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,
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.
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72 comments:
I'm sorry to hear that this bread didn't meet your expectations! Nonetheless, it looks lovely.
Cheers,
Rosa
You win some, you lose some and you learn along the way - props for still posting it up there.
Ah well, at least it was pretty, and it sounded pretty edible too. I think it's something I would have done tooo (the pureeing part), so thanks for the forewarning :)
That bites the big one.. you'd think they would have a better choice of recipe to promote their product, huh?
It happens. Worth the try, don't you think? It could have been a dream recipe...all the good stuff is in there. And it sure LOOKS good.
All part of the process:-) recently had a failed gluten free mufffin - meh. Shows we are all only human. BTW got complaints that one of my pics wasn't showing-fixed now thanks for commmenting:-)
Boo, hate that when things don't come out as good as you want them to! The flavor combo sounds yummy though!
kepp on experimenting Grace. There are just as many successes in the kitchen as there are disappointments.
Oh bummer ! I hate it when things don't turn out in my kitchen... but then again , I squeal with delight when I discover something fabulous and add it to our 'FAVORITES AT THE COZY KITCHEN'...
I am going to try your cinnamon roll cake.
I made Clone of the Cinnabon over the weekend, and they turned out fabby.
I will have to try the Pioneer woman version that you posted...
they look good too !
This tart little beauty would be right up my alley! But then again I'm a sucker for anything cranberry.
Slather with honey?
Argh! I hate when I bake for naught. I'm thinking...maybe toast it and slather with sweetened cream cheese?
I do hate it when a recipe fails to meet my expectations. Tart could be good. I like the previous comment and add cream cheese. Hats off to you for posting it!
Aw, too bad! Did you think of slathering it in maple butter or maple syrup? Or as bread pudding with some added sugar! Well, it's really pretty anyways!
Bummer, back to the drawing board
LOL, love how you tell in the recipe that this is a bad idea. :)
~ingrid
Funny. I recently made a blueberry rhubarb crumble that was nearly inedible. Kudos to you for posting even what you did not love!
Ahh what a shame Grace-it sounded like it had potential there!
I love that you still share things that didn't come out quite like you wanted...usually I curse, throw it out, and then generally never share it with the world.
Too bad it didn't turn out as you wanted....I've had things go wrong so many times and it's always frustrating.
At least the successes far out weigh the failures! :)
Looks can be deceiving, huh? Sorry it was too tart and gummy but I love the look of it.
It looks delicious!!!!Sorry, you didn't like it!!!!!
Too tart is a bummer... at least it looks really pretty!
Mistakes are never a bad thing, though, especially in baking and cooking. We learn so much from them. And sometimes, just sometimes, they magically result in something incredible that we never even planned on.
Oh I have had my share of flops too. That is how I learn a lesson for next time. Pretty color though!
Your photo actually makes it look like it was tasty! I'd probably still like it since it was so tart! But, since you don't recommend the recipe, I'll wait for one of your huge successes!
aww sorry it didn't work out for you! hate when that happens :(
Huge bummer - but you can console yourself knowing the loaf has the prettiest color of any bread I've ever seen!
Glad you show us your experiments. We can learn, too.
You're so brave to post your failures. I throw them out and sulk.
I'm glad to know you're human! It seems like just about everything you touch in your kitchen turns to gold... or I guess more appropriately, "turns to fabulously baked goodness!" Proceed, please. Thanks for visiting my blog too- I feel so special- you are famous to me! We're the same age! Fun we love to do the same thing! Wish you could live next door and you could advise me... or better still I could sample what you make. Yesss... that. :)
It's so frustrating when something doesn't turn out as planned in the kitchen. It's such a tease when something looks and smells good but the taste doesn't meet expectations, isn't it? I have to say though, the color of this bread is gorgeous!
Sorry that this one did not work for you...although it looks pretty :-)
Alas, indeed. Oh, well. Not every recipe can be a winner. Onward and upward :).
The picture looks much more like cake rather than bread. Condolences on the frustrating fail. Been there, done that, ate it, too.
You never know unless you try.
Mimi
ooh pink bread! I want a slice of the sugar cookie dough pizza...
I HATE it when that happens. But if it's edible I guess it isn't a complete loss. (That's what kills. The wasting of all that good food!) But I've totally been there.
I would just plop some whipped cream on it and voilà! Perfect!
