This sweet gluten-free cranberry orange bread is dotted with fresh, tart cranberries and topped with a zesty orange citrus glaze! It’s the perfect treat for the holiday season.
For more holiday favorites, try this gluten-free gingerbread cake or this gluten-free pumpkin bread.
What should you do when citrus season rolls around? Make this cranberry orange bread recipe, of course!
This perfect quick bread recipe is one of my favorite treats for the holiday season. Sweet oranges infuse the batter and the glaze thanks to ingredients like freshly squeezed orange juice and fresh orange zest. Then fresh cranberries are dotted throughout the batter for a pop of sweet, tart flavor in every bite!
I like to serve this sweet bread with a gluten-free quiche or sausage hashbrown breakfast casserole on Christmas morning. It makes a delicious meal that feels special — but isn’t too hard to put together.
You can also bake this gluten-free cranberry bread recipe in mini loaf pans and give it to neighbors and friends during the holidays. Or whip it up on a Sunday night for a special family treat.
No matter when you make this gluten free cranberry bread, it’s sure to be a holiday favorite!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Made with fresh or frozen cranberries
- Orange + almond extract + cranberry = full of flavor!
- Perfect for the holidays
- Light, moist, and tender crumb – undetectably gluten-free!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Here are a few notes on the key ingredients:
- Orange juice/zest: I love using freshly squeezed orange juice for this recipe. I also add the zest of one orange to the quick bread batter for extra flavor.
- Milk: Any type of milk will work for this gluten-free cranberry bread, but I typically use unsweetened almond milk.
- Vanilla and almond extract: These two ingredients give the bread an amazing depth of flavor!
- Gluten-free flour: Be sure to use a high-quality gluten-free flour blend with xanthan gum for this recipe. I tested this with Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 baking flour.
- Oil: Any type of neutral oil will work, including vegetable oil, avocado oil and grapeseed oil. Grapeseed oil is my favorite!
- Cranberries: I like to use fresh, whole cranberries for this gluten free cranberry orange bread. But you can use frozen cranberries too.
You also might like these gluten-free cranberry orange muffins or gluten-free cranberry white chocolate cookies!
How to Make Gluten-Free Cranberry Bread
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8×4-inch loaf pan (I use this one!) with nonstick spray. Set aside.
Make the Bread
- In a large bowl, whisk the gluten-free flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together until combined. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, eggs, oil, milk, orange juice, orange zest, vanilla extract and almond extract.
- In a small bowl, stir together the cranberries and 1 tablespoon of flour.
- Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together with a rubber spatula until no dry streaks remain. Gently fold in the floured cranberries.
- Pour/spoon batter into the prepared loaf pan.
- Bake for 45-60 minutes, making sure to loosely cover the bread with aluminum foil halfway through to prevent the top from getting too brown. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with only a few small moist crumbs. All ovens vary, so begin checking every 5 minutes around the 45-minute mark.
- Remove the cranberry bread from the oven and allow the bread to cool in the pan set on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Remove the bread from the pan and place the loaf directly on the wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Glaze
- In a small bowl, whisk the orange glaze ingredients together. Adjust the consistency with more orange juice or more powdered sugar as needed to make a thick, but pourable glaze. Drizzle over the cooled bread. Let the glazed bread sit for a few minutes before slicing. Slice and enjoy!
Storage Instructions
Storage: Store this delicious gluten free cranberry bread in an airtight container for up to three days.
To Freeze: To freeze the bread, wrap it tightly in a layer of plastic wrap, followed by a layer of aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature.
You also might like these candied orange slices! For another holiday breakfast favorite, try this gluten-free monkey bread.
Recipe Tips
- I use 2 large oranges to make this gluten-free cranberry bread. It works best to zest the oranges before you squeeze out the juice.
- I tested the recipe using Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour and got excellent results. King Arthur Gluten-Free Measure-for-Measure Flour should work too.
- I slightly prefer to use fresh cranberries, but frozen cranberries will also work great!
More Gluten-Free Quick Bread Recipes
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! If you try this gluten-free cranberry bread, be sure to leave me a comment/rating below. I’d love to hear from you!
Gluten-Free Cranberry Orange Bread
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 1 3/4 cups (262g) gluten-free 1:1 baking flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ⅓ cup (80ml) oil of choice, I use grapeseed oil
- 1/4 cup (60ml) milk of choice, I use almond milk
- 1/4 cup (60ml) freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 tablespoon orange zest about the zest of 1 orange
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 cup (100g) fresh cranberries, rinsed and patted dry
- 1 tablespoon gluten-free 1:1 baking flour
Orange Glaze:
- 1 ½ cups (180g) powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice plus more if needed
- 1 teaspoon orange zest optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8×4-inch loaf pan (I use this one!) with nonstick spray. Set aside.
Make the Bread
- In a large bowl, whisk the gluten-free flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together until combined. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, eggs, oil, milk, orange juice, orange zest, vanilla extract and almond extract.
- In a small bowl, stir together the cranberries and 1 tablespoon of flour.
- Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together with a rubber spatula until no dry streaks remain. Gently fold in the floured cranberries. Pour/spoon batter into the prepared loaf pan.
- Bake for 45-60 minutes, making sure to loosely cover the bread with aluminum foil halfway through to prevent the top from getting too brown. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with only a few small moist crumbs. All ovens vary, so begin checking every 5 minutes around the 45-minute mark.
- Remove the cranberry bread from the oven and allow the bread to cool in the pan set on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Remove the bread from the pan and place the loaf directly on the wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Glaze
- In a small bowl, whisk the orange glaze ingredients together. Adjust the consistency with more orange juice or more powdered sugar as needed to make a thick, but pourable glaze. Drizzle over the cooled bread. Let the glazed bread sit for a few minutes before slicing. Slice and enjoy!
Notes
Recipe Tips
- I use 2 large oranges to make this gluten-free cranberry bread. It works best to zest the oranges before you squeeze out the juice.
- I tested the recipe using Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour and got excellent results. King Arthur Gluten-Free Measure-for-Measure Flour should work too.
- I slightly prefer to use fresh cranberries, but frozen cranberries will also work great!
Just made this and my dough came out runnier looking than the picture. No worries though. It baked beautifully within the recommended time frame. I put extra orange zest in the glaze. Absolutely delicious! Beautiful crumb and loaf height. This is a special loaf!
Question – what is the key to having a gluten free baked product that doesn’t have that sandy texture?
I depends on the recipe but generally – using a high quality flour blend, using enough liquid in the recipe, letting the dough sit so it has time to hydrate (not for this bread but for cookies). I hope this helps!
Absolutely delicious! The bread is so flavorful and it was a great way to use up some leftover cranberries from Thanksgiving. Thank you for all of your wonderful recipes Erin!
Cranberry and orange sounded new to me so I tried making it one weekend. The fresh cranberries add a burst of tartness, perfectly balanced by the sweet orange. Easy to make, delicious. Very nice.
My new favorite bread!! The perfect texture too. I am going to make these for holiday gifts!
We had this last Thanksgiving and it was one of the crowd’s favorites! It is scrumptious and bright. Making this again for Christmas!
Just made this bread the other day and it’s fabulous. At first taste just after it cooled it was good but over several hours the flavors mellowed and now it’s one of my favorite breads ever. I think I’ll freeze the few remaining slices to prevent my eating them all up too quickly.
I’m going to make mini loaves and give them out for holiday gifts. Thanks so much for this recipe!
Can craisins be used?
The bread consistency won’t be the same with dried cranberries.