Name: Cranberry Bread with Dried Cranberries
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 70 min
Ingredients: 2 Cups Flour ((all purpose flour)); 1 1/4 Cups Light Brown Sugar ((packed cup)); 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda; 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder ((aluminum free)); 1/2 Teaspoon Salt; 8 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter ((melted)); 2 Large Eggs ((lightly beaten)); 1 Cup Cranberry Juice ((or you can use milk if you do not have any cranberry juice)); 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract; 1 Cup Dried Cranberries

Here is an easy recipe for cranberry bread with dried cranberries. Dried cranberries tend to be sweeter than fresh or frozen cranberries so this recipe helps to create a delicious sugary cranberry bread. Be aware that this cranberry bread is NOT a sandwich bread. Rather, our cranberry bread is a sweet “quick bread” (similar to banana bread) and has a muffin-like consistency and taste. Homemade cranberry bread is super easy to make and is perfect as a snack or dessert. Your family will love it!

This cranberry bread (with dried cranberries) recipe should take you roughly 10 minutes to prepare and clean up. Please be aware that this is an oven-baked recipe. It is not made with a bread machine. You will also find a printable and “pin-able” recipe at the bottom of this page. If you liked this recipe, we hope you will leave a comment below and give us a 5 star rating.

Mix Batter First then Add Dried Cranberries

Ingredients – Cranberry Bread with Dried Cranberries

2 Cups – Flour (all purpose flour)
1 1/4 Cups – Light Brown Sugar (packed cup)
1 Teaspoon – Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon – Baking Powder (aluminum free)
1/2 Teaspoon – Salt
8 Tablespoons – Unsalted Butter (melted)
2 – Large Eggs (lightly beaten)
1 Cup – Cranberry Juice (or you can use milk if you do not have any cranberry juice)
1 Teaspoon – Vanilla Extract
1 Cup – Dried Cranberries

Servings – Roughly 12 slices

Equipment required for this recipe – Measuring cup & spoons, mixing bowl, long wooden spoon, 9 by 5 bread pan, oven mitts, silicon spatula, cooling rack and an oven.

Instructions – Cranberry Bread with Dried Cranberries

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Grease bread pan, line the bread pan with baking parchment paper or use a good nonstick bread pan in order to prevent the cranberry bread from sticking to the bread pan during the baking process.
Stir dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder & salt) together in a large mixing bowl.
Soften butter in a microwave.
Lightly beat eggs.
Mix the butter, eggs, milk & vanilla extract together in separate mixing bowl.
After mixing the wet ingredients, add them into the large mixing bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir by hand or with an electric hand mixer until the batter is fully mixed. FYI – An electric hand mixer helps to prevent any small white “lumps” (unmixed flour lumps) from potentially appearing in your finished cranberry bread.
Add the dried cranberries after the batter has been completely mixed. Stir them into the batter with a wooden spoon. Make sure the fresh cranberries are evenly spread throughout the batter.
Pour finished batter into the bread pan. Smooth out the top of the batter within the bread pan.
Bake in the oven for 65-70 minutes.
Take out of oven and let the cranberry bread cool down in the bread pan for 10 minutes. Do not remove the cranberry bread from the bread pan during this 10 minute cool down period. Use oven mitts as the bread pan will be very hot coming out of the oven.
After 10 minutes, remove the cranberry bread from the bread pan. Use oven mitts. Place the cranberry bread on a cooling rack in order to completely cool. This cool down may take 1-2 hours. Gently slide a silicon spatula between the cranberry bread and the bread pan walls if the cranberry bread is stuck in the pan.

Delicious Cranberry Bread – Stuffed with Dried Cranberries!

If you liked this recipe, please leave a comment below & give us a 5 star rating. The recipe comment section is located at the bottom of this page. Your comments help us to improve & clarify our recipe instructions. Moreover, it is ALWAYS great to hear from someone who has enjoyed our recipes!

