Cheery Cherry Loaf

Total Time Prep: 20 min. Bake: 1 hour
Yield 1 loaf (16 slices)
Contest Winner
Test Kitchen Approved
You can serve this loaf year-round— but its cherries give it a pretty Christmasy look. In addition to being a lovely gift, it's something I often include in meals at home. I have also entered my loaf in fairs, where it's always a winner. I'm a widow (three grown daughters) who enjoys baking and crafting.

Ingredients

  • 1 jar (6 ounces) red maraschino cherries
  • 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2/3 cup milk
  • 1/3 cup butter, melted
  • 1 jar (8 ounces) green maraschino cherries, drained and cut up
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 1 tablespoon grated orange zest

Directions

  1. Drain red cherries, reserving liquid; add water, if needed, to liquid to equal 1/3 cup. Cut up cherries; set cherries and liquid aside.
  2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, butter and cherry liquid; stir into dry ingredients just until combined. Fold in the red and green cherries, pecans and orange zest.
  3. Pour into a greased 9x5-in. loaf pan. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to wire rack.

Nutrition Facts

1 slice: 226 calories, 8g fat (3g saturated fat), 38mg cholesterol, 226mg sodium, 38g carbohydrate (22g sugars, 1g fiber), 4g protein.

You can serve this loaf year-round— but its cherries give it a pretty Christmasy look. In addition to being a lovely gift, it's something I often include in meals at home. I have also entered my loaf in fairs, where it's always a winner. I'm a widow (three grown daughters) who enjoys baking and crafting.
Recipe Creator

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