This is a perfect recipe for the holiday season. It’s delicious and cranberries are plentiful at this time of year. You can serve this bread for breakfast, as an afternoon snack with tea, or even dessert. It also makes a great holiday gift. Your home will smell great while it’s baking. This bread is not overly sweet, which is nice. I will make several more loaves before the holidays are over.

The recipe calls for pearl sugar. If you don’t have any, turbinado sugar is a fine substitute, or you can leave off the sugar topping altogether.

Cranberry Pecan Bread
Recipe from Smitten Kitchen

3/4 cup*85 grams) pecans
1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
2 medium-to-large oranges, any variety
6 tablespoons (85 grams) unsalted butter, melted, cooled
1/2 to 2/3 cup (120 to 160 grams) sour cream
1 large egg
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups (8 ounces or 225 grams) fresh or frozen cranberries, halved
2 cups (260 grams) all-purpose flour
Pearl sugar (about 1½ tablespoons), to finish (optional, but nice if you have it. Turbinado sugar is a good substitute)

Heat oven to 350°F. Place pecans on a small baking sheet in the oven for 6 to 8 minutes, or until they smell fragrant. Be careful not to burn them. They toast quickly. When toasted, remove and roughly chop, then set aside.

Coat a loaf pan (8½ by 4½ or 6-cup volume) with butter or nonstick spray. For easier removal, you can line the bottom and two long sides with a sling of parchment paper.

Place sugar in a large bowl, and zest oranges into it. Use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar, breaking it up a bit and releasing more fragrance.

Cut oranges in half and juice them into a 1-cup measure; you should get between 1/3 and 1/2 cup. Spoon in sour cream until the juice reaches the 1-cup line; whisk to combine.

Whisk butter and egg into zest-sugar mixture. Whisk in orange juice-sour cream mixture. Sprinkle surface of batter with salt, baking powder, and baking soda and whisk thoroughly into the batter. Scrape the bowl down. Stir in cranberries and pecans. Stir in flour until it just disappears.

Scrape batter into prepared pan and spread smooth. Sprinkle cake with pearl or turbinado sugar, if using.

Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, rotating once for even color, until a toothpick inserted into the loaf comes out batter-free. I start checking my loaf at 50 minutes as my oven can run a little hot. Give the cake more time if needed; don’t worry about it getting dark. Cool in pan on a rack until lukewarm, or at room temperature. Serve in slices.

Smitten Kitchen recommends keeping the bread in the loaf pan and serving it right from there. This allows the sides to stay moist and the top to stay crisp. Cover the cut side of the bread so it doesn’t dry out.

Yield: 8-10 servings

One year ago: Classic Buttermilk Waffles
Two years ago: Ultranutty Pecan Bars
Three years ago: Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Four years ago: Cocoa Buttermilk Breakfast Biscuits with Brown Sugar Cinnamon Butter
Five years ago: Tomato, Melted Leek and Feta Galette
Six years ago: Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Seven years ago: Chocolate Sugar Cookies
Eight years ago: English Muffin Bread
Nine years ago: Peppermint Chocolate Chip Sugar Cookies
Ten years ago: Champagne Cosmos
Eleven years ago: Green Beans with Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette and Parmesan Breadcrumbs
Twelve years ago: Mac and Cheese (tis is the best mac and cheese EVER)
Thirteen years ago: Peppermint Brownies