Take pumpkin bread to the next level with the addition of fresh cranberries! This Cranberry Pumpkin Bread combines moist, sweet Pumpkin Bread with tart, juicy cranberries in a delicious quick bread that’s completely worthy of a place at your holiday table!
If there’s one thing that’s a MUST on my fall baking list, it’s pumpkin bread. I know, I know… could I be any more basic? But the truth is, not all pumpkin breads are created equal. And when it comes to THIS pumpkin bread? It’s anything but basic.
Not just because it’s packed with tart cranberries and topped with a deliciously sweet cream cheese icing, but because the bread itself is so incredibly perfect. It’s super moist, slightly dense, and PACKED with pumpkin spice flavor.
Of course, the cranberries and icing don’t hurt, either… and they’re the perfect additions to take this recipe from fall to winter. And trust me….once you try it, you’re going to want it for both.
Because as perfect as it would be on your Thanksgiving menu, it would be equally perfect for Christmas. (You can thank the cranberries!)
what you’ll need for this recipe
- Sugar – This recipe starts with 2 cups granulated sugar and 1 cup light brown sugar. Keep in mind, this is for 2 loaves! If you’d like to use less sugar, decrease the amount to 1 1/2 cups granulated and 3/4 cup brown.
- Oil – 3/4 cup vegetable or canola oil makes this bread incredibly moist and flavorful. Substitute the same amount of unsalted butter, melted, if you prefer.
- Baking soda & powder – I added 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and 1 teaspoon baking powder for leavening.
- Salt – 1 teaspoon salt balances the sweetness and brings out all the delicious flavors.
- Spices – I used a combination of fall spices, including 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon allspice, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, and 1/2 teaspoon ginger. Feel free to add ground cloves, adjust the amounts, or use pumpkin pie spice instead of individual spices.
- Pumpkin – I added one can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree for plenty of pumpkin flavor.
- Eggs – I used 2 large eggs to help give this bread a rich, smooth texture.
- Flour – Flour is what gives this bread structure. I used 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour. To make this recipe gluten free, use a 1:1 gluten free flour.
- Water – I used 1/3 cup water to thin out the batter. Replace half with orange juice for a bright citrus flavor twist.
- Cranberries – I added 2 cups fresh cranberries to the batter before baking.
- Icing – Although this bread is delicious all on its own, I decided to add a cream cheese icing to finish it off. See the recipe for ingredients and instructions!
how to make pumpkin cranberry bread
Combine sugars & oil. In a large bowl, combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and oil. Beat at low speed until well blended.
Add the leavening & spices. Add baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices. Beat until well blended.
Add the pumpkin & eggs. Add the pumpkin puree and eggs. Beat until well blended.
Add the flour, water, and cranberries. Add the flour and water and stir just until blended. Fold in the fresh cranberries.
Bake. Pour the batter into two greased 5×9 inch loaf pans. Bake at 375° for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven; cool 10 minutes in pan, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
Frost. Combine icing ingredients and whisk until smooth. Spoon icing over bread. *Icing recipe can be doubled according to taste.
Recipe Variations
- Use dried cranberries in place of fresh
- Add chopped walnuts, pecans, or any of your favorite nuts
- Substitute pumpkin pie spice for the individual spices
- Use a lighter glaze like this powdered sugar icing in place of cream cheese icing
- Substitute chocolate chips or white chocolate chips for the cranberries
- Replace half of the water with orange juice
- Make mini loaves by separating the batter into three 5-inch loaf pans
- Make muffins by baking the batter in muffin tins
More Pumpkin Recipes You’ll Love
Looking to try some more delicious pumpkin recipes? These are some or our tried and true favorites!
Cranberry Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients
Pumpkin Bread
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 15 ounce can pumpkin puree
- 2 large eggs
- 3 1/2 cups flour
- 1/3 cup water
- 2 cups fresh cranberries
Cream Cheese Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 ounces cream cheese softened
- 2 teaspoons milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vegetable oil. Beat at low speed until blended.
- Add baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices. Beat until blended.
- Add pumpkin and eggs. Beat until blended.
- Add flour and water and stir just until blended.
- Stir in cranberries.
- Pour batter into two greased 5×9 inch loaf pans.
- Bake for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove from oven; cool 10 minutes in pan, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Combine icing ingredients and mix until smooth. Spoon icing over bread. *Icing recipe can be doubled according to taste.
- Store bread at room temperature in a covered container or wrapped in foil.
Notes
Recipe Variations
- Use dried cranberries in place of fresh
- Add chopped walnuts, pecans, or any of your favorite nuts
- Substitute pumpkin pie spice for the individual spices
- Use a lighter glaze like this powdered sugar icing in place of cream cheese icing
- Substitute chocolate chips or white chocolate chips for the cranberries
- Replace half of the water with orange juice
- Make mini loaves by separating the batter into three 5-inch loaf pans
- Make muffins by baking the batter in muffin tins
This is such a genius flavor combo!
Its absolutely gorgeous!! Perfect for the holidays!!
This was great! A great combo with my morning coffee. Thanks for sharing!
What a beautiful bread (that frosting!), and I loooove the addition of cranberries! This will be so pretty on a holiday dessert table, or the next morning with a BIG cup of coffee!
