Cranberry Apple Cake with White Chocolate Glaze

Cranberry Apple Cake with White Chocolate Glaze is a celebration of the season: warm apples and cinnamon are combined with the bright and vibrant flavors of orange and cranberry.  The result is a simple cake that can be served for breakfast, or as the finale to a fall feast.  

Sometimes, I have a hankering for cake but don't feel like fussing with a layer cake.  Layer cakes can be a lot of work.  You have to ensure that the cake pans are adequately greased and floured to decrease the chances of your cake sticking to the bottom of the pan when you try to remove it (frustrating!).  When frosting the cake, you have to be very gentle, or else cake crumbs will end up on the outside of your frosted cake (also frustrating).  If your cake layers don't rise properly, a two- or three-tiered cake can be just a few inches tall (so sad!).  And, transporting a layer cake can be very dicey if you don't have a cake carrier.  Have you ever tried sitting in the car with a cake stand balanced precariously on your lap?  I don't recommend it, especially if you happen to be wearing nice clothes.

So, when I have a hankering for cake, I usually just make cupcakes.  Or a small simple cake, like this Cranberry Apple Cake with White Chocolate Glaze.  No crumbly, finicky layers to deal with.  No delicate frosting.  No holding your breath as you try to coax the cake out of its pan.  And if you want to share with others, transporting this cake is a breeze.

For this cake, I combined the autumnal flavors of apple, cranberry, and orange.  To make it just a  bit healthier, I replaced half of the butter with pumpkin puree.  But not too healthy, since the entire cake is drizzled with a generous amount of white chocolate glaze.  The sweetness of the white chocolate glaze contrasts perfectly against the tartness of the cranberries and the orange zest.  This is true holiday baking!

(click here for printable recipe)

Cranberry Apple Cake with White Chocolate Glaze
(adapted from this recipe from Ina Garten)

Ingredients

• 8 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over
• 1 tart apple, peeled, cored, and diced
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• zest of one orange
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 1/4 cup pumpkin puree*
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/4 cup whipping cream
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the cranberries, apple, brown sugar, orange zest, orange juice, and cinnamon.  Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat eggs on medium-high speed for 2 minutes.  Add granulated sugar, butter, pumpkin, vanilla, and Greek yogurt.  Beat on medium speed just until combined.  With a wooden spoon, stir in flour and salt.
4. Pour cranberry mixture into glass pie plate.  Pour batter over fruit, smoothing with a rubber spatula.  Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.  Allow cake to cool completely.
5. Meanwhile, prepare white chocolate glaze.  Place white chocolate chips in a small bowl and set aside.   In a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring whipping cream to a boil over medium heat.  Once whipping cream reaches boiling, immediately remove from heat and pour cream over white chocolate chips.  Stir with a spoon until white chocolate has fully melted. 
6. While cake is cooling, refrigerate glaze so that it thickens.  Once cake has cooled, spoon glaze over top of cake and serve. 

*The pumpkin puree creates a dense, moist texture.  If you'd prefer a lighter cake with a softer crumb, I'd recommend eliminating the pumpkin puree and increasing the butter to 8 Tbsp/1 stick. 

Yield: 10-12 servings

(click here for printable recipe)

I hope your week is starting well!