Cranberry Bread

All who know me know that I am not a fan of cooking. It's just not my thing - I'm not very good at it, I don't enjoy it, and preparing a meal is more of a chore to me than a pleasing thing to do. I do cook, or we would go broke eating out every meal, but like I said, it's not my favorite thing to do. Sometimes I do bake - I'm better at that - but always from a mix. I'm especially good at a Bundt cake or a pan of brownies.

HOWEVER, once a year I reach to the back of my pantry and pull out the scratch and make homemade cranberry bread. It's that time of year. I made the first loaf of the season yesterday and it turned out great - I gave half the loaf to D, and the kids and I ate the rest! So I'll be making more today. It's an easy recipe - I've had it for years and it's certainly not secret. I got it off the back of a book I had as a child called Cranberry Thanksgiving. I tweaked it a bit because I don't care for nuts or raisins, but my version is pretty close. And quite delicious, I must say. So, faithful readers, today I share my cranberry bread recipe with you:

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup butter or margarine

1 egg, beaten

3/4 cup orange juice

2 cups fresh cranberries, chopped

Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda into a large bowl. Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Add egg and orange juice all at once; stir just until mixture is evenly moist. Fold in cranberries. Spoon into a greased 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 10 minutes (check at one hour), or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from pan, cool and enjoy!