KosherEye.com
Excerpted from Food Swap © 2016 by Emily Paster.
Photos © Michael Piazza Photography.
Used with permission by Storey Publishing.
Makes 3 Miniature Loaves
I buy quarts of fresh Wisconsin cranberries in the fall and freeze them to use throughout the winter months. I love cranberries in baked goods because of the way that they retain their shape and turn bright scarlet. They are tart, however, so feel free to add a little more sugar if you prefer sweeter baked goods.
I am a nut for streusel. I like to finish my baked goods with a sweet, crumbly topping wherever possible. I make mine in the food processor because I find that it is the most effective way to break up the butter, but you can use a pastry blender if you prefer. This recipe makes much more streusel than you need, so plan to freeze the excess and save it for another use.
Ingredients
For the topping
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) cold butter cut into cubes
For the quick breads
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Zest of 1 orange
½ cup sour cream
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
Directions
Note: To bake these miniature loaves, you can choose to invest in a set of miniature loaf pans of approximately 5 3/4 inches by 3 inches. They are typically sold in sets of three or four and cost under $20. Oven-safe paper bakeware also works.
To make the streusel topping, combine the flour, sugar, brown sugar, and salt in a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Add the butter and pulse 25 to 30 times until the butter is in gravel-size pieces and the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Put in the freezer until ready to use.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and grease three miniature loaf pans.
To make the quick breads, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
In the bowl of a standing mixer, cream the oil and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, the vanilla, and the orange zest, scraping down the bowl as necessary, and mix until combined.
Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the sour cream, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, and mixing each just until combined.
Fold in the cranberries by hand so as not to crush them.
Divide the batter evenly among the three prepared pans.
Top each pan with one-third of the streusel topping.
Bake until the top of each loaf is golden and a tester inserted in the middle comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool the loaves on a wire rack before removing them from the pans.
Notes
Packaging
Cut pieces of cardboard to fit the bottom of each loaf. Place the loaves on the cardboard and wrap in plastic or festive paper.