Sunday, November 30, 2014

Sweet Potato~Cranberry Streusel Bread

Benjamin Franklin may have coined the phrase, "waste not, want not," but it was my mother who took it to heart.  Nothing got thrown out; I imagine it was due to her growing up during the Great Depression or having eight children to care for on my Dad's income, but either way, she taught me a wise lesson.

So, after Thanksgiving and the refrigerator is full of leftovers, what to make to repurpose some of them...come up with a recipe that makes the family think they're getting something new!  That's what I did with a container of sweet potatoes and a half of a bag of cranberries (the other half went into a pie).

I actually had enough to create a recipe for two (2) loaves, but if you don't, it's easy to cut this recipe in half and add dried cranberries or nuts if there isn't any fresh ones left.  I also decided to make a quick streusel to add to the center for a little surprise and balance with the tartness of the cranberries.  My hubby, who is not particularly fond of mashed sweet potatoes, although he loves sweet potato fries, raved over the result...I hope you will too.

Sweet Potato~Cranberry Streusel Bread
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups mashed sweet potatoes
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tsp. Pumpkin Pie spice
2 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries

Streusel:
1 cup firmly light brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 cup King Arthur all-purpose flour
3 T unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350F-degrees.  Grease and flour (or spray with a baking spray) two 9 x 5-inch loaf pans.  Mix up streusel ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
In a stand mixer, using a paddle attachment, beat the eggs and sugar together until thoroughly combined.  Add the melted butter, oil, and vanilla and mix again.  

Combine the dry ingredients and add to this mixture, just until incorporated--don't over mix!  Stir in the cranberries.

Spoon half of the mixture into each pan, then, divide the streusel mixture between them.  Finish with more batter to cover.
Bake in the preheated oven 55-60 minutes, but test to see if they are done by using a cake tester or wooden skewer.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before turning the bread out to cool completely.

There's one loaf to slice for now and one to put in the freezer for when the next few weeks become hectic from Christmas shopping.  Enjoy!

  

12 comments:

  1. This looks absolutely delicious!

    Belated Thanksgiving greetings to you and your family, hope you had a wonderful holiday.

    Helenxx

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  2. I always loved making...and eating cranberry bread. I've never used this combination but I know it would be moist and delicious! Enjoy your day my friend! Hugs, Diane

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  3. A great use of Thanksgiving leftover! I love the combo of sweet potato and cranberry.

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  4. I have forwarded your blog link to one of my adult students who loves to cook. She was absolutely delighted with your many recipes here and wants to try several of them. She did make me laugh though because she was worried about the mention of CUP measurements and got a bit mixed up (I'm not sure how) with CUP measurements for a BRA!!!! Bless her so funny! Anyhow I've sorted that out for her and found conversion of CUP measurements to European measurements via Google. I've told her to comment here too ... her English is quite good enough to do so.
    keep well

    Amanda x

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  5. Very innovative, Susan. I thought I was inspired to serve mashed potatoes as fried potato cakes with eggs. I'm rethinking that now. =D

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    1. Fried potato cakes sounds like a winner too!

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  6. I must say this sounds pretty tasty even if I'm not a fan of sweet potato! Glad you had a wonderful holiday!
    hugs,
    Linda

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  7. Mmmmmmmmm sounds good! I made a pumpkin bread with nuts and cranbrerries this past week....it's gone. but this one with left over sweet potatoes sounds even better.
    did you see your grandbabies over this holiday?
    stamping sue
    http://stampingsueinconnecticut.blogspot.com/

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  8. This bread looks very yummy, Susan, and it must be great with the cranberries, too!

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