This cranberry star bread is a twisted pull-apart bread filled with homemade cranberry sauce! It's a fun, show stopping dessert for the winter holidays! I love to make this star bread with my leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving or Christmas.
You might also like these cranberry crumble bars or these eggnog cinnamon rolls.
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Ingredient Notes
You just need a few ingredients to make this Christmassy cranberry star bread!
Sparkling Water - I like to use sparkling water because the carbonation makes the dough a little lighter and fluffier. However, you can easily substitute whole milk instead!
Instant Yeast - The yeast is what makes the dough rise! I like using instant yeast (as opposed to active dry yeast) because you don't need to bloom it first.
Leftover Cranberry Sauce - I like to use my leftover homemade cranberry sauce to layer in the star bread, but you can make a small batch using fresh or frozen cranberries! You can also substitute your favorite flavor of store-bought or homemade jam!
Sugared Cranberries & Rosemary - This is optional, but I love garnishing the cranberry star bread with homemade sugared cranberries and sugared rosemary! They're super easy to make and look just beautiful! All you need is cranberries, rosemary, water, and sugar! Check out this post for all my tips for making candied cranberries!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Star Bread
Using a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, combine all dough ingredients (flour, sugar, instant yeast, salt, eggs, melted butter, vanilla, and sparkling water) and mix on a low speed until the dough comes together as a smooth cohesive mass that cleanly pulls away from the sides of the bowl (5-10 minutes).
The dough should be slightly sticky. If it's too dry and won't come together, add an additional tablespoon or two of sparkling water. If the dough is too wet, add in an additional tablespoon or two of flour.
Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour. It will roughly double in size.
Divide the dough into 4 equal size pieces and then shape into round balls.
Take one ball and place on a sheet of parchment paper. Roll out into a circle that's roughly ¼ inch thick and 10 inches in diameter. Set aside and repeat with the remaining dough balls.
Transfer one of the dough circles (still on the parchment paper) to a large baking sheet. Spread about ⅓ cup of the cranberry sauce on top, leaving a ½ inch perimeter around the edges. Then carefully place another dough circle on top and stretch the dough to match up the edges. Then repeat until you've topped with the final layer of dough.
Using a cookie cutter (or anything round), gently make a 2-3 inch impression directly in the center of the dough. Then using a bench knife, cut the dough into 16 equal sections, leaving the center circle in tact. I like to start with 4 cuts (north, south, east, and west). Then divide those sections in half to make 8, then again to make 16.
Pick up 2 sections and twist them away from each other 3 times, then pinch the bottom edges together. Repeat with the remaining sections until you have 8 star points.
Cover loosely and let rise for 45-60 minutes or until the dough is puffy.
While the bread is rising, preheat the oven to 375°F.
Brush the star bread lightly with egg wash. Then bake at 375°F for 25-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown and an instant thermometer inserted near the middle reads 190°F. If the top is browning too quickly, tent with aluminum foil for the remainder of the bake time.
Allow to cool completely to room temperature. Then lightly dust the cranberry star bread with powdered sugar if desired.
Tips for the Best Baked Goods
Use room temperature ingredients! Always make sure ingredients like butter, eggs, milk, yogurt, etc. are at room temperature before baking (unless the recipe indicates otherwise)! This ensures they'll incorporate into the batter more easily and leads to overall better texture. Remove all ingredients from the fridge 30 minutes to an hour before baking for best results.
Measure your flour correctly! It's most accurate to use a kitchen scale, but if you're measuring by volume you want to spoon and level! Fluff up the flour a bit with a spoon, and then spoon flour into the measuring cup. Once it's overflowing, use the back of a knife to level it off. Don't ever pack flour into the measuring cup or you'll end up with way too much! Improperly measured flour can lead to dry, dense baked goods. [Measure cocoa powder the same way!]
Use an oven thermometer! Just because your oven says it's 350, doesn't mean it is! If you oven hasn't been calibrated recently, it can be as much as 30 degrees off, which will negatively affect all baked goods from cakes to macarons! An oven thermometer is the easiest/cheapest way to ensure your oven is always at the proper temperature.
Make sure you baking powder is fresh! Baking powder is important for helping baked goods rise properly, but it has a relatively short shelf life once opened, so it's one of the few items I never buy in bulk! To test if your baking powder is still fresh, add a small amount to boiling water. If it bubbles it's still good to use, but if not it's time to toss it!
Recipe FAQ's
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
I like to use sparkling water because the carbonation makes the dough a little lighter and fluffier. However, you can easily substitute whole milk instead! [I recommend milk over just plain, still water because the fat and protein in milk makes the dough more tender.]
Nope! You can use pretty much any flavor of jam or compote! You can also use a cinnamon sugar mixture similar to what you'd use in cinnamon rolls.
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
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Recipe Card
Cranberry Star Bread
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Cranberry Sauce
- 2 cups cranberries, fresh or frozen
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup water
Dough
- 4 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup sparkling water, substitute whole milk
Star Bread
- 1 cup cranberry sauce, cooled
- 1 large egg, beaten for egg wash
- powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
Cranberry Sauce
- Combine all the ingredients in a large pot over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Gently cook for about 15 minutes or until the cranberries have burst and the sauce has thickened.
- Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature before using.
Dough
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, combine all dough ingredients (flour, sugar, instant yeast, salt, eggs, melted butter, vanilla, and sparkling water) and mix on a low speed until the dough comes together as a smooth cohesive mass that cleanly pulls away from the sides of the bowl (5-10 minutes).
- The dough should be slightly sticky. If it's too dry and won't come together, add an additional tablespoon or two of sparkling water. If the dough is too wet, add in an additional tablespoon or two of flour.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour. It will roughly double in size.
Assembly
- Divide the dough into 4 equal size pieces and then shape into round balls.
- Take one ball and place on a sheet of parchment paper. Roll out into a circle that's roughly ¼ inch thick and 10 inches in diameter. Set aside and repeat with the remaining dough balls.
- Transfer one of the dough circles (still on the parchment paper) to a large baking sheet. Spread about ⅓ cup of the cranberry sauce on top, leaving a ½ inch perimeter around the edges. Then carefully place another dough circle on top and stretch the dough to match up the edges. Then repeat until you've topped with the final layer of dough.
- Using a cookie cutter (or anything round), gently make a 2-3 inch impression directly in the center of the dough. Then using a bench knife, cut the dough into 16 equal sections, leaving the center circle in tact. I like to start with 4 cuts (north, south, east, and west). Then divide those sections in half to make 8, then again to make 16.
- Pick up 2 sections and twist them away from each other 3 times, then pinch the bottom edges together. Repeat with the remaining sections until you have 8 star points.
- Cover loosely and let rise for 45-60 minutes or until the dough is puffy.
Bake
- While the bread is rising, preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Brush the star bread lightly with egg wash. Then bake at 375°F for 25-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown and an instant thermometer inserted near the middle reads 190°F. If the top is browning too quickly, tent with aluminum foil for the remainder of the bake time.
- Allow to cool completely to room temperature. Then lightly dust with powdered sugar if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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