topic Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake in Recipes

Cranberry Christmas Cake

Harpa — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 11:49:53 GMT

Cranberry Christmas Cake
Yield: 16 servings

3 large eggs
2 cups sugar (I use less)
3/4 cup butter, softened (3 sticks)
1 teaspoon vanilla (I also use almond extract)
2 cups all-purpose flour

12 oz. fresh cranberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. With a mixer, beat the eggs with the sugar until slightly thickened and light in color, about 5-7 minutes. The mixture should almost double in size. The eggs work as your leavening agent in this recipe, so do not skip this step. This mixture should form a ribbon when you lift the beaters out of the bowl. Add the butter and vanilla; mix two more minutes. Stir in the flour until just combined. Add the cranberries and stir to mix throughout.

Spread in a buttered 9x13 pan. Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until very lightly browned and a toothpick inserted near the center of the cake comes out clean. (I baked mine for 45 minutes.) Let cool completely before cutting into small slices. Can cut into fairly small pieces, about 1"x2", so that they could be easily eaten at a party.

This cake is the easiest! It works so well with the cranberries, but I don't see why it wouldn't also work with Granny Smith apple chunks, or even blueberries.

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

KingstonsMom — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 11:57:53 GMT

@Harpa

Sounds good and couldn't be easier!

I may add chopped pecans, just because I love 'em, LOL!

Thanks for sharing!

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

Knit-Chick — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 12:13:00 GMT

@Harpa thank you for sharing! It brought back some good memoreis. I have a recipe for a similar cake (I think it's made in a pie dish instead of 9x13). My dad used to love it, and I used to love baking for him The almond goes so well with the cranberries. I copied this to make soon.

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

PINKdogWOOD — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 12:14:56 GMT

I have a very basic zucchini bread recipe to make in a loaf pan. I like making this one and just change out the goodies I put in it. Change out the frit ie raisins, fresh cranberris, apples, bananas, dates, whatever you like, and then change out the nuts. I make a mean cranberry almond, so good, so easy. great for gift giving anytime from Thanksgiving through New Year's.

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

aroc3435 — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 12:17:53 GMT

@Harpa Oooh! I think you are on to something. Apple chunks or blueberries would be awesome in this.

@KingstonsMom Adding pecans sounds good to me. Almonds and some almond extract are also good with cranberries.

I'm not a fan of the cooler weather and shorter daylight hours but I do so enjoy the autumn and winter baking.

Best to you,

aroc3435

Washington, DC

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

Eileen in Virginia — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 12:19:52 GMT

@Harpa wrote:
Cranberry Christmas Cake
Yield: 16 servings

3 large eggs
2 cups sugar (I use less)
3/4 cup butter, softened (3 sticks)
1 teaspoon vanilla (I also use almond extract)
2 cups all-purpose flour
12 oz. fresh cranberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. With a mixer, beat the eggs with the sugar until slightly thickened and light in color, about 5-7 minutes. The mixture should almost double in size. The eggs work as your leavening agent in this recipe, so do not skip this step. This mixture should form a ribbon when you lift the beaters out of the bowl. Add the butter and vanilla; mix two more minutes. Stir in the flour until just combined. Add the cranberries and stir to mix throughout.

Spread in a buttered 9x13 pan. Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until very lightly browned and a toothpick inserted near the center of the cake comes out clean. (I baked mine for 45 minutes.) Let cool completely before cutting into small slices. Can cut into fairly small pieces, about 1"x2", so that they could be easily eaten at a party.

This cake is the easiest! It works so well with the cranberries, but I don't see why it wouldn't also work with Granny Smith apple chunks, or even blueberries.

@Harpa This sounds like a delicious cake, whether you use cranberries or a different fruit. Please check your butter quantity, as 3/4 cup of butter is 1 1/2 sticks, not 3 sticks. I'm going to print this recipe and try it this week. Yum!

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

aroc3435 — Fri, 09 Oct 2020 02:54:28 GMT

@Knit-Chick There was a recipe--King Arthur's Nantucket Cranberry Pie/Cake--that might be like the one your Dad liked that I posted on October 4, 2018 in a thread entitled Cranberry Christmas Cake and Cranberries. @Harpa started that thread.

It is probably also still posted on the King Arthur website because my recollection is that it was quite popular when I came across it in the autumn of 2017. I used a ten inch square cake pan, but I think they might also have mentioned using a pie plate.

Hope this helps.

aroc3435

Washington, DC

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

Harpa — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 12:43:11 GMT

@Eileen in Virginia wrote:

3/4 cup butter, softened (3 sticks)

@Harpa This sounds like a delicious cake, whether you use cranberries or a different fruit. Please check your butter quantity, as 3/4 cup of butter is 1 1/2 sticks, not 3 sticks. I'm going to print this recipe and try it this week. Yum!

Thanks, @Eileen in Virginia ! It is definitely 3 sticks. So, I may have copied that part wrong. All that butter, eggs & sugar! (I guess that's why they suggest little pieces!)

