Many of you have asked where in the world I've been.

All I know is that after 7 plus years of blogging and a different lappy, which I don’t like, I seem to have lost my blogging fervor.

Someday, when you least expect it, I will post again.

For those of you still waiting I say thank you.

Meanwhile, I am rather prolific on twitter. Find me: @KeethaB
.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Eclectic Company - Waitin' on a New Adventure!!
.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Thankful for Cranberries

.
 
Today I am thankful for cranberries.

Ah yes, you may think, cranberries and Thanksgiving.   And while many folks enjoy some form of cranberries on Thanksgiving, that is not my main reason for being thankful for them.

Nope - - - I have a better reason than that.

I am thankful for cranberries because they are a MAJOR player in the economic health of our county.

This is paper and cranberry country.

Our paper industry has been forced to pare down to the bone, but cranberry marshes are still alive and well.

I've posted before, here and here, about the fact that our county is the largest producer of cranberries world wide.   And our economy is THANKFUL for those tart little red berries.

Very thankful.
.

But I AM also thankful for cranberries to EAT at Thanksgiving.

I'm not much of a fan of cranberry sauce, but I do love me some cranberry bread.  I'm going to give you a recipe for an easy and tasty variety.

1 2-layer size white cake mix
1 small package of vanilla instant pudding
4 eggs
1/4 cup oil
Zest of one orange
Juice of one orange
Enough water added to the orange juice to total one cup of liquid
1 1/2 cups of fresh or frozen cranberries, halved
1 4 oz package of chopped pecans (or walnuts)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, cream the eggs and oil until smooth.
Add the cake mix and pudding mix and blend until dampened through.
Pour in half of the orange juice/water mix.  Blend until smooth.
Add the orange zest.
Slowly add in the rest of the water mixture continuing to blend until everything is smooth.
.
.

Drop in the cranberries and nuts, mixing just enough to cover all the berries and distribute them evenly in the batter.

Grease and flour two bread pans thoroughly.
Divide the batter between the two pans,  smoothing it out until it is even.

Bake at 350 degrees until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
.
.

Place the finished loaves on a cooling rack for a few minutes, slide the blade of a butter knife along the edges to loosen the loaves, then dump them out on the rack to finish cooling.

Now, here's the REALLY important part - - -

Slice a thick generous slice while the bread is still warm from the oven.
Slather on real Wisconsin butter.
Eat before anyone can stop you.

It's Thanksgiving - - - be thankful you can indulge because we are so blessed in America with plenty of food and to spare.
.
.

13 comments:

noexcuses said...

Love them craberries, too! Thanks for the recipe. Can't wait to try it! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Kathy ... aka Nana said...

That sounds like a fantastic recipe! I'm going to give it a try. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

Amanda said...

That bread looks amazing! Thanks for sharing the recipe. I'll add it to my bread recipe collection. MMMMM

Tracy said...

I love cranberries. I'm always fascinated how they harvest them.

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a great recipe! I was just picturing those two guys standing in a sea of cranberries in the commercial. I use cranberries when I decorate for Christmas, in jars with candles. Happy Thanksgiving!

Keri said...

MMMM!!!!!! That looks delicious and now I wish I had that thick slice you're referring to for my BREAKFAST! :)

Karla Cook @ Roads to Everywhere said...

A-ha! Is that a domestic gene I see peeking out there?

I've already done my Thanksgiving grocery shopping or I might just have to add that to the menu. Let's see... maybe I need to go to the store again...

Linda @ A La Carte said...

I love that cranberries are a great thing for the economy and yes I love them to eat! This is a great recipe! Now if my oven only worked!
hugs, Linda

podso said...

This looks delicious. I recently made some cranberry lemon bread that was also good. Maybe I should "pin" this so I don't forget it. Have a nice day tomorrow!

Sandy said...

Love Cranberries...My mom used to make a cranberry cake from scratch and then when hot out of the oven, she would poke around on the top and then pour over a butter and powdered sugar glaze that dripped into the holes in the top....Lost the recipe and Mom has been gone for almost 18 yrs. So, this recipe of yours will take it's place tomorrow...
Thanks for posting it....
Have a Blessed Thanksgiving..
Love from NC

Misti said...

Keri: Put a candle in that imaginary slab of cranberry bread, light it and listen to us sing "Happy Birthday To You!" Make a wish, blow out the candle and enjoy the treat!! Love you!

Keetha - what are your Thanksgiving plans this year?

Debby@Just Breathe said...

So easy and sounds so delicious.
Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Happy Thanksgiving!

Vidya Sury said...

Did I just close my eyes and imagine I was munching a bite off that thick warm slice of bread slathered with butter? Oh yes, I could live with that! Thank you!