January 27, 2011

Banana-Orange-Cranberry Bread


As soon as I saw cream cheese as an ingredient I was hooked.  I first saw this recipe on What's Cookin' Italian Style.   I also loved the sound of the combination of banana, orange, and cranberry.  If you get a chance take a look at this site.  I am amazed that there is a new recipe every day, which I could only dream about.



I decided that I would take the opportunity to use some Ocean Spray Craisins Pomegranate Juice Infused Dried Cranberries.  I don't know if I could really taste the pomegranate, but they may have been a little sweeter.  One thing I did love was the creaminess of the batter for this cake.  You know when you just look at the batter and think yes, this is going to be a good cake.  This was that kind of batter.




Before I knew it had all come together and was ready to be baked.  I loved that it made two loaves, but in hindsight I should have made a double batch.  Not to worry as I always have bananas ready for some toe of bread.




Banana-Orange-Cranberry Bread
(Printer Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients

Bread
  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups bananas, mashed (about 4 medium)
  • 1 cup pecans, chopped, toasted optional
  • 1/4 cup orange juice
  • 2 teaspoons grated orange peel
  • 1 cup of fresh or dried cranberries
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Glaze
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 3 tablespoons orange juice, fresh
  • 1 teaspoon orange rind, grated

Preparation

Bread
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. 
  2. Combine cream cheese, sugar and butter mixing well. 
  3. Blend in bananas and eggs. 
  4. Add remaining ingredients; mix well until moistened. 
  5. Pour into 2 greased and floured pans. 
  6. Bake till toothpick is clean in the center, at least an hour or more depending on the size pan.  
  7. After bread is cooled pour glaze over the top, if desired.

Glaze

  1. Mix together and drizzle over bread.

23 comments:

  1. Hmmmm. Looks so moist and love the combo of orange-cranberry to the banana and the glaze on top? A sensation.

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  2. I totally agree, with cream cheese, banana, cranberries this bread should be really good :)

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  3. I saw this on Claudia's blog and thought that it was so different and sounded really good! I've never used cream cheese in a batter like this but do bet that it would add a nice touch of creaminess to the texture. It looks delicious!

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  4. I love the addition of the cream cheese. Also cranberries, orange and bananas are some of my favorite flavors! Great Pics!

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  5. This bread looks awesome! The banana/orange/cranberry combo sounds so tasty and fresh too!

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  6. Moist,sweet AND tart...the perfect quick bread!

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  7. I love all the flavors in this! Yum!

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  8. Love the flavour combination in your cake. It's nice to see unexpected ingredients like cranberries and citrus, in a banana cake recipe. It looks delicious.

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  9. Yummyyy! I could eat it now for breakfast! Looks really good!

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  10. this sounds delicious. I can't wait to try it!

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  11. Felice, the loaf looks delicious
    cranberries, banana, nuts, cream cheese and orange - all in one bread, lots of flavors that make me hungry only imagining the taste. i'm bookmarking this, try it soon.
    thanks for sharing Felice, hope you'll have a wonderful weekend

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  12. I have used ricotta cheese in cakes but never tried cream cheese though after looking at your cake pic, i really think i should. It looks so soft and moist!

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  13. Sounds like a yummy combo! As always I love breakfast foods! Must try!

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  14. Cream cheese always hooks me too! I love how moist it makes bread...and I love the flavor combination here. Thank you for sharing your recipe with me. I hope you have a Saturday full of relaxation and laughter! We all need it!

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  15. Holy YUM! This is like a cross between a cheesecake and bread ... WOW! I love this recipe - thank you for sharing it with us!

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  16. Oh, Felice!! How wonderful it this?? Liv and I are sitting here wishing we had a piece. I'll be it's perfect with a nice cup of coffee... and I have the perfect coffee to go with it!! =)

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  17. Looks yummy! I love the orange flavor in it. Would be great now with my coffee when watching the snow outside.

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  18. OMG your combinations are fantastic...keep it up

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  19. Mmmm...it looks so moist and flavorful. Wish a had some right now!

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  20. This looks wonderful- definitely bookmarking to try with all my bananas. I love the combined flavors and the cream cheese.
    http://homestyleworldcook.blogspot.com

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  21. Gorgeous bread--I love the sunny orange glaze. ;-)

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