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

Harpa — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 12:46:37 GMT

@aroc3435

Yes, I was going to say this is a re-post.

I just now found the fresh crans in Wegmans, so grabbed a bag and made this last night. (using 3 sticks of butter!) This was "supper," and a delicious one at that. Only, I think the cake would be better more cooled!

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

KingstonsMom — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 13:33:57 GMT

@aroc3435

Here's your recipe from the thread you mentioned, size wise it's perfect for my 2 person household, while the other would be great for larger crowds.

Thank you for mentioning it too!

King Arthur's Nantucket Cranberry Pie/Cake

1 Tbsp melted butter

2 cups--at least--fresh or frozen chopped cranberries

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or almonds. (I use almonds.)

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

3/4 cup (12 Tbsp) melted butter slightly cooled

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup King Arthur's all purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract (and I add 1/4 tsp almond extract)

coarse white sparkling sugar for topping

Lightly butter a 10 in by 10 in square cake pan. Drizzle the 1 Tbs melted butter in the pan. Sprinkle the cranberries and nuts in the pan. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup sugar. In a bowl beat together eggs, 3/4 cup melted butter, sugar, flour, salt and extracts. Spread this thick batter into pan. Sprinkle the top with coarse sugar. Bake 40 t0 50 minutes.

Remove from oven. Serve warm or at room temperature. Can top a serving with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

KingstonsMom — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 13:36:24 GMT

@Harpa

Sometimes something smells SO good baking, that it's hard to let it cool more before diggin' in, LOL!

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

aroc3435 — Thu, 08 Oct 2020 00:42:47 GMT

@KingstonsMom. Thank you for "capturing" and reposting for me. I don't know how to do this here on my MacBook (I'm a technologically challenged dinosaur) so I type in recipes by hand.

So appreciate you did this and it is a reaally good recipe, as is the one from @Harpa which I made when she originally contributed it.

Best,

aroc3435

Washington, DC

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

KingstonsMom — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 13:49:56 GMT

@aroc3435

I just use 'Copy & Paste', not sure if it works differently on a Mac, but in Windows, you highlight what you want to copy, right click and from the drop down menu, choose 'copy'.

Then go to where you want to post it (here, email, etc.) and right click again and from the drop down menu, choose 'paste'.

Voila! HTH!

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

aroc3435 — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 14:01:35 GMT

@KingstonsMom Maybe it is the highlighting step that I keep forgetting. The next time I have a recipe I want to share from a website i will try it out.

Thank you so very much.

aroc3435

Washington, DC

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

twinkies — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 16:13:30 GMT

This looks so yummy! thanks!

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

deepwaterdotter — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 18:16:28 GMT

A co-worker brought in this Lemon-Cranberry Bundt Cake on my birthday many years ago. It was so pretty (she used a decorative pan) and delicious, and a lovely gesture:

12 tbsp room-temperature butter

1/3 cup brown sugar

3 cups fresh cranberries

2 1/2 cups flour

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 tbsp lemon zest

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

3 eggs

3/4 cup buttermilk

Generously grease every corner of Bundt pan with butter (the top of this cake is sticky).

Sprinkle brown sugar over bottom of pan. Spoon cranberries over sugar.

Whisk flour, baking powder and soda, and salt in bowl.

In big bowl, stir sugar and zest. Beat in butter with electric mixer until fluffy. Stir in vanilla. Stir in eggs one at a time.

Stir buttermilk and lemon juice in a mug.

Gently mix in 1/3 of dry mixture into butter. Mix in 1/2 of buttermilk mixture. Mix in 1/2 of remaining dry mixture. Mix in rest of buttermilk mixture. Mix in rest of dry mixture.

Spread batter over cranberries in Bundt pan. Bake in 350 degree oven until top is lightly golden, 45-55 minutes. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Turn out of pan onto serving plate and cool completely.

Can be topped with glaze of 1 cup powdered sugar and 1 1/2-2 tbsps lemon juice whisked until smooth. Let set for 10 minutes to set glaze.

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

Eileen in Virginia — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 22:32:30 GMT

@Harpa wrote:
@Eileen in Virginia wrote:

3/4 cup butter, softened (3 sticks)

@Harpa This sounds like a delicious cake, whether you use cranberries or a different fruit. Please check your butter quantity, as 3/4 cup of butter is 1 1/2 sticks, not 3 sticks. I'm going to print this recipe and try it this week. Yum!
Thanks, @Eileen in Virginia ! It is definitely 3 sticks. So, I may have copied that part wrong. All that butter, eggs & sugar! (I guess that's why they suggest little pieces!)

@Harpa Thank you for clarifying! I'll have to make this when DH isn't around. He doesn't like butter, but doesn't know when he's eating it in something, either. 🤫

Re: Cranberry Christmas Cake

FlyersGirl — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 22:38:06 GMT

@Harpa Thanks for posting this! I have all of these ingredients and since it will be cool here tomorrow, I am going to make one. (it will be my Cranberry October 8th cake, lol).