Cranberry Orange Walnut Bread

So I had extra cranberries in the house after the holiday and god forbid anything goes to waste here.  So I decided to make this bread.  It is super easy and very yummy.  This recipe is adapted from the Family Circle Encyclopedia Of Cooking that I got from a garage sale many years ago.

You'll need:

2 cups of  flour, 1 cup of sugar, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 tbsp orange zest, 1/2 cup orange juice, 3 tbsp melted butter, 2 tbsp hot water, 1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries, halved, 3/4 cup chopped walnuts.

Preheat oven to 350.  Combine all the dry ingredients and sift together.  In a seperate bowl beat the egg, then stir in the orange juice, butter, hot water and the orange zest.  Now combine the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.  Fold in the cranberries and the walnuts.  Add the batter to a well greased loaf pan.  ( I use a glass  9 x 5 x 3-inch pan).

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes.   You will know when the loaf is ready when a knife in the center comes clean.  Take out of the oven and cool on a wire rack.

This loaf would make a great holiday gift.  You could wrap it in some colorful cellophane and add a matching ribbon!  It also goes great with a cup of coffee for an afternoon snack.