Cranberry Streusel Cake! Tart, fresh cranberries are tamed by a topping of sweet, buttery streusel in this versatile, holiday-ready cake that's equally delicious for brunch or dessert!
I'm in complete disbelief that Christmas is just a few weeks away. There's so much to be done!!!
Decorating, Christmas dinner menu planning, shopping {because I spent Cyber Monday finding deals for furnishing our house instead of, you know, actually buying presents}, and wrapping. Plus the 237,987,435 events that always end up taking place between December 1 and the 25.
:::DEEP BREATHS:::
Right now, with my mental "to do" list growing exponentially by the second, I can only muster thoughts of simple recipes. Easy, minimal step, no sweat recipes. Because, I assure you, there is plenty of sweat to come over the next few weeks.
So let's sit down and plan things out calmly and rationally, and with some essential tools: Coffee and cake.
This Cranberry Streusel Cake is just the thing you need for so many reasons:
- It's one of those "add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, bake, and eat" recipes that are almost too good to be true.
- It comes together so quickly that you can throw it together as unexpected visitors are coming up the sidewalk and simultaneously secure your vote for the Last Minute Host of the Year Award.
- It is beautifully festive with those pretty pops of red peeking through the topping and dotting the tender cake.
- You can serve it for breakfast, brunch or dessert, and since it's technically a "coffee cake", which is perfectly acceptable in the early morning hours, no one can give you side-eye about it.
- It's attractive enough to wrap up & give as a gift.
- STREUSEL. Need I say more?
Another plus? You can totally toss in other flavorings or ingredients in place of cranberries, and make it your own. Swap out the orange zest for lemon zest and use blueberries instead for a springtime version. Replace the cranberries with cherries and add some sliced almond to the streusel topping. Ditch all the fruit and add mini chocolate chips or finely chopped crystallized ginger. It's your call, friend.
I think everyone needs an easy peasy cake like this in their recipe box, especially around the holidays. We may have a lot to do, but there's always time for cake!
Cranberry Streusel Cake
Equipment
- 9x13 Cake Pan
Ingredients
- 1-½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1-½ teaspoons grated orange zest
- ⅔ cup milk
- ½ cup {8 tablespoons} butter melted
- 1 large egg beaten
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup fresh cranberries tossed with 1 tablespoon flour*
Topping:
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ {4 tablespoons} cup butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13x9 inch baking pan or dish {or line with parchment}; set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon and salt.
- Add the milk, butter, egg and vanilla extract, orange zest. Mix until completely combined, but do not overmix. Gently fold in ½ cup of cranberries.
- Spread the batter into the prepared baking pan or dish. Sprinkle with remaining cranberries.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar and flour. Pour in melted butter and toss with a fork until crumbly; you'll want it to form little pebbles. {If the mixture it too wet, add a teaspoon or two more flour until it reaches the right consistency.}
- Sprinkle the topping over the cranberries. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean and the top is lightly browned.
- Let cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired before serving.
Leave a Reply