Sweet Cranberry Soda Bread #BreadBakers

Baked with brown sugar and dried cranberries, this sweet cranberry soda bread is delightful as part of a dessert course cheese board. Or all on its own.

This last month of the year, our Bread Baker theme is dessert bread, thanks to our fellow Bread Baker and host, Swathi. 

Her challenge to the group was "Bake any sweet bread, whether yeast, sourdough, or quick version. It will be wonderful to see if you come up with a dessert bread for Christmas. Show your creativity."

Well, my favorite dessert course is actually a cheese platter so I’m always delighted when that is on a restaurant menu. Even better is when they wheel out a special cart and I can choose the few cheeses for my platter. Heaven!

With that in mind, I’ve created a loaf that is slightly sweet, with sweetened dried cranberries as a nod to the Christmas season, that would be perfect to enjoy either plain with butter or with a cheese board as your savory dessert option. 

Sweet Cranberry Soda Bread

If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, an easy substitute is 2 teaspoons of white vinegar added to the measuring cup, then topped up with milk to the required 3/4 cup or 80ml line. Stir and let it rest while you get started with the recipe. 

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups or 312g flour, plus extra for dusting and kneading

1/3 cup, packed, or 66g light brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter (cut into pieces)

3/4 cup or 100g sweetened dried cranberries, plus a few more for topping

3/4 cup or 80ml buttermilk

1 large egg

Method

Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat your oven to 400℉ or 200°C. Line a heavy baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and the butter piece. Pulse until butter is incorporated and small crumbles are formed.

Pour the flour/butter mixture into a large bowl. Add in the cranberries and use your clean hands to separate the sticky cranberries from each other. 

Add the buttermilk and egg.

Mix until the flour is completely moistened. 

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. 

Knead gently 5 to 10 times, dusting flour lightly onto dough if it’s too sticky. Knead just until the dough comes together and is smooth.

Shape into a round then poke a few extra cranberries into the top of the loaf. 

Transfer to the prepared baking sheet. With a sharp knife, slash the top with a large X about ½ in or 1 cm deep. 

Dust the top lightly with a little flour.

Bake until the loaf is golden brown and crusty, 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the X comes out clean. 

Serve warm or at room temperature, preferably as part of a special holiday cheese board.

Enjoy!

It’s the second Tuesday of the month which means, as I mentioned above, it’s time for my Bread Baker friends to share their dessert bread recipes. Many thanks to our host, Swathi of Zesty South Indian Kitchen. Check out the links below 

• Eggnog Babka Knots by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Coconut Pandan Babka by A Messy Kitchen
• Gingerbread by Palatable Pastime
• Sourdough Sweet Potato Loaf by Zesty South Indian Kitchen
• Sweet Cranberry Soda Bread by Food Lust people Love
• Eggless Oats Litchi Loaf by Sneha's Recipe
• Sourdough Zucchini Bread by A Day in the Life on the Farm

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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Pear Crisps

A delightful baked snack and so easy to make, these pear crisps are crunchy, naturally sweet and flavorful. Put out a bowl and watch them disapPEAR. 🍐

Every holiday season, we are gifted with a box of apples, oranges and pears. The apples and oranges get eaten but often the pears languish in the refrigerator since they aren’t really anyone’s favorite fruit. 

But now I’ve found a way to make sure they are enjoyed! Thinly sliced on a mandoline and baked in a slow oven, they come out crispy and delicious. Plus, bonus! If they don’t get eaten right away, they are good for quite a while, stored in an airtight container. 

Pear Crisps

These don’t have any additional ingredients because adding sugar, even a sprinkle, tends to make the pear slices sticky and harder to get crispy. You could add a sprinkle of ground cinnamon which doesn’t affect the moisture levels, if you are so inclined. 

Ingredients

Just-ripe firm pears  – I bake two at a time which fit nicely on my two large pans, once sliced

Method

Preheat your oven to 248°F/230°F fan or 120°C/100°C fan and prepare your baking pans by lining them with baking parchment or silicone liners. 

Trim the bottom of the pears. 

Hold the stem end of each pear and slice (about 1mm thick) as uniformly as possible. This is easiest with a mandoline. You will end up with the little stem ends as the cook’s bonus to eat while the slices bake. 

Lay out the pear slices on the prepared baking pans ensuring that none of the slices are overlapping.

Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, turn the pear slices over and return them to the oven for a further 1 hour. 

After they have finished cooking, turn the oven off but leave the pans in the oven for a further hour so the pear slices become fully crisp. 

Once completely cooled, the pear crisps should be stored in an airtight container, to keep them crunchy.

Enjoy! 

It’s Sunday FunDay and today we celebrating National Pear Month. Many thanks to our host, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. Check out the links below. 

• Arugula and Pear Salad from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Brûléed Posset-Filled Pears from Culinary Cam
• Gluten free Frangipane Pear Tarts from Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
• Pear and Cherry Sourdough Bread from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Pear Crisps from Food Lust People Love
• Protein Packed Winter Veggies & Fruit Salad from Sneha's Recipe
• Roasted Pear & Beet Salad from Amy's Cooking Adventures

 

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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Yamitsuki Addictive Cabbage

Yamitsuki addictive cabbage, made with furikake seaweed seasoning, sesame oil, rice vinegar and salt, is a dish that is somehow way more than the sum of its parts. It's so good!

