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Festive Christmas Bread

Festive Christmas Bread – A Cozy, Sweet Holiday Loaf Everyone Will Love

There’s something magical about pulling a warm, golden Christmas bread from the oven. This festive loaf is soft, lightly sweet, studded with dried fruit, and finished with a snowy vanilla glaze. It tastes like Christmas morning in every bite—perfect for brunch, gifting, or enjoying with a steaming mug of cocoa.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Rise 1 hour
Servings: 11 slices
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 290
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For the Bread
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 packet 2 ¼ tsp instant yeast
  • ⅓ cup granulated sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ cup warm milk
  • ¼ cup warm water
  • ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ½ tsp almond extract optional but amazing
  • 1 cup mixed dried fruit cranberries, cherries, golden raisins
  • 1 tbsp orange zest
For the Vanilla Glaze
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 –3 tbsp milk
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • Holiday sprinkles optional but festive!

Method
 

Make the Dough
  1. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Add warm milk, warm water, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, and almond extract. Stir until a soft dough forms.
Knead the Dough
  1. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5–7 minutes until smooth and elastic. Knead in the dried fruit and orange zest.
First Rise
  1. Place the dough into a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm spot for about 1 hour, or until doubled.
Shape & Bake
  1. Punch down the dough and shape it into a round loaf or place it into a greased 9×5 loaf pan.
  2. Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 30–35 minutes, until golden brown.
Glaze & Decorate
  1. Whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. Drizzle over the cooled bread and finish with sprinkles.

Notes

If your dough feels sticky, add 1–2 tbsp more flour at a time until it’s soft but manageable.
Swap dried fruit for chocolate chips for a kid-friendly version.
For extra richness, replace half the milk with eggnog.
Bread freezes beautifully—glaze after thawing for best results.