Wednesday, December 2, 2015

cranberry apple mosaic cake

Rhode Island Greening

This is a rare post for Comptonia: a recipe.

Do you already have a favorite recipe for a simple cake with cranberries? If so, I'd love to hear it - put a link in the comments, please! If not, maybe you'd like to try this one. I don't think it belongs to anyone in particular, and I'm not sure how much tinkering I've done with it by now. Some, for sure.

But I've now made this cake three times in two weeks, the exact same way each time. Including once at 4AM, when I was tired of trying to sleep. A cake that I can put together after a sleepless night is a pretty good recipe to jot down, I think.


Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1/4 pound) butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs (or two huge eggs)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
8 oz (2 cups) whole cranberries
½ large or 1 small apple
optional: 2-3 TBS white sugar plus 1/2 tsp
~~~

butter and flour bottom and sides of 9” springform pan
(or use parchment paper)

preheat oven to 350F

cream together:

1/2 c butter
1 c brown sugar

Blending after each addition, add:

3 eggs (or two huge eggs)

add:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla

add:
2 c (8 oz.) whole cranberries
optional: 2 or 3 TBS white sugar, if the cranberry:batter ratio is worrying.


The batter will be very stiff. Coax gently into pan.

Thinly slice and peel apple. (Genuine food prep tip: I always slice apples first, then peel each slice with a single pass of the knife. Quick, efficient, easy.)

Break apple slices into pieces and lightly press into top for mosaic.

Bake at 350F for 55 minutes. During first 10 minutes, go outside and distribute apple peelings and core to goats. Be rigorously fair, even though some will believe their neighbor got more.

Remove pan from oven, place on cooling rack. Sprinkle ½ tsp white sugar on top (optional), remove side of pan. Cool at least somewhat before slicing.


If you try this cake, please let me know how you like it!
~~~~~

11 comments:

  1. mmmmm - this sounds SO good! Here's another one for you to try if you'd like.... it's called Cranberry Coffee Cake....
    TOPPING: blend 2 tsp. cornstarch with 1/2 c. water. Add 4 c. cranberries; 1 c. sugar; 1 tsp. cinnamon. Bring to boil til berries pop and topping thickens.
    CRISPY TOPPING: 1/4 c. flour; 2/3 c. brown sugar; 2/3 c. rolled oats. Combine and cut in 1/4 c. butter.
    CAKE: 2/3 c. butter; 1 c. sugar; 2 eggs; 1 tsp. vanilla; 2 tsp. almond flavouring; 2 2/3 c. flour; 3 tsp. baking powder; 1 tsp. salt; 1 c. milk
    Cream butter and sugar. Add vanilla & almond flav. Add eggs & beat well. Mix dry ing's together & add alternately with milk. Spread in greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle with cranberry topping; Add crispy topping. Bake at 350 for 35 mins. Serve warm.

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  2. Will try this recipe for sure! Looks and sounds great.
    Orange Cranberry Cake is a favorite. I don't remember the amounts, mainly because I don't measure much. Duncan Hines yellow cake mix is best because it has a nutty under tone flavor; add cranberry sauce saving some out for the topping; add orange juice saving some for the topping; with a little bit of confectionery sugar (or not) cranberry sauce and orange juice make a syrup you drizzle over and into the cake through holes you make. It was on the back of the box in circa 1985.

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  3. Ohhh! Thank you. I was hoping you would post! I have tons of apples and cranberries to use up. Looking forward to giving this a try.
    I don't have a cranberry cake recipe, but I do have a berry clafoutis recipe where you could easily substitute cranberries for the berries mentioned. I might suggest chopping the berries first since cranberries are so tart. http://judyschickens.org/2015/07/24/very-berry-clafouti/

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    1. Thanks so much for sharing your Mom's clafoutis recipe, Judy - I love recipes that can work with lots of different kinds of fruit!

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  4. This looks beautiful and tasty; will try this weekend. Yes, I do have a great apple cranberry bread recipe...will try and post tomorrow. I couldn't find my bread pan so used muffin tins...delish! All that to say...don't have spring form pan so it'll have to be muffin tins...lol.

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    Replies
    1. I love the idea of muffins and should make them more often.
      The springform pan came from my favorite thrift shop, and it quickly became a favorite for baking cakes. It's so much fun to take the pan away from the cake, instead of the other way around. Easier to wash, too...always a big "plus" at my house ;)

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  5. That sounds good. I love cranberry-orange muffins. I have enjoyed catching up with you this evening. Thank you for stopping by and I too have had cracked ribs, but this is the first for bruised chest and ribs. I need to heat my little heat pad that I can put in the microwave and go rest for a while. Take care and hugs and prayers from your Missouri friend Shirley

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  6. That sounds absolutely yummy! I wish I could bake... but I end up in tears every time from the back spasms I get when I stand in the kitchen, using my arms, for any length of time. So, I enjoy things that others bake! Perhaps I'll suggest this one to a friend :)

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  7. That looks like a big, scrumptious cake. I do have a cranberry cake recipe that I used to make all the time. Even baked it into heart shapes and sold it at bazaars in the past. Was always a hit.

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  8. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh - thanks for THIS! I will let you know how it comes out at Christmas!

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  9. I absolutely love cranberries-- this cake looks wonderful!! I think I will give it a try..
    I don't have goats-can I distribute my peelings to our deer??
    Xoxo
    Vicki

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