Baking with Blobby

Blobby tried his hand at baking this last Sunday - hence the time slipping away for yesterday's MMM post. 

I'm a big fan of cranberry paired with orange.  My cookies four years ago were a big hit......well, at least with me.  So this time, I tried for bread.  Or "bread". Let's be honest, it's cake or cake-like. 

Unlike the cookies that used dried cranberries, this used full ones, which are more tart. Granted, I used frozen, but finding fresh here in December isn't the easiest thing.........not that I looked all that hard. I'm very impulsive when it comes to a baking idea and its execution. I want what I want when I want it. 

Ingredients 

Flour – 1.5 cups use all-purpose 

Baking powder – 1 tb 

Milk – 1/4 cup 

Orange zest and juice – zest of one orange 1/4 cup of squeezed juice. Reserve a teaspoon of zest for the glaze

Butter – 6 tb unsalted at room temperature Adds moisture to the loaf. Use unsalted butter softened at room temperature. 

Sugar – 1.5 cups

Eggs – 2 at room temperature

Cranberries – rinsed and dried then tossed in 1/2 Tbsp of flour to keep them from sinking in the batter (see substitution options in common questions section)

Instructions 

Combine dry ingredients – whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. 

Combine wet ingredients – in a measuring cup, stir together milk, orange juice and zest. 

Cream butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl 

then beat in eggs until well combined. 

Combine batter – Add flour mixture in 2 additions, alternating with the milk mixture, mixing just until combined. 

Flour cranberries – rinse and dry cranberries then toss them with 1/2 Tbsp flour to coat. 

Fold in cranberries just until incorporated.  

And yes, you can do the entire "fold in the cheese" script in your head while you do this. .....though I helped out a bit. 

Spread batter into buttered and floured 8.5×4.5 bread pan. 

Bake the bread for 45-50 minutes until golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

I forgot to take pics regarding of making the glaze, but you know, it's confectioners sugar and some freshly squeezed orange juice. I should have had more sugar, as it was more of a syrup and less of a glaze. But it worked. 

The 'bread' (read: cake) was moist and flavorful.  Pretty easy to make. Real easy to eat.