Reference Sources

Wikipedia, Cranberry, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cranberry
Wikipedia, Dried Cranberry, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dried_cranberry
Wikipedia, Quick Bread, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quick_bread

Tips – Cranberry Bread with Dried Cranberries

The tips below are designed to help sweet quick bread “novices” and/or people with limited baking experience.
If you are looking for a cranberry “quick bread” made with fresh cranberries, you should try our Cranberry Bread with Fresh Cranberries recipe. FYI – Our “fresh cranberry” bread version tends to be a little tarter & juicier (due to the juice inside the fresh cranberries). In contrast, our “dried cranberry” bread version generally tends to be a little sweeter (due to the sugar that is often added to dried cranberries during the manufacturing process).
According to Wikipedia, “Dried cranberries are made by partially dehydrating fresh cranberries, a process similar to making grapes into raisins. They are popular in trail mix, salads, breads, with cereals, or eaten on their own… The most commercially produced dried cranberries contain added sugar, and they may also be coated in very small quantities of vegetable oil to keep them from sticking together.”
If you look in the supermarket, you can usually find sweetened and unsweetened dried cranberries. For this recipe, we used sweetened dried cranberries in order to create a sweeter/less tart flavor. However, please feel to use unsweetened cranberries if you want less sugar in your cranberry bread or would like a slightly tarter taste to your cranberry bread. FYI – If you want to determine if your dried cranberries are sweetened or unsweetened, you should read the ingredient label on the dried cranberries package and see if the manufacturer has added sugar.
We like to use cranberry juice when making this cranberry quick bread recipe because it adds some extra cranberry flavor. However, if you do not have cranberry juice, you can use milk and still create a delicious cranberry bread.
Be aware that dried cranberries tend to be a little more expensive than fresh cranberries due to the processing involved (i.e. dehydrating the cranberries).
This recipe uses light brown sugar because it adds a slightly richer taste and a little more moisture (versus using granulated white sugar). It also helps to activate the baking soda.
For better “sliceability”, you should allow the cranberry bread to completely cool. Warm cranberry bread is more likely to crumble/break when sliced. In addition, for easier slicing, it is better to use a sharp serrated knife when cutting cranberry bread.
Optional – If you want a sweeter cranberry bread, you can sprinkle 1 tablespoon of turbinado sugar (a brown sugar with large sugar crystals) on top of the batter before you place the bread pan in the oven. You can find turbinado sugar in most large supermarkets (in the baking supplies section next to the “regular” sugar products).
Optional – If you have run out of dried cranberries, you can try dried fruit alternatives such as golden raisins, dried blueberries, dried cherries, etc.
Optional – Or if you are feeling really creative, you can experiment and create a fruity blend with dried cranberries, raisins, dried blueberries, etc.
Optional – If you want to create an orange cranberry bread variation, you should replace the cranberry juice (called for in this recipe) with a similar amount of orange juice.
Optional – If you want to create a chocolate cranberry bread, you can use some chocolate covered cranberries or use a 50/50 split of dried cranberries & semi-sweet chocolate chips.
FYI – It is usually a lot cheaper to use the chocolate chip/dried cranberry method (versus using chocolate covered cranberries) in order to make a chocolate cranberry bread.

Make sure to grease the bread pan, line the bread pan with baking parchment paper or use a good nonstick bread pan. The cranberries can become very sticky after the baking process (especially on the bottom of the bread pan). Baking parchment paper might be the safest way to manage a potential sticky “bottom”.
Cranberry bread is great for any special occasion throughout the year. However, it is a perfect as a traditional fall dessert. I especially love cranberry bread as a quick thanksgiving snack or dessert.
If your family loves desserts & snacks made with cranberries, you should also try out our Cranberry Banana Bread, Pumpkin Cranberry Bread, Applesauce Cranberry Bread and Cranberry Banana Muffins recipes.
If you are looking for a sandwich bread made with dried cranberries, you should try our Bread Machine Cranberry & Raisin Bread recipe.
This doesn’t happen often but if the top of the cranberry bread looks too moist or under cooked, you should try the “toothpick test”. Gently push a toothpick (or wooden skewer) into the top of the bread and see if any batter sticks to the toothpick. If batter is sticking to the toothpick then it hasn’t completely cooked. Place the bread pan back into the still hot oven for another 3 to 5 minutes. Make sure to wear oven gloves because the bread pan will be very hot. Remove the bread pan and test the cranberry bread again with a tooth pick.
If you have a problem with small white flour “lumps” appearing in moist cranberry breads & quick breads, you should consider using an electric hand mixer to mix your batter. Electric mixers are better at breaking up any small lumps that can be missed by hand mixing.
If you have a problem with a cranberry bread recipe, please make sure that you are following the recipe exactly (i.e. using the correct oven temperature), using the correct amounts of ingredients (i.e. don’t eyeball the measurements versus using a measuring cup or accidentally add a tablespoon when a teaspoon is called for), using the correct ingredients (i.e. baking soda/powder versus yeast or all purpose flour versus bread flour), etc. Please don’t “wing” things with recipes.
In addition, you should always try to use relatively fresh baking soda & powder for the best results. For example, using baking soda from an open container (that has been deodorizing your refrigerator for months) may lead to subpar results. Old & hard baking soda/powder may lead to rising problems and/or leave small bitter clumps in your cranberry bread with dried cranberries.
If you do not have aluminum free baking powder, “regular” baking powder should work fine (as long as it is relatively fresh). However, I prefer to use aluminum free food ingredients when making food for my family.
Always wear oven mitts/gloves when dealing with bread pans & a hot oven.
For other delicious quick bread ideas (i.e. banana bread or cornbread), please visit Bread Dad’s main section for Sweet Quick Bread Recipes.

Related Recipes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

5 from 5 votes

Cranberry Bread with Dried Cranberries

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 10 mins

Course: Appetizer, Breakfast, Dessert, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cranberry bread, cranberry bread recipe, cranberry bread with dried cranberries, cranberry quick bread, cranberry quick bread recipe, dried cranberry bread, dried cranberry bread recipe

Servings: Slices

Calories: 290kcal

Author: Bread Dad

Ingredients

2 Cups Flour (all purpose flour)
1 1/4 Cups Light Brown Sugar (packed cup)
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder (aluminum free)
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
8 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter (melted)
2 Large Eggs (lightly beaten)
1 Cup Cranberry Juice (or you can use milk if you do not have any cranberry juice)
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 Cup Dried Cranberries

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Grease bread pan, line the bread pan with baking parchment paper or use a good nonstick bread pan in order to prevent the cranberry bread from sticking to the bread pan during the baking process.
Stir dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder & salt) together in a large mixing bowl
Soften butter in a microwave.
Lightly beat eggs.
Mix the butter, eggs, milk & vanilla extract together in separate mixing bowl.
After mixing the wet ingredients, add them into the large mixing bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir by hand or with an electric hand mixer until the batter is fully mixed. FYI - An electric hand mixer helps to prevent any small white "lumps" (unmixed flour lumps) from potentially appearing in your finished cranberry bread.
Add the dried cranberries after the batter has been completely mixed. Stir them into the batter with a wooden spoon. Make sure the fresh cranberries are evenly spread throughout the batter.
Pour finished batter into the bread pan. Smooth out the top of the batter within the bread pan.
Bake in the oven for 65-70 minutes.
Take out of oven and let the cranberry bread cool down in the bread pan for 10 minutes. Do not remove the cranberry bread from the bread pan during this 10 minute cool down period. Use oven mitts as the bread pan will be very hot coming out of the oven.
After 10 minutes, remove the cranberry bread from the bread pan. Use oven mitts. Place the cranberry bread on a cooling rack in order to completely cool. This cool down may take 1-2 hours. Gently slide a silicon spatula between the cranberry bread and the bread pan walls if the cranberry bread is stuck in the pan.

Notes

This is a Bread Dad recipe and may not be copied or reproduced. This recipe is copyright protected under the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

Legal Disclaimer

The nutritional information is provided using recipe tools such as WP Recipe Maker. These figures should only be considered as an estimate. They should not be construed as a guarantee of accuracy given visitors may use different serving sizes, ingredients, etc. See our legal disclaimer for additional nutrition disclosures.

Nutrition

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