This tart Cranberry Christmas Cake is full of bright flavor that is fantastic for any holiday gathering!
A simple boxed cake mix gets a holiday makeover with fresh cranberries, some orange zest and a touch of almond extract. It’s a delicious dessert that your whole family will love. And it’s SO easy!
I LOVE baking for the holidays. Wait. I mean I love eating at the holidays.
I like to make a variety of treats (like Cinnamon Walnuts and Eggnog Dump Cake) so everything I made has to be quick, easy and super tasty.
Otherwise, I’ve got other things I’d much rather be doing. And so many stinking gifts to wrap.
This Christmas Bundt Cake was inspired by my Wine Cake recipe and is a fun holiday dessert idea. With the dry cake mix plus vanilla pudding powder base, you get a tasty cake that is fast to make!
I promise you won’t get stuck in the kitchen!
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Why This Recipe Works
As with most of my Alcohol Infused Cupcakes and my super outrageous, decadent rich Bourbon Cake, starting with a regular old boxed cake mix.
It’s a tried and true way to start off a cake that you can modify to add new flavors to. In this case, adding cranberry with a hint of orange and almond feels perfectly festive.
The tart cranberries burst as they bake and stud the cake with pops of red. And a light dusting of powdered sugar looks like snow. (Plus no decorating!).
Make this homemade Cranberry Christmas Cake ahead of all your holiday parties. Your guests are sure to give it a high rating thanks to the smell, texture and overall vibe.
You can serve this cranberry cake recipe for breakfasts, brunches and any time you want a Christmas cake to serve a crowd.
You may also want to try my Nutmeg Cake, Cinnamon Rum Cake or my Chocolate Truffle Layer Cake that is so much easier to make than it looks!
Ingredients
See recipe card for quantities.
Note: You can use frozen cranberries if you can’t find them fresh. Let them thaw and remove any excess liquid.
I would NOT use dried cranberries. It just won’t have the same flavor or texture.
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, add the dry cake mix powder and the dry vanilla pudding powder. Blend quickly with a fork.
To the same bowl, add the oil, almond extract and vanilla extract.
Give everything a quick mix with a spatula. You are mostly just trying to moisten the dry ingredients before you grab the hand mixer so it doesn’t fly all over the place.
Add one egg at a time, beating with a hand mixer between each egg until they are fully incorporated.
Add the orange zest. It will make your whole kitchen smell amazing. If you don’t have a zester, you can use whatever grater you have. Use the smallest holes as possible.
This is where I may be showing my lack of baking expertise. Because remember, I love to eat, but I have to bake to be able to do that. It’s not a passion. ;)
I have heard that when using berries in recipes, that you want to toss them with flour before adding them to the batter so they don’t sink.
So that is what I did. I added fresh cranberries to a plastic storage bag with a little bit of flour and tossed it all together.
If you know better or are just feeling lazy, you may be able to skip this step. I truly don’t know. What I DO know is that my finished cake came out deliciously and there were cranberries throughout.
Add the flour-coated cranberries to the batter. And fold them in with a spatula.
Scrape the batter into a prepared bundt pan. I use baking spray (I am too lazy for oil and flouring it myself).
Bake it for about 40-50 minutes. You will need to test the middle to see if it is done.
Hint: If, as you are baking, the cake begins to get too brown, you can place a piece of aluminum foil over the top to protect it a bit. It should allow you to finish baking through without the top getting too dark.
To Serve
Let the cake cool for about 10 minutes in the pan before removing.
To serve, simply dust the top with a little bit of powdered sugar to make it look wintery. If you are looking to add a more festive look, place some fresh whole berries and rosemary around the plate.
You could even sugar the rosemary as I do in my Vodka and Cranberry post.
This cake is great warm or at room temperature. I love to enjoy it with just the sweetness from the powdered sugar but you could also serve it with some whipped cream, or even vanilla ice cream.
Equipment
I love using bundt pans for my cakes because it gives them a gorgeous design that means you barely need to worry about how you serve it.
A few of my favorite pans are below:
- Silicone Bundt Pan
- This is my basic Bundt Pan that I use all the time.
- Star Bundt Pan
- Leaves Bundt Pan
- Crown Bundt Pan
- Brilliance Bundt Pan
- Jubilee Bundt Pan
Top Tips
- You may be able to bake this cake in a 9 x 13 pan although I haven’t tried it. Because it won’t be quite as thick as in the bundt pan, you may want to check it at about 30 minutes to see how the cooking is coming along.
- While my recipe calls for almond extract and orange zest, you can leave that out if you prefer. I love the flavor it gives since it is a classic combination when paired with cranberries. But it’s totally up to you.
- Use a serrated knife to cut. It will help to not squish the bread, but slice through to create a beautiful piece to serve.
- To add a little bit of crunch you could easily add some chopped almonds to the batter. That would be delicious along with the almond extract.
Frequently Asked Questions
To store the cake, wrap it in plastic wrap. Since this cake is pretty moist, any drying out that it will do over the next few days shouldn’t hurt it. Wrapping it too tightly may contain too much moisture and make it sticky on the outside. You don’t have to keep it in the refrigerator but I sometimes do to keep it fresh for a few extra days.
Absolutely you can serve Cranberry Cake with a glaze. A simple powdered sugar glaze would be perfect. And something this cake is topped with a butter sauce that would also be awesome.
Yes. You use fresh, whole cranberries in this recipe. No need to bake them first.
A Cranberry Christmas Cake from cake mix is the perfect holiday recipe to make this year. Have you ever baked with fresh cranberries before? Leave a comment below!
Related Recipes
Cranberry Christmas Cake
Equipment
- Bundt Pan
Ingredients
- 15 ounce white cake mix (dry)
- 3 ounce vanilla pudding powder
- 3/4 cups vegetable oil
- 4 eggs
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the dry cake mix powder and the dry vanilla pudding powder. Blend quickly with a fork.
- Give everything a quick mix with a spatula to moisten the dry ingredients so they don't fly all over.
- Add one egg at a time, beating with a hand mixer between each egg until they are fully incorporated.
- Add the orange zest.
- Add fresh cranberries to a plastic storage bag with a little bit of flour (about 1 tablespoon) and toss it all together.
- Remove any excess flour then add the coated cranberries to the cake batter. Fold in with a spatula.
- Scrape batter into a bundt cake pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
- Bake for 40-50 minutes.
- Use a toothpick or cake tester to make sure the middle is cooked through.
- Add more time if needed.
- Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before remove to a plate or cooling rack.
Notes
- You may be able to bake this cake in a 9 x 13 pan although I haven’t tried it. Because it won’t be quite as thick as in the bundt pan, you may want to check it at about 30 minutes to see how the cooking is coming along.
- While my recipe calls for almond extract and orange zest, you can leave that out if you prefer. I love the flavor it gives since it is a classic combination when paired with cranberries. But it’s totally up to you.
- Use a serrated knife to cut. It will help to not squish the bread but slice through to create a beautiful piece to serve.
- To add a little bit of crunch you could easily add some chopped almonds to the batter. That would be delicious along with the almond extract.
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