Love cranberries but too much of a good thing is not good I can see.
I don't know Grace ... I'd still eat it :) Thanks for sharing your disasters along with your amazing successes!
xoxoxox
Denalee
what if you made that bread into french toast? (it seems to be the answer to all, errr....most bread disasters). I think you have a good thing here...keep trying and I'm sure you'll find it :)
Oh dear! Well, at least you were trying out something new. I once forgot sugar all together in chocolate, chocolate chip cookies. They had to become a cookies and cream cheesecake crust instead....Besides, I love the pink color!
Don't you just hate it when a recipe doesn't work out? At least it wasn't inedible!
That certainly is pretty and a great concept! Maybe it would be good in some bread pudding? Or covered in some sweet cream cheese or frosting?
It's too bad it didn't taste as good as it looked! I wouldn't give up hope - maybe you can tweak it and improve and share with us in the future!
I added you cause your name is Grace also and I also am on the discovery of learning to cook! So don't worry if you have disasters! However this doesn't look like one! It looks yummy!
That's too bad it didn't turn out as you'd hoped but I commend you for so adventurous! I was thinking you could maybe turn it into a bread pudding, as Joanna said.
I'm sorry it didn't work out because the color is amazing....i've had many diasters
sweetlife
Aw well, that's how you learn! The flavours sound awesome though - cranberry and orange will always play well together.
It looks good, so at least there's that! :)
Sorry to hear about your failed experiment. But it looks good to me, just tell others it's a super moist cake!
Sorry it didn't work out for you, but what's life without a few failures, right? I find cranberries to be too tart for me as well.
What a shame! It really is a beautiful color. Oh well, at least its refreshing to see that even well accomplished bakers, such as yourself, sometimes have mishaps in the kitchen. Thanks for sharing!
bummer :(
hate it when that happens to me.
its just one of those times.
ah well.
love how it looks though :)
Of course I'm reading this as my own "experiment" is in the oven. Mine involves a pureed rhubarb/strawberry mixture in a cupcake, lol. If it weren't for our little experiments, life would be pretty boring, wouldn't it? At least your bread looks lovely. My flops aren't nearly as photogenic.
There are sour grapes and there are sour cranberries.
I too have found that I really need to heed the call of my inner chef and baker. It's funny how you kinda have a feeling and then you are right.
I'm sorry it didn't turn out good for you, it still looks good to me though, you can ship it to me, LOL
"Festive but flawed" pretty much describes every holiday in my family.
Sorry it wasn't a favorite!
The idea is great, sorry it wasnt a hit for you!
Well, you tried! That's part of the fun of baking, right?
It sounds like it was a great plan. The cranberry and orange flavors would make me happy, and the chunks of walnuts look great in there!
it happens! the bread still looks extremely tasty and full of potential though =)
Well, there's always a next time! The bread still looks very charming to me.
Hi
Unfortunately I have some sad news about Rosie from Baking Cakes Galore, Rosie passed away yesterday. I have written up a tribute to her on my blog and I am asking everyone who knew her if they would please take some time to leave a comment. I will be printing off all the comments to pass onto her husband.
Thanks
Maria
x
May 20, 2010 4:00 AM
Don't you hate experimenting and failing? So frustrating!
Although this bread was not up to your expectations, it does look lovely and delicious. It's hard when I experiment with a recipe and it doesn't work. I know...it's very frustrating.
Anyway, you have some nice flavors in here, and you always come up with great desserts, Grace. I always say, try again next time, right?!
Ha!! I love that you posted this anyway! Someone out there would love this Cream of Cranberry bread, heck it would probably be me! xo
I love the idea of a cranberry/orange bread. It looks good to me! I'd just warm it a bit in the microwave, slather on some cream cheese, and plop that sucker right in my mouth. Mmmm, I can taste it now! :-)
Flawed or not this looks delicious to me!!
Welllll... at least it looks pretty!
It looks so pretty, I'm sorry it was too tart :(
Kudos to you for staying the course no matter what the outcome.
It looks pretty darn good to me. Sometimes, I think, when you have one particular taste on your mind, nothing else will do.
I do hope you will try to replicate that sugar cookie pizza again. It sounds yummy!
Thanks for sharing, Grace...
Great idea, Grace. Sorry it didn't work out. The pizza idea has loads of potential too. Hope you work that one out and post it soon. : )
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