Sometimes I’m too full of myself for my own good. When I saw this on Jen’s site, I noted that she called it ‘cranberry dessert.’ But, in my hubris, I figured, what the hell, it looks like a cake. I’ll call it a cake and serve it as a cake.
In retrospect, though, the vague title ‘dessert’ is probably more appropriate. Or maybe cranberry clafoutis? Except with more butter. Cobbler doesn’t quite work because the breading isn’t biscuits.
Even looking at the photos now, it looks like a cake. The recipe is mixed like a quick bread, so that’s cake-like.
But somehow, when I was eating it, it seemed more like a fruit dessert, maybe because the ratio of fruit to batter is so high. It was fantastic on its own, but it did cry out for a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Next time I won’t deny it.
One year ago: Lime Meltaways
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Cranberry Nut Dessert (rewritten from Use Real Butter)
Most nuts would work here, but I used lightly toasted almonds and it seemed like a perfect match.
1 cup (4.8 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
½ cup chopped nuts
2 eggs
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, melted and cooled
½ teaspoon almond extract
1. Adjust a rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350ºF. Spray a pie pan with spray oil.
2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, cranberries, and nuts. In another bowl, whisk the eggs until broken up, then whisk in the butter and almond extract. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
3. Spread the batter in the prepared pan; bake for 40 minutes or a until toothpick inserted near the center of the pan comes out clean or with a few crumbs hanging onto it. Let the dessert cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.
I love all these cranberry recipes that are floating around the internet! I’m so glad I have four bags in my refrigerator to be used 🙂 This look perfect!
This looks delicious. I’d call it a tart myself.
I just made this cake but didn’t add any almond extract – yet it was delicious. I made mine in a muffin pan and got 7 yummy muffins that I enjoyed with yoghurt ice-cream. Thanks for the recipe.
I’ve been making this dessert for over 10 years. I believe I first stumbled upon it in a Taste of Home magazine. Most cranberry haters will love it… I know my grandpa sure did. We usually have it with tea and coffee for breakfast on Christmas morning. I have had it with fresh whipped cream and ice cream but I prefer to eat it by hand all by itself. The almond extract is spot on giving a deeper, fuller flavor to the tart of the cranberry and the sweetness of the batter, though the original recipe calls for walnuts. I have also used fresh blueberries but wasn’t as amazed as with the cranberries. Now I always freeze extra canberries so I can make in whenever I get the craving. If you put a lid on it it gets pretty gooey so I leave mine uncovered as long as possible. I too have made cupcakes to serve at my cafe and they are always the first to go. Love the vivid photos! This is exactly how beautiful it is 🙂
I made this recipe for Christmas dessert. Served it with black walnut ice cream. It was a big
hit and so easy!
I’m going to make this tomorrow, for a Valentine’s Day dessert. We bought a ton of cranberries between Thanksgiving and Christmas, so now we can make a red dessert, for Valentine’s Day. Looks yummy!