Is there nutrition content available?
Can frozen cranberries be used ? If so is it the exact same amount 2 cups ?
I am looking forward to trying this .
Should the cranberries be chopped. The recipe does not tell you.
I did not chop them, no.
Can you add nuts ? How much would you add ? What kind are best walnuts or pecans ?
I was wondering the same thing! Pecans sound good to add!
Pecans would be delicious! I would add 1 cup chopped 🙂
Hi!
I added 1 cup and also on top of the icing I speeded some chopped nuts & cranberries. Hope it helps
This is such a perfect bread for the fall and for the holiday season! It looks amazing too! 🙂
Love this recipe. I need to start baking again soon!
I love everything about this bread!
I made this yesterday. I ended up making a big loaf and then poured the rest in an 8×8. I took the loaf yesterday to work and everyone devoured it! They loved it. So I decided to bring the smaller pan today to our Pre-Thanksgiving Day work potluck and they were a happy crowd! Thanks for the great recipe!
So glad everyone enjoyed it, Bethany!
Just finished making this wonderful Cranberry Pumpkin Bread for Christmas. So delicious and the cream cheese frosting..decadent!
Can you freeze the frosted bread?
Ok to sub butter for oil?
This turned out simply amazing!!! Will def make this again!!
So happy to hear this!
OMG! Delicious!!
Made it last year a few times! Can’t wait to make it again tonight for my co-workers to have in the morning!!
Hi – I love this recipe so much! I’ve made it as described AND vegan. For all my vegan friends, or anyone looking to cut some calories, swap the 2 eggs for 1/2 c unsweetened applesauce. Swap the cream cheese for Tofutti cream cheese substitute, the butter with dairy free margarine (I use vegan “I can’t believe it’s not butter”. 🙂 And voila, it’s vegan!
Hi I was wondering if you can omit the brown sugar and double the granulated?
I would like the calorie count grams of sugar, and fat along with the protein amount in both of these loaves, I’m on weight watchers and we count points, I can figure out how many points per serving if I had this information. Thanks both of these look wonderful.
I made this and added chocolate chips(with the cranberries) and it turned out perfect! The texture is just right with a nice warm flavor.
Absolutely delicious! I didn’t frost it because I was out of cream cheese. While I’m sure the frosting would be wonderful, this bread is great on its own. Thanks for the recipe!
Can you sub dried cranberries for the fresh?
I put some homemade vanilla in it (from tahitian beans) and doubled down on the spices. Also swapped out fresh squeezed OJ for the water.
I had fresh local baking pumpkins and cranberries so a good recipe to put those all to work in one item!
Made it a second time today and took slices over to my neighbors. They were like, “Homemade? Organic!!!” Yeah, was a big hit.
Just made the bread, it is delicious. Does it need to be kept in the refrigerator because of the cream cheese glaze? Covered?
Yes, it should be kept covered and stored in the refrigerator. Glad you enjoyed it!
Have you tried coursley chopping the fresh cranberries before adding to the batter? If so, did it work out okay? I am hoping I can find somebody who tried this, otherwise I may be the first to attempt this twist.
I haven’t, but I think it would work well!
This was amazing. Everyone loved it. Cranberries and pumpkin are a perfect combo.
So easy and delicious. I love the way the tart cranberries accent the sweet base. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
So happy you enjoyed it!
Hi there, I made this wonderful bread and brought it to my Sunday school class, they loved it! But I’m just wondering, would it be possible to roll the cranberries in sugar before adding to the batter? I did get one comment on the “tartiness” of the cranberries in the bread,what do you think?
Yes, I think that rolling them in sugar is a great idea! You may need to do something like this (possibly using less sugar) in order to get the sugar to stick: https://www.lemontreedwelling.com/sugared-cranberries/
I made this cranberry pumpkin bread and it was wonderful!!
Just made this for New Year’s breakfast. Love the pumpkin spice flavor and that pop of sweet/sour of the fresh cranberries is “chef’s kiss”. Been wanting to make all season and was perfect with coffee. Thank you
Hi can you substitute dried cranberries. They are not in season @ my supermarket chain.
Yes, you can! I would suggest soaking them so they’re a bit softer/plumper. To do this, just place them in a bowl and cover them with boiling water, then let them soak for 10-15 minutes. Remove them from the water onto a paper towel to remove any excess liquid, then add them to the recipe.
Great recipe.
I made a gluten free version and is was just as good as the gluten version. Cupcakes or (if you are like me, and can’t seem to get breads to bake through without drying out the outside) a Bundt pan is perfect. Makes for a pretty presentation as well.
I made this for my neighborhood Christmas gift and it went over BIG. Even the people who don’t like cranberries enjoyed this.
Great recipe! I made a batch of cupcakes/muffins, using gluten free flour (for my GF friend) and she said they were outstanding. Also made (regular recipe) loaves (but in a bundt pan) for Christmas gifts last year and they were a huge hit.
So glad to hear this!
This Cranberry Pumpkin Bread sounds absolutely delicious! I love the combination of flavors, and it’s perfect for fall. Can’t wait to try this recipe for the upcoming holiday gatherings! Thank you for sharing!