Some tastes are so closely aligned with the holiday season that the holidays feel empty without them. What would Christmas be without peppermint, eggnog and cranberry? I guess we could try to substitute with a little more chocolate. LOL
This sweet eggnog cranberry bread hits a few of those notes. Cranberries and eggnog plus a little white chocolate. The eggnog provides its unique richness to the bread, while the dried cranberries and white chocolate provide sweet and tart highlights in every bite.
I’ll work on peppermint another time LOL.
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Why I Love this Recipe
Every holiday season, I buy eggnog. It seems like something you’re supposed to have on hand, right? But I don’t typically just drink it, except for the occasional eggnog cocktail.
So I wanted to find other things to make with it. And this bread is perfect! It’s moist, sweet and tart, filled with the tastes of the season. Cranberries, eggnog and white chocolate. Perfect!
Ingredients Needed
How to Make this Cranberry Bread with Eggnog
This is a quick bread, so named because they are breads that do not use yeast, so you’re not waiting for the bread to rise, etc. Quick for sure!
You simply mix the ingredients, wet together first, then combine the dry separately before adding it in.
I like to have that combination done and well mixed before adding the key flavors: cranberries and white chocolate chips. Mix these well to evenly distribute.
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This bread goes in a loaf pan, I used a 9x5 but I think an 8x4 could accommodate the batter. Any smaller, you’ll need to make 2 loaves.
Grease the pan or line it with parchment paper. I’ve tried both; either works great.
Bake the loaf for 55-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. In my oven, 58 minutes is just right.
Let the loaf cool a little, then melt a little more white chocolate and drizzle it over the top for a lovely finishing touch.
Expert Tips/FAQ
You can definitely use fresh cranberries to make bread. I made it using both just to see how they would compare. I found that I really preferred dried cranberries for the simple reason that fresh cranberries float! This batter is relatively thin, so the fresh cranberries just floated to the top of the batter in the pan. When the bread was baked, the slices showed cranberries just on the top edge. With dried cranberries, they distributed more evenly.
Say whaaaaat??? LOL
Of course you can skip the white chocolate, both inside and on top. If you prefer regular or dark chocolate, give that a try. Nuts? Sure! Walnuts always go well with cranberries. Make it your own!
Oooh that’s on my list to try! I’ve successfully made air fryer banana bread, and the same directions should work. This recipe will make multiple loaves of the size used for my air fryer. I suggest halving the recipe to make a single smaller loaf. If you try this before me, let me know how it goes!
More Cranberry Recipes for your Holiday Season!
If your family is anything like mine, you probably have multiple dietary needs you're trying to accommodate. Check out this gluten free cranberry orange bread which also happens to be low carb/keto friendly!
If you buy giant bags of Craisins like I do, you'll want to see how to make cranberry sauce from dried cranberries. And any extra sauce can be used to make cranberry sauce bars or cranberry sauce cocktail.
Speaking of cocktails, consider a grapefruit cranberry cocktail for a lovely way to toast the season!
📖 Recipe
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Eggnog Cranberry Bread
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup canola oil
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup eggnog
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¾ cups flour
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Zest of one orange 1-2 tablespoons
- 1 cup white chocolate chips divided
- Optional ~2 tablespoons brown sugar and extra cranberries, for garnish.
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix the oil, 1 cup brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, orange zest and eggnog.⅓ cup canola oil, 1 cup brown sugar, 2 eggs, 1 cup eggnog, Zest of one orange, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt.1 ¼ teaspoons baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 ¾ cups flour
- Add the dry mixture to the wet, beating until well combined.
- Fold in the dried cranberries and ½ cup of white chocolate chips.1 cup dried cranberries, 1 cup white chocolate chips
- Grease a 9x5 loaf pan (or line with parchment paper), then pour in the batter.
- Sprinkle with about 2 tablespoons brown sugar and additional cranberries, if desired.Optional ~2 tablespoons brown sugar and extra cranberries, for garnish.
- Bake for 55-60 minutes at 350F, until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Remove from pan and cool on a rack for about 20 minutes.
- Melt the remaining ½ cup white chocolate chips in the microwave, in 20-30 second intervals, and stir until smooth.1 cup white chocolate chips
- Drizzle the white chocolate over the top of the bread.
- Slice to serve. Store leftovers in the fridge and enjoy within 3 days.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.
Natalie
What a beautiful festive bread. It's going to be perfect for my Holiday table. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Sula
You're very welcome Natalie! Happy Holidays!
Gina Abernathy
Perfect for the holiday season. I will be making and sharing this recipe with my family during the holidays.
Sula
Awesome, enjoy!
Cindy Mom, the Lunch Lady
I am excited for this recipe! My husband always buys so much eggnog. and We often struggle to drink it before the best before date. This is a perfect way to use some up!
Sula
I run into the same problem with eggnog, every year! This bread is a great solution!
Shilpa
Looks delicious. They are perfect for the holidays
Sula
Definitely the tastes of the holiday season!
Giangi
Looks amazing and perfect for the holidays
Sula
Enjoy!
Samantha Ferraro
This bread was fantastic! The perfect blend of sweet and tart...thank you!
Sula
You're welcome! I love sweet + tart also!
Dawn Conklin
This is so delicious! I never thought to use eggnog in baking before but this was so amazing with it! The flavors really come together perfectly.
Sula
Surprisingly good!
Emily Flint
Two of my favorite holiday flavors in one sweet bread??? Yes, please! No more trips to Starbucks for a treat, I can just make my own loaf. Great recipe!
Sula
Thank you Emily, for your kind review.
Kalin Williams
This bread looks incredible! Using eggnog is such a great idea - I will have to make this for my family this holiday season
Sula
Its really great! The eggnog gives it that subtle taste and all the moist goodness! Enjoy!