Orange Cranberry Cake (Bundt, Round or Loaf Pan)
This orange cranberry cake uses an entire orange (rind and all), is dotted with bright red cranberries and drenched in a sweet (boozy) orange glaze. It will be difficult not to have it disappear quickly!
Another orange cranberry cake?
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Yes, another one; but only because it was soooo good, I just had to share it with you! You may recall I shared a cranberry cake with orange glaze recently.
Well, I did a little twist on the original and honestly, I love both cakes! Even making them in different pans gives them a unique vibe. So let me explain the difference.
My first cake is a round cranberry cake with orange glaze, while this new bundt cake recipe contains a whole orange, so it’s actually an orange cake with cranberries.
I gilded the lily and added a little Grand Marnier to the glaze on this cake, but feel free to omit it. This recipe has much more distinct orange flavor.
Can I Freeze Orange Cranberry Cake?
Of course, this orange cranberry cake freezes marvelously. Wrap in parchment and then aluminum foil, or place inside a freezer bag for best results. Will keep frozen nicely for a month or so. You can glaze the cake and freeze it, or freeze it and then glaze it. Either way will work.
Gluten Free Orange Cranberry Cake?
Glad you asked! I have successfully baked my Sicilian whole orange cake with excellent results using no gluten, so the answer is, yes! Just follow the cake directions for this gluten free orange cake and add the cranberries and glaze as directed in this recipe.
Can I Bake this Cake in Other Pans?
Yes, this orange cranberry cake can be baked in an 8″ springform pan or a loaf tin.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do. I just love the flavor combination of oranges and cranberries and, er, Grand Marnier is never a bad addition, either! Grand Marnier is even good in savory orange flavored dishes. Don’t you agree? 😁
Orange Cranberry Cake (in a bundt pan)
Adapted from my Sicilian Orange Cake recipe serves 12
FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C)
Make the cake batter
Prepare a bundt pan (or round or loaf pan) by spraying with oil (or use butter) and dust with flour.
Toss the cranberries (should be washed and mostly dry) in some flour. This will help them not to fall to the bottom of the cake, so don’t skip this step.
Place the sugar and eggs in a large bowl and beat with a mixer until light and fluffy.
Sift the flour with the baking powder then add to the mixture in the bowl a little at a time along with the softened butter. Continue to mix until completely blended, then stir in the yogurt.
In a food processor, or blender, process the whole orange until it is almost pureed. It should look like this~
Add this orange to the cake mixture, mix well, then fold in the cranberries by hand.
Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan.
Bake the orange cranberry cake
Make sure the batter is evenly distributed in the pan then place in the preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes. It will vary depending on your oven, but mine bakes for about 55 minutes. Use a cake tester to check that the cake is ready before removing it from the oven.
Allow the cake to cool for about 10 minutes in the pan while you make the glaze.
Make the glaze and sugared cranberries
Prepare the glaze by melting the sugar in the orange juice and allow to simmer for a few minutes, just until the liquid has a syrupy consistency. (IF YOU ARE MAKING THE SUGARED CRANBERRIES, put a little glaze in a bowl and coat the cranberries and remove immediately.
Next, toss in a small amount of sugar in a small bowl, then place on a clean plate or board to dry.
Pour the glaze from the plate back into the original pot and add the Grand Marnier, if using.
Decorate the orange cranberry cake
Remove the cake from the bundt pan by shaking to loosen it, and then turn upside down onto a cooling rack. Place a tray or plate below the cake to catch any glaze, then pour and brush the glaze over the entire cake. You can take the glaze that drips below and pour it over the cake again.
Place the cake on a serving plate, cake plate or stand, and add the sugared cranberries and little sprigs of rosemary, if desired.
Let the cake cool completely before slicing.
Yes, it’s hard to wait, but the moist orange cake will cut more easily if it’s cool first.
Enjoy–it’s truly delicious!
