festive but flawed

This loaf of bread had such potential. It could've been a star--perfectly pink, terrifically tasty, and oh-so-festive. Alas, things don't always work out as we hope.

See, once upon a time, I had a sugar cookie pizza topped with sweetened cream cheese and a cranberry-orange relish that totally rocked my world. Having blissfully recalled that treat, I decided to incorporate some cranberry-orange relish into a recipe for cranberry nut bread that I had recently seen.

The original recipe called for orange juice and chopped cranberries, but my experiment involved the orange juice and cranberries (and a bit of orange zest) being pureed to within an inch of their lives and folded into the batter. Even before baking, I could tell I was headed down a dangerous road. The batter was uber-thick and a little bit pasty, but I plowed onward (somewhat literally).

The loaf that came out of the oven looked surprisingly lovely and smelled quite appetizing. Sadly, its pretty appearance couldn't make up for the fact that it was extremely tart and not nearly sweet enough for my tastes. The texture was weird too--a little gummy, but not completely off-putting. All in all, although entirely edible and, some might argue, tasty, this is not something I'd recommend or repeat.

Cream of Cranberry Bread
(inspired by this recipe)

2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup orange juice, freshly-squeezed (but not pureed with cranberries)(bad idea)
1 tablespoon grated orange peel
2 tablespoons shortening
1 egg, well beaten
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, pureed coarsely chopped
1 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.
Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda in a medium mixing bowl. Stir in orange juice, orange peel, shortening, and egg. Mix until well-blended. Stir in cranberries (coarsely-chopped, mind you)(not pureed) and nuts. Spread evenly in loaf pan.

Bake for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes.