Cranberry Thanksgiving

Cranberry Thanksgiving by Harry Devlin is one of our all time favorite books. It's witty, classic and has a great life lesson in the end. As part of the story Grandma's famous secret cranberry bread recipe is revealed. It's a wonderful recipe and we cook it every year for Thanksgiving and Christmas. While I know this is top secret and all, I am going to divulge the secret recipe so that you can cook your own. I highly recommend the book -- for several years my mother came into our schools and read the story to our classrooms and brought along some cranberry bread to serve. I have carried on the tradition with my children.

Grandma's Secret Cranberry Bread Recipe

• 2 C Flour
• 1 C Sugar
• 1 1/2 t baking powder
• 1 t salt
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 1/4 C butter
• 1 egg beaten
• 1 t grated orange peel
• 3/4 C orange juice
• 1 1/2 C chopped cranberries
• We have always added in 1 C chopped pecans or walnuts when you add the berries.

Sift dry ingredients together. Cut in butter until crumbly. Add egg, orange peel, and orange juice. Stir until evenly moist (but don't over mix). Fold in berries. Bake 350 degrees for 1 hour until toothpick comes out clean. (in buttered loaf pan)

Other quick bread tips I've learned:

• Doneness tips: when there is a crack at the top of the loaf and edges are starting to pull away from the pan.
• Leave cooked bread in pan for 10 minutes until removing from pan.

Enjoy!