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–+ servings
Slices of whole grain cranberry bread layered on a white plate.
5 from 2 votes

Cranberry Bread With Fresh Milled Flour

This cranberry bread with fresh milled flour is a holiday tradition I look forward to every year! A sweet and moist quick bread with bursts of tart cranberries, this bread is perfect for breakfast, snacks, or dessert.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Breads
Cuisine: American
Keyword: christmas breakfast, christmas recipes, cranberry bread, freshly milled cranberry bread, quick breads
Servings: 8 slices (1 loaf)
Calories: 289kcal
Author: Laura Ascher

Equipment

Ingredients

For the Bread

  • 1½ cups milled hard white wheat berries
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ⅓ cup butter softened
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¾ cup whole milk
  • 1 cup cranberries fresh or frozen

For the Egg Wash

  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon water
  • Brown sugar for sprinkling
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F
  • Whisk together the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand-up mixer, cream together the butter and sugars for about 2 minutes. Then add the eggs and vanilla, and mix well.
  • Add the dry mixture to the wet ingredients along with the milk and mix well.
  • Add cranberries and mix on low until evenly distributed.
  • Transfer the batter to a bread pan. (see notes below)
  • Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes. While it’s baking, make your egg wash.
  • Remove the bread from the oven, brush with the egg wash, and sprinkle with brown sugar.
  • Bake an additional 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Notes

  • This fits perfectly in a 5x9 cast iron loaf pan. If you use stainless steel loaf pans, they are usually pretty shallow, and if so, I recommend dividing them into two loaves!
  • If using frozen cranberries, don't thaw them first. Add them straight from the freezer into your batter.
  • Quick breads are easy to overmix. Be sure to stop stirring as soon as the ingredients come together, and gently fold in the cranberries.
  • If whole grain flour isn't your thing or you need something a little quicker, feel free to substitute all purpose flour in this recipe. No need to adjust the measurements!
  • New to milling whole grains? I strongly recommend investing in a good mill — it will make all the difference. I use and love a Mockmill professional grain mill. Get all of my tips and expert info on milling grains in my tutorial on how to mill your own flour.
  • If whole cranberries are too tart for you, you can chop them up with a knife or pulse them in a food processor. Just be careful and go slowly — you don't want to pulverize them.