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Double Chocolate Chip Cranberry Bread

Double Chocolate Chip Cranberry Bread
Fresh cranberries can be a great ingredient to work with, and not just when you want to make cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving dinner. The berries have a vivid red color and a bright, tart flavor that goes well with all kinds of different flavors, from chocolate to toasted coconut. People don’t seem to reach for cranberries as often as blueberries, raspberries and other popular berries, but I definitely try to take advantage of fresh cranberries in the fall and winter when they’re widely available.

Double Chocolate Chip Cranberry Bread is a great recipe for fans of chocolate and cranberries. The bread has a good chocolate flavor, a soft and slightly cake-like crumb, and plenty of zesty cranberries scattered throughout to liven up each bite. There are also a generous number of chocolate chips in this bread, so you get a double dose of chocolate. This is a great bread to serve at a brunch with coffee, but it is so simple to put together that it is a good recipe to make without a special occasion just to enjoy at home.

This bread keeps well for several days when stored in an airtight container. It is very good served at room temperature, but becomes quite decadent when you warm up a slice slightly (10 seconds or so in the microwave is usually enough) because the chocolate chips become melted and the bread turns into a rich dessert! I prefer using fresh cranberries in this bread when I have them, but frozen berries will work too. Frozen berries should not be defrosted before adding them into the recipe and the bread may need an extra minute or two in the oven.

Double Chocolate Chip Cranberry Bread
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup milk (any kind)
1 cup whole cranberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
In a small, microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter. Whisk cocoa powder into the butter while it is warm, making sure to fully dissolve it. Allow butter to cool for several minutes.
In a large bowl, whisk together the butter mixture and the sugar. Whisk in the egg and the vanilla extract until smooth. Stir in half of the flour mixture, followed by the milk. Add in the remaining flour mixture and stir until just until all the dry ingredients are combined and no streaks of flour remain. Fold in cranberries and chocolate chips.
Pour into prepared loaf pan and spread into an even layer.
Bake for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn the loaf out of the pan and onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.

Makes 1 loaf; serves 12.

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7 Comments
  • katie
    December 24, 2011

    Looks gorgeous and very moist. Have a wonderful Christmas

  • Anna
    December 24, 2011

    Merry Christmas, Nicole!

  • Curt
    December 24, 2011

    Wow, this looks incredibly tempting. This is definitely my kinda snack food!

  • WineDineDaily
    December 25, 2011

    Chocolate and Cranberry – sounds delicious.
    Merry Christmas!

  • Cindy
    December 25, 2011

    I made this yesterday for dessert for dinner today – needed something chocolate and my daughter happened to look at the computer when I was checking your blog and said it looked really good. It was!

  • Marcela
    November 22, 2012

    I have made this two times. Every time is received with success! Had to make a few changes: I use 1 cup all purpose flour and 3/4 whole wheat extremely well sifted. Also, I use soy milk, 1/3 cocoa powder (Hershey’s) and 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup powdered stevia. It tastes very good!
    Thank you for sharing this <3

  • EDawgATL
    January 12, 2015

    Made this last night, with a few tweaks: used a muffin and mini muffin pan, which baked faster and made great kid-sized breakfast bites, and good portion control for yours truly! I used white whole wheat flour, 2/3 c. agave in place of white sugar, dark chocolate cocoa powder, skim milk, and 1/3 c. mini chocolate chips. I think next time I might add in some walnuts too and maybe sub flax seed for the egg. I made these for the kids for breakfast and for me to tote to work as a midmorning snack, so I wanted to be mindful about calories and sugar and also pack in some extra fiber. These were a hit – I will definitely experiment with additional add-ons. I came across this recipe because I got some cranberries from our CSA and wasn’t sure what to do with them.

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