Fresh Cranberry Cake
Can you believe December is just a few days away, which means it’s time celebrate the holiday season with lights, music, decorations and fooood! Gingerbread, eggnog, peppermint, cinnamon and cranberries are what first come to mind when I think of Christmas food, or desserts, more accurately. I have you covered this season with upcoming Gingerbread Whoopie Pies, Cranberry Eggnog Cheesecake, Nutella Cookies (with customizable add-ins) Chocolate Raspberry Cake and this rave worthy orange cranberry cake. I saw this cake on MyRecipes.com (by Southern Living) some time ago and it was so gorgeous with glowing reviews, I had to make it. One of the reviews said, “This cake is incredible. Not only is it delicious, it makes an awesome presentation… I took it to a Christmas party and it was a huge hit. No one said, “who made it?” They said, “where did it come from?” I had no idea this White Cake with Cranberry Filling recipe was so popular until after I had already made the cake and then googled it. It has been done by many people, mostly the same way, but I humbly think my version is the best because any cranberry cake is only as good as the white cake itself, and this is the best white cake recipe EVER!
I adapted Baking Illustrated’s White Cake Recipe (and we all know Baking/Cook’s Illustrated knows their stuff) to fit the 3 layers required by this recipe. The texture is perfection – so so tender, velvety with a very fine crumb and the flavor is wonderful all on its own with both almond and vanilla extract. As Patrick dove into a plain cake (practice run), he said it reminded him of angel food cake – it is that light and airy and that good you will want to eat it plain! If you have been searching for the perfect white cake recipe, this seriously is it. What sets this White Cake apart is the mixing method. After dozen of experiments, Baking Illustrated found that instead of creaming the butter and sugar as usual, if you work the butter into the flour and then whisk in milk with gently whisked egg whites, you don’t get an overglutenized cake that can be dry and riddled with small holes, but instead achieve a wonderfully velvety, soft, moist, tender cake. Thank you, Baking Illustrated. The Cranberry Filling gets sandwiched between the snowy white cake layers and then enveloped by Orange Buttercream Frosting for an impressive festive cake that will leave partakers coming back for more and more and more. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from my house to yours with cranberry cake; stunningly beautiful decadence and melt in your mouth deliciousness!
Cranberry Cake Recipe Ingredients
This orange cranberry cake recipe has three components: the white cake, the cranberry filling, and the orange buttercream frosting. Here’s what you’ll need to make this recipe:
How to Make Fresh Cranberry Cake
Christmas Cranberry Cake Recipe Tips
Use room temperature eggs. As in all my cake recipes, you will need room temperature eggs for this orange cranberry cake. Room temperature eggs mix much easier – you can literally feel the difference. This makes it hard to overmix your batter which results in a softer, fluffier, more tender cake. Cold eggs result in a dry, denser cake. To quickly bring eggs to room temperature: Add warm (not hot) tap water to a bowl then add eggs (still in their shells) for at least 20 minutes. Don’t overmix. For the lightest, most tender cake, take care not to overmix the flour mixture, mix just until combined. You never want overmix a flour mixture once eggs have been added as this will overdevelop the gluten and result in a tough cake. Don’t open oven door early. It is important to not even crack the oven door until it’s time to check your cakes for doneness. Opening the doors can cause your cake to cook unevenly and to fall in the center. Don’t microwave cream cheese. NEVER MICROWAVE cream cheese for frosting. This will ensure your orange buttercream frosting is the perfect consistency and not runny.
Best Cranberry Cake Recipe Variations
You can’t tweak this cake recipe very much (baking is a science, after all!). But there are a few ways to subtly change it up:
Cranberries. Frozen cranberries, thawed and drained, may be substituted for the fresh berries. Orange zest. Amp up the orange flavor by adding orange zest to the cranberry filling and / or buttercream frosting. Flour. May substitute the all purpose flour and cornstarch with 3 ⅓ cups cake flour.
How to Prep Cranberry Cake
You should wait to assemble this cranberry cake until you’re ready to eat it, but you can prep the individual components in advance.
Cranberry Filling: You can completely make the cranberry filling and store in an airtight container 48 hours ahead of time. Orange Buttercream: Buttercream is best when it’s freshly made, but you can whip it together up to 24 hours before assembling the cake. Cake: The Cake layers can prepared one day in advance. Let the layers cool completely then wrap each layer tightly in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator.
How to Store Fresh Cranberry Cake
If not serving immediately, the assembled and frosted cake should be covered with an inverted bowl or cake cover and refrigerated. It will stay fresh for up to 2 days. Bring cake to room temperature before serving.
Can I Freeze Cranberry Cake?
Once assembled, I don’t recommend freezing this cake since the cranberry filling would make the cake layers soggy. However, you can cool and freeze the individual cake layers for up to 3 months. The cranberry filling and frosting can be stored in individual freezer-safe containers and frozen for up to 3 months as well. To thaw, refrigerate overnight.
Looking for more Holiday Cake Recipes?
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Pound Cake Toffee Pecan Pound Cake Salted Caramel Milk Chocolate Cake Peppermint Chocolate Cake Chocolate Eclair Cake Chocolate Raspberry Layer Cake Cream Cheese Stuffed Carrot Cake German Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache Filling Chocolate Peanut Butter Mousse All of my Christmas desserts!
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White Cake adapted from Baking Illustrated, pg 352-353 Tag @CarlsbadCravings and Use #CarlsbadCravngs Leave a Review, I Always Love Hearing From You! Cranberry Filling and Buttercream from Southern Living Carlsbad Cravings© Original