Like chai tea, shrimp scampi, naan bread and ghee butter, the title of this dish is repetitive but that’s how it is sometimes in English when the words are foreign. My excuse is that this recipe is adapted from one in New York Times Cooking and yamisuki addictive cabbage is what they called it. 

Yamitsuki means addictive in Japanese so this cabbage is doubly addictive by name, if not in practice. We did love it but to say it is addictive would be a bit much. 

That said, I served it as a side dish with rich, fatty pan-fried salmon and it ably served the purpose it does in Japan at an izakaya – the Japanese equivalent of a pub – where yamitsuki cabbage is said to be a refreshing palate cleanser to balance other richer, fattier foods you might be eating. 

Yamitsuki Addictive Cabbage

As mentioned above, this recipe is adapted from one on New York Times Cooking. 

If you can’t find Taiwanese flathead or Napa cabbage, substitute what fresh green cabbage is available to you. I used Hispi cabbage also known as pointy cabbage.

Ingredients

For the cabbage:

1 lb or 450g cabbage (about ½ head)

1 tablespoon fine sea salt

For the dressing:

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

2 cloves garlic, finely grated

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

For seasoning and garnish:

1 tablespoon furikake seaweed seasoning, or more to taste 

This is made up of nori (seaweed), toasted black and white sesame seeds, salt and sugar.

Method

Remove any wilted leaves from the cabbage. Halve the cabbage through its core and remove the solid white heart of one half. Wrap the other half up and save for another recipe.

Rip the leaves of the cabbage into rough 1 ¼-inch square pieces. Any really thick bits, like the ribs, can be cut out and sliced thinly.

Wash and drain the pieces of the cabbage in a salad spinner in the sink. 

Put the cabbage pieces in a very large bowl and sprinkle them with 1 tablespoon fine sea salt, then crunch and scrunch the leaves with your hands, making sure they’re all separated, well mixed in with the salt, and beginning to soften. Let the salted cabbage sit for 10 minutes.

While the cabbage sits, finely grate the garlic into a smooth paste into a small bowl. 

Whisk the sesame oil, ⅛ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper into the bowl with the garlic.

After 10 minutes, the cabbage should be slightly wilted and taste slightly salty. Test a leaf by rinsing it under running water and tasting it; it should taste like the leaf absorbed some salt. (If not, let it sit for 10 more minutes and then taste again.) 

Put the cabbage pieces in the salad spinner, rinse off the salt under running water, then spin the cabbage dry. Let it sit until you are ready to dress the salad.

When you’re ready to serve the dish, transfer the cabbage to a serving bowl, add the dressing and use two large spoons (or chopsticks) to toss until coated. 

Sprinkle the salad with the furikake seaweed seasoning, again making sure everything is mixed together.

Sprinkle with a little more furikake seaweed seasoning to garnish. 

Enjoy!

Welcome to the 25th edition of Alphabet Challenge 2025, brought to you by the letter Y. Many thanks to Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm for organizing and creating the challenge. Check out all the Y recipes below:

• Dahiwale Aloo Ki Sabzi/Potatoes In Yogurt Sauce from Sneha’s Recipe
• Frozen Yogurt Pie from A Messy Kitchen
• Teriyaki Ahi, Avocado, and Cucumber Salad from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Vegetable Raita | Indian Yogurt Salad from Mayuri’s Jikoni
• Yamitsuki Addictive Cabbage from Food Lust People Love
• Yangzhou Fried Rice from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Yellow Mustard Seed Giardiniera Deviled Eggs from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Yemarina Yewotet Dabo (Ethiopian Honey Bread) from Culinary Cam
• Yogurt Cornbread from Jolene’s Recipe Journal

Here are my posts for the 2025 alphabet challenge, thus far:

A: Roasted Asparagus Soup

B: Blistered Sugar Snap Peas

C. Jersey Royal Chicken Chorizo Traybake 

D. Small Batch Dried Apricot Jam 

E. Whipped Espresso Cream 

F. Fish Sauce Roasted Chicken 

G. Extra Herby Gremolata 

H. Smoked Herring Spread 

I.  Fresh Cherry Ice Cream 

J. Small Batch Strawberry Jam 

K. Kiwi Tomato Feta Salad 

L. Lobster Butter 

M. Milk-Roasted Chicken 

N. Nocciolata Swirl Meringues 

O. Jersey Octopus Ceviche 

P. Easy Pastina Soup 

Q. Shrimp and Quail Egg Garden Salad 

R. Celeriac Mash with Scallop Roe Butter 

S. Fresh Scallop Sashimi 

T. Roasted Chicken Thighs with Stuffing 

U. Umeboshi Calamansi Lime Juice

V. Mirabelle Plum Vodka 

W. Welsh Rarebit Potatoes with Cavolo Nero 

X. Homemade XO Sauce 

Y. Yamitsuki Addictive Cabbage – this post! 

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