Orange Cranberry Cake
Ingredients
- 3 eggs preferably organic
- 1 ⅛ cups sugar
- 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour
- 2 ½ tsp baking powder or 1 Italian Paneangeli vanilla baking powder
- ½ cup butter, softened
- ⅓ cup Greek yogurt
- 1 large organic orange washed and cut into pieces w/o seeds
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (only add if using plain baking powder)
- 2 ½ cups cranberries fresh
Glaze
- ⅓ c orange juice freshly squeezed
- ¼ c sugar
- 1 Tbsp Grand Marnier (optional)
Sugared Cranberries
- ¼ c about 9 to 12 cranberries
- ¼ c sugar
- fresh sprigs of rosemary, optional, for decoration
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C)
- Make the cake batter
- Prepare a bundt pan (or round or loaf pan) by spraying with oil (or use butter) and dust with flour.
- Toss the cranberries (should be washed and mostly dry) in some flour. This will help them not to fall to the bottom of the cake, so don’t skip this step
- Place the sugar and eggs in a large bowl and beat with a mixer until light and fluffy
- Sift the flour with the baking powder then add to the mixture in the bowl a little at a time along with the softened butter. Continue to mix until completely blended, then stir in the yogurt
- In a food processor, or blender, process the whole orange until it is almost pureed.
- Add this orange to the cake mixture, mix well, then fold in the cranberries by hand. Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan.
- Make sure the batter is evenly distributed in the pan then place in the preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes. It will vary depending on your oven, but mine bakes for about 55 minutes. Use a cake tester to check that the cake is ready before removing it from the oven
- Allow the cake to cool for about 10 minutes in the pan while you make the glaze.
- Make the glaze and sugared cranberries
- Prepare the glaze by melting the sugar in the orange juice and allow to simmer for a few minutes, just until the liquid has a syrupy consistency. (IF YOU ARE MAKING THE SUGARED CRANBERRIES, put a little glaze in a bowl and coat the cranberries and remove immediately.
- Next, toss in a small amount of sugar in a small bowl, then place on a clean plate or board to dry
- Pour the glaze from the plate back into the original pot and add the Grand Marnier, if using.
- Decorate the orange cranberry cake
- Remove the cake from the bundt pan by shaking to loosen it, and then turn upside down onto a cooling rack. Place a tray or plate below the cake to catch any glaze, then pour and brush the glaze over the entire cake. You can take the glaze that drips below and pour it over the cake again.
- Place the cake on a serving plate, cake plate or stand, and add the sugared cranberries and little sprigs of rosemary, if desired
- Let the cake cool completely before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition
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Can I make this cake with dried cranberries?
Hi Marlene, of course! It won’t have the same end result, but you know that already. Enjoy, it’s delicious either way!
I have several large bundt pans from Nordic Ware. Is a 10 C pan suitable for this cake or should I use a loaf pan?
Honestly any bundt pan will work, but a loaf tin will work too. Just depends what you want :)
going to try this with blood oranges to make it red or pink for Valentine’s Day
I used Sabra for the glaze. It was heavenly.
What is Sabra?
Sabra is an Israeli orange chocolate flavored liqueur.
I’m wondering how long to bake this when doing 1 1/2 times the recipe (dark colored non-stick). I want a fuller bundt for Thanksgiving dinner. Thank you for such a wonderful recipe. It’s definitely one of my most favorites.
Hi Susan, since all ovens vary in how they bake, I would say your best bet is to trust your nose. Bake it at least the normal recipe time, but wait until you really smell the aroma of the cake coming from the oven. Once you think it can be checked, slowly open the oven and make sure it looks brown and risen enough to test it before moving it to do so (with a cake tester or skewer). When the tester comes out clean, take it out. Hope this helps for this recipe and any other cake. :)
Thank you! Wishing you a very happy Thanksgiving.
To you, too! Let me know how the cake turns out! :)
Hi, about to make this beautiful cake, is it better made on the day or prior?
Hi Toni, although it’s good for a few days, I think most bakes are at their very best the same day they are made. There are only a few exceptions to this. Enjoy and let me know how it goes!
This looks sensational, Christina. Not just pretty but I love the look of the ingredients and with the Fresh cranberries it looks wonderful. Love the glaze with the hint of Grand Marnier so much that I’d even double the quantities!
Weird that I tried to leave a review but wouldn’t let me click through this time.
Gorgeous, tempting photos too. Jilly x
Oh, it really is yummy! Thanks, Jill!