Cranberry Orange Holiday Loaf

I remember walking into bakeries and seeing the cranberry orange loaves all covered with a delightful white snowy glaze around the holidays. Back before my journey to better health started I had no issues putting down a slice of that delicious treat with my coffee.

Now that I understand more about sugars and calories and balance, I wanted to create a lightened up version.

My hope is that this could better fit the needs of those who count macros and want to enjoy holiday treats without putting such a big dent in their carbs and fats!

This loaf definitely isn’t as sugary sweet as the one you might get at Starbucks or a local bakery, but it hits the spot, adds a hint of protein with the greek yogurt,  and is quite delicious if I do say so myself. Enjoy!

 

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Line a 8 ½ ” x 4 ½ ” or 9” x 5” loaf pan with parchment paper and spray with oil.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir to combine.
4. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the coconut oil, maple syrup and eggs and beat together with a whisk. Then add the yogurt, vanilla and orange zest. Mix well.
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix with a big spoon, just until combined (a few lumps are ok). Do not over mix or your loaf will be too dense.
6. Gently fold the cranberry pieces into the batter.
7. Add the batter to your loaf pan and bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees, then turn the oven down to 350 degrees and bake for another 40-50 minutes. The top should be golden and a skewer inserted into the middle should come out clean. Cooking times vary based on oven temps, elevation and whether you are baking in glass or tin. Check your loaf at the 40 minute mark and if the top is getting too brown put foil on it to protect it while it continues to bake.
8. When done baking, cool completely before adding the optional orange glaze.
9. For the glaze: add the powdered sugar into a small bowl or liquid measuring cup and stir in the orange juice. If you want a thicker glaze you can use less juice. If you want a thinner glaze you can add more juice. Drizzle over the top of the cooled loaf and serve.
10. To store: keep covered at room temp for 2 days or refrigerate 5 days.