A sunny and festive coffee cake to brighten up holiday mornings. It has fresh cranberries and orange zest and juice and is topped with a powdered sugar glaze.
Ingredients
- For the cake
2-1/2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, atroom temperature
1-1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 large egg whites (save the yolks for another purpose; they freeze well)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups chopped fresh cranberries (frozen are ok too but don’t defrost them)
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons freshly grated orange zest
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
- For the glaze
2-1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons water (or a little more)
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
Directions
- Make the cake
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line the bottom of a 9×13-inch pan with parchment paper, and grease the sides of the pan. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg whites and vanilla. Stir in milk and sour cream. In a second bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture just until combined (be careful not to over-mix). In a small bowl, toss the chopped cranberries with the additional 2 tablespoons flour. With a rubber spatula, fold the cranberries, orange zest and orange juice into the cake batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the sides of the cake start pulling away from the edge of the pan. Cool thoroughly. Just before serving, cut into 15 slices.
- Make the glaze
- Make the glaze shortly before serving. Combine powdered sugar, water, 1 tablespoon butter, corn syrup and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla in small mixing bowl; mix until powdered sugar is moistened. Beat at medium speed until smooth, adding additional water if necessary, little by little, to reach desired glazing consistency. To serve, place individual cake slices on a large platter or cake plate and drizzle glaze over each piece.