we see plump cranberries encased in a moist, lemon crumb. No knife is needed; we use our hands to break off bite after bite. I'm sure we looked at a book together. I'm sure I traced my finger along the words I was just learning to recognize, to then speak out loud. We would eat turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes later that day, but for Noelle and me...our feast was now.
A few weeks ago, I received a request from a sweet and talented friend for a cranberry bread recipe.
I'm sure that many of you have made or eaten one of these classic holiday loaves.
But I've found that while many cranberry bread recipes produce excellent flavor, they lack the moist crumb that banana and pumpkin bread so effortlessly puts forth.
So I went searching... and I found quite a few recipes, but one stood out. I eagerly pulled out my bowls and loaf pans. I set to chopping a handful of cranberries. After a few minutes of mixing and stirring, I placed my loaves in the oven, and I waited.
Later that evening, after a long day of school and work, I sat down to my first slice of this cranberry bread. As my lips closed, my mouth exploded in bright sweetness and tartness. A cranberry burst, and I smiled in pleasure. The loaf was as moist and as soft as a gooey slice of banana bread.
Part of the moistness can be contributed to our baking friend, sour cream. But after I pulled my loaves from the oven, I poked them with a toothpick and drizzled a simple orange glaze over top. The sweet syrup undoubtedly added to the already moist crumb.
This is by far my most favorite cranberry bread recipe. I assure you, this will be a winner on any holiday morning.
I'm sure that many of you have made or eaten one of these classic holiday loaves.
But I've found that while many cranberry bread recipes produce excellent flavor, they lack the moist crumb that banana and pumpkin bread so effortlessly puts forth.
So I went searching... and I found quite a few recipes, but one stood out. I eagerly pulled out my bowls and loaf pans. I set to chopping a handful of cranberries. After a few minutes of mixing and stirring, I placed my loaves in the oven, and I waited.
Later that evening, after a long day of school and work, I sat down to my first slice of this cranberry bread. As my lips closed, my mouth exploded in bright sweetness and tartness. A cranberry burst, and I smiled in pleasure. The loaf was as moist and as soft as a gooey slice of banana bread.
Part of the moistness can be contributed to our baking friend, sour cream. But after I pulled my loaves from the oven, I poked them with a toothpick and drizzled a simple orange glaze over top. The sweet syrup undoubtedly added to the already moist crumb.
This is by far my most favorite cranberry bread recipe. I assure you, this will be a winner on any holiday morning.
We still love our quick bread
Cranberry-Nut Bread
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sour cream
6 TBSP unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/3 cup orange juice
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped coarse
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)
Glaze
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1-3 TBSP orange juice
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8.5 by 4.5 inch loaf pan or four mini loaf pans.
2. Whisk together your flour, sugar, salt, powder, and soda in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk the milk, the sour cream, the melted butter, the orange juice and the egg until smooth. Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry with a rubber spatula until just combined. Gently fold in the cranberries.
3. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan(s) and smooth the top. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs, around 45-50 minutes for one loaf pan, around 20-25 minutes for mini loaf pans. Remove from oven.
4. While still in the loaf pans, drizzle a simple glaze of powdered sugar and orange juice over top. (I used about 1/3 cup of glaze)
5. After allowing to cool in pan for 10 minutes, turn out into a wire rack and allow to cool for 1 hour before serving.
Always,
Monet
Anecdotes and Apple Cores
*I'm working on indexing all of my recipes. Take a peek at my progress by clicking on Recipe Index at the top left of my blog page!
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sour cream
6 TBSP unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/3 cup orange juice
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped coarse
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)
Glaze
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1-3 TBSP orange juice
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8.5 by 4.5 inch loaf pan or four mini loaf pans.
2. Whisk together your flour, sugar, salt, powder, and soda in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk the milk, the sour cream, the melted butter, the orange juice and the egg until smooth. Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry with a rubber spatula until just combined. Gently fold in the cranberries.
3. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan(s) and smooth the top. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs, around 45-50 minutes for one loaf pan, around 20-25 minutes for mini loaf pans. Remove from oven.
4. While still in the loaf pans, drizzle a simple glaze of powdered sugar and orange juice over top. (I used about 1/3 cup of glaze)
5. After allowing to cool in pan for 10 minutes, turn out into a wire rack and allow to cool for 1 hour before serving.
Always,
Monet
Anecdotes and Apple Cores
*I'm working on indexing all of my recipes. Take a peek at my progress by clicking on Recipe Index at the top left of my blog page!
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