Thanksgiving Cranberry Corn Bread
It will soon be American Thanksgiving, so I thought I’d re-post our Thanksgiving Cranberry Corn bread. It’s based on the Portuguese Broa style (page 151 in the book)—it’s the regular Master Recipe, but with 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour taken out and replaced with an equal amount of cornmeal.
Here’s what you need to do. Take about 2 pounds of the Broa dough mentioned above and shape it into a ball; then flatten it with your hands and a rolling pin until it’s about 1/2-inch thick. Sprinkle the dough with 1/3 of a cup of dried cranberries (or 1/2 cup fresh):
Now break out your microzester, and use it to scrape the zest from half an orange…
… now sprinkle that over the cranberries, and then sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of granulated sugar over that…
Now roll it up like a jelly roll… If it sticks to the board as you’re rolling, nudge it off with a dough scraper.
Tuck the ends under to form a ball, flatten it on a work surface, and then, using your hands and a rolling pin, make a disk the right size for a 12-inch cast iron pan. It should be about an inch or inch and a half thick. If you don’t have a cast-iron pan, see below.** This instruction applies to this flattened thanksgiving bread only; you can make loaf breads this way too (freeform or in a pan).
Grease the pan well with butter, lard, bacon grease, or oil (I used olive oil today), and place the dough round in it.
Allow to rest for at least 1 hour and 20 minutes. You’ll get a more open hole structure if you wait two hours.
Put a broiler tray in the oven to dump water to make steam. 20 minutes before baking time, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F if you keep a baking stone in the oven. If you don’ t use a stone, a 5-minute pre-heat is adequate (the stone isn’t required since you’ll bake in the cast-iron).
Just before baking, heat the cast-iron pan over medium heat for 1 or 2 minutes to jump-start the baking process and promote caramelization of the bottom crust. Don’t overdo it–no more than 2 minutes. It will start to sizzle.
Place the pan on a rack near the center of the oven. Pour 1 cup of water into the broiler tray and quickly close the oven door. Depending on the thickness of your loaf and the weight of the pan, baking time will be about 25 minutes.
Carefully turn the hot loaf out of the pan onto a serving plate or cooling rack, or just cut wedges directly out of the pan once it cools. Be careful with the hot cast-iron pan!
You should get a result just like the cover photo. Happy Thanksgiving! Other Thanksgiving recipes:
Stuffing from homemade bread: https://artisanbreadinfive.com/?p=1228
Thanksgiving buns: https://artisanbreadinfive.com/?p=443
Thanksgiving Pumpkin Pie Brioche: https://artisanbreadinfive.com/?p=1209
Roasting Your Own Pumpkins: https://artisanbreadinfive.com/?p=50
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** This bread can be done as a simple free-form loaf right on a baking stone, cookie sheet, or silicone mat (about the same baking time, or in a loaf pan (longer baking time needed). Either way, it’s done at 425 degrees.
I would love to win! I have seen this book around blogland and would love to give it a try.
What a great Christmas gift/giveaway!! I would love to win this package!!! Please enter me in the contest!
I’m definitely on a pumpkin kick lately, so I’ve been reading through your Thanksgiving recipes. This one looks like another tasty option.! Thanks!
5 min. bread is such a lifesaver–love it!
What an awsome give away! Big fan on King Arthur flour and Artisan Bread in 5 minutes. My family loves the bread!!
If it weren’t for Artisan Bread in Five Minutes, I wouldn’t be taking four loaves a week to the Ronald MacDonald House. The process is so much easier now and the bread is delicious! Thanks!
This looks great!
sounds yummy, going to makes some some sort of dressing for thanksgiving this year…
Trying my first batch of AB today, and in looking through the book the cornbread caught my eye so this post is timely and winning the give away would be great. Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Hmm, maybe the holiday cornbread recipe will have to change this year!
Would love to win this!
Love the vegan friendly holiday fare! 🙂
I love King Arthur Flour and it is the only flour I use! I can’t wait to try this bread recipe 🙂 Thanks!
I cannot wait to make this for Thanksgiving! We’re going to be traveling quite a distance and I want to bring something unique and very portable. This wins! I love “Healthy Breads” but don’t have the original book (although I memorized the master recipe after getting it out of the library).
Hooray for cooler weather–what a lovely time to bake bread!
I am just drooling over that package!
Another great recipe. I think I will give it a try. I am having 22 people for Thanksgiving. Planning to make rolls using the Whole Wheat Challah bread.
Wishing luck to all contestants in the contest.
so beautiful so simple…perfect 🙂 this will be on my table soon
recipe looks great! I’ve been on a homemade bagel kick (your recipe of course!) for the past few weeks so it’s probably time to change it up!
Very excited to try this out!
I would love to make our family’s homemade bread!
Recipe looks amazing! Thanks so much!!
Yum, looks wonderful! Will try that.
Please enter me in the contest. Thanks so much!!! Judy Mayer
Love KAF, even though I’ve just moved and will now have to buy it online if I want it! I am already planning to use some of your recipes for Thanksgiving, too!
I love your recipes! Time to make bread!
Looking forward to making the cornbread.
I think I’ll try it with dried cherries, a few almonds and orange zest! I’m not real big on cranberries.
Wow, that bread looks delish! If I win the KAF package, my husband will have to think of something new to get me for Christmas, lol!
Yummy!
This looks really interesting! I’m sure it tastes as good as it looks!
Yippee for contests, KAF, dough whisks, and BREAD!! Thank you!
The recipe sounds great. I’d love to win.
That would solve my current problem–not enough space in the bowl for the rising dough! It’s a real problem for a bread-loving family!
I LOVE cranberry bread and corn bread. Both in the same bread., what could be better? Can’t wait to try your new recipe! Looks delicious 🙂
I love all of your recipes! I make bread from Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day 4 times a week and there are just two of us eating the bread most of the time!
I’m so glad we got a new fridge before I learned of your method. I can fill it up with doughy goodness!
It is no accident I came to your site today! I am demonstrating your books and several of your recipes tonight to a group of ladies who are trying to learn to live frugally. I have loved making the breads and gave away 4 of your books last year to my daughters and family. My oldest daughter was so pleased with the results of her first attempt at bread that she posted pictures on her blog. Thank you for all the work you did to bring this resource to us!
I was planning on using one of your recipes for Thanksgiving and I wasn’t sure which one. This may be it!!
Wow – what a contest!! I’d love to be the winner!
Love the ABin5 cookbook so much I’m giving one away for Christmas. Would be great to have a danish dough whisk!
love your books and share them all the time….thanks so much….
this one our family will try for sure!
Enjoy reading all your posts.
Would love to win the contest.
Thanks for all the work you do! I enjoy trying the different recipes and enjoy the way they taste even more! I have made the sticky buns more than a couple times. Yum!
I”d love to win!!! Thanks!
I love your recipes and ideas!!! Thanks for adding YUMMY fresh bread to my daily life !!!
I’d sure love to win the giveaway! I just bought my 2nd copy of the 1st cookbook to give as a gift…but I need more! Everyone should have that book 🙂
This looks great! Thank you for all the great variations!!
Sounds great. I’ve been wanting to try a broa and it would be perfect for the holiday.
While many other fruits or even nuts would be great in this bread, since cranberries are indigenous to North America, what a great way to recognize an item at Thanksgiving that was likely on the first Thanksgiving table. Using cast iron further seals the idea. I’ll make it as written and use it as a tiny history lesson.
What a Great Giveaway from two great organizations. I tried the master recipe with raving success over the weekend and so I am looking ofrward to trying out this option as well