This Sparkling Cranberry White Chocolate Cake recipe is no doubt a new favorite – especially for Christmas! The cake is incredibly moist and flavorful and the cranberries add the prefect burst of fruity flavor.
This weekend was crazy busy, but so fun! We finally started turning our āformal living roomā into my office. Weād already cleared the room, so this weekend we steam cleaned the carpets and got the main pieces of furniture. I still want to get a few other things and some decorative pieces, but the big stuff is there and Iām ready to get organized!
We got the furniture at IKEA and I love it! It took us forever to get through the store though. I got three pieces of furniture – a desk, shelves for all my props, and a table to use for taking photos on. It took awhile to pick everything out since IKEA has all these things in different rooms. I was taking a lot of pictures and trying to picture them all in a room together.
The hubs didnāt really realize IKEA was so big and had so much stuff, so he was pretty excited to realize they had so many decorative things and stuff beyond just furniture. I think weāll be making another trip soon.
If youāve been before, you know you collect the boxes at the end of the trek through the store. One of our items – the table – was back where only IKEA employees could get to it so after we checked out, we had to wait at the pick up area for it. It took longer than we expected though, so the hubs started wondering around near the food. Next thing I knew, he came back with ICEEs and cinnamon rolls. ICEEs are one of his all-time faves.
āThe cinnamon rolls had just come out of the oven and were only $1,ā he said.
Oh, how well he knows me. Besides, itād been so long it was dinner time and we were hungry. Those cinnamon rolls didnāt last 30 seconds. And they were good too. So fluffy!
Kind of like this cake. š
How To Make This White Chocolate Cake
The cake itself is a little modification of my vanilla cupcakes, doubled. Dang is it good. It is so moist and the flavor is to die for. I love that itās one bowl and everything just gets mixed together. One note about the mixing – you donāt want to over mix the batter. Once everything is combined, you only want to mix until itās smooth. No longer.
The cranberries get stirred in after the mixing. This was my first time ever baking, or even tasting, fresh cranberries. I didnāt realize they were so tart! But baked into the lightly dense cake, they are sweeter and delicious! I love the pop of fruit in the cake.
The icing is full of white chocolate. Itās made basically by making white chocolate ganache, then adding butter and powdered sugar. Delicious.
Decorating Your White Chocolate Cake with Sparkling Cranberries
And I was totally in love with the sparkling cranberries. They are just so festive! Because of them though, the cake takes a little planning. The cranberries sit in a simple syrup overnight so they get nice and sticky. Then theyāre covered in sugar. I waited until the cake was all made and iced before moving onto the cranberries and that was silly of me. It was whole other day before I could finish off the cake with the cranberries and dig in.
It was worth the wait though.
I used some of the remaining sugar that had clumped together on top of the cake. It felt so snowy and wintery.
Growing up, my younger brother and I always wished for a white Christmas. I donāt think weāve ever had one, but this cake would definitely make up for it. š
This Sparkling Cranberry White Chocolate Cake was a hit with everyone! Iām so glad too, because I needed help eating it. I knew if I didnāt get it out of the house soon enough, Iād devour the whole thing. Yummy!
More Cranberry Dessert Recipes
- Sparkling Cranberry White Chocolate Cupcakes
- White Chocolate Cranberry Fudge
- Sparkling Cranberry White Chocolate Bundt Cake
- White Chocolate Dipped Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies
- Cranberry Bliss Bars
Sparkling Cranberry White Chocolate Cake
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Ingredients
Sparkling Cranberries
- 2 cups fresh cranberries
- 1 1/2 cups (310g) granulated sugar (divided)
- 1 cup (240ml) water
Cranberry Cake
- 3 1/3 cups (433g) all-purpose flour
- 2 cups (414g) granulated sugar
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 cups (336g) salted butter (room temperature)
- 3 large eggs
- 2 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240ml) sour cream
- 1 cup (240ml) milk
- 3 cups fresh cranberries
White Chocolate Icing
- 12 oz white chocolate chips
- 3/4 cup (180ml) heavy whipping cream
- 3/4 cup (168g) unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 8-9 cups (920–1035g) powdered sugar
- salt (to taste)
Instructions
Sparkling Cranberries
- Bring 1 cup sugar and water to a simmer in a saucepan. Simmer until sugar is completely dissolved.
- Pour simple syrup into a heatproof bowl and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.
- Add cranberries and stir to coat.
- Refrigerate cranberries in syrup overnight, stirred a couple times to coat with syrup.
- Remove cranberries from syrup and roll in remaining 1/2 cup of sugar. You'll need to roll them a few times to get a couple layers of sugar on them.
- Set cranberries aside to dry for a hour or so.
Cranberry Cake
- Preheat oven to 350ā. Prepare three 8-inch cake pans with baking spray and parchment paper in the bottom of the pans.
- Whisk together flour, sugar and baking powder in a large mixing bowl.
- Add butter, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream and milk and mix on medium speed just until smooth. Do not over mix.
- Gently stir in cranberries.
- Spread batter evenly between the three cake pan.
- Bake 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out with a few crumbs.
- Allow to cool for about 10 minutes, then remove to cooling rack to finish cooling.
White Chocolate Icing
- Place white chocolate chips in a metal bowl.
- Microwave heavy cream until it starts to boil. Remove from microwave and pour over chocolate chips.
- Cover bowl with saran wrap for 5-7 minutes.
- Whisk chocolate and cream until smooth.
- Allow ganache to sit until mostly cool. It should be thick.
- Beat the ganache with a mixer for about 2-3 minutes, until smooth and fluffy.
- Add butter and beat until it is fully combined.
- Slowly add powdered sugar and beat until it is fluffy and the right consistency. Add more cream if needed.
Put the Cake Together
- Remove cake domes from cakes with a large serrated knife.
- Place first layer of cake on cake plate. Spread about icing on top in an even layer.
- Add second layer of cake and add more icing on top in an even layer.
- Add final layer of cake on top and ice the outside of the cake.
- Top the cake with sparkling cranberries and add some around the edge, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutrition facts provided are calculated using a third-party tool and are estimates only. Actual nutritional content may vary based on the ingredients and brands you use, as well as portion sizes. For accurate results, please consult a registered dietitian or nutritionist.
Enjoy!
Categories:
Cakes and Cupcakes, Christmas, Fall and Holiday Favorites, Holidays, Recipes, Sweets and Treats,
I went against my better judgment and followed the batter directions. Although butter was at room temp overnight, batter was very lumpy. In striving for smooth batter I must have overmixed and cake was flat and dense. Good flavor and saved by the fact that the cranberries broke the density. Also I used only 6 cups powdered sugar in the frosting, it was stiff and hard to spread. Overall, guests liked it and reminded them of starbucks cranberry bliss bars. I may make it again following the usual process for cake batter (cream wet ingredients and folding dry) and use even less sugar in the frosting. If i do, I will update this post.
I have three 9″ cake pans and want to use all three. Do you think it will be enough batter? I saw the other comment about using two 9′ pans.
It depends on how tall you want your layers to be. They will be thinner than what you see in the photos, but I think it’d be fine.
I started the batter last night, but it got late and I had to refrigerate the batter. Do you think it will still work now ??
It’s not really something I’ve tried before, but I think it could be ok.
My batter looks like it had chunks. Should I keep going until super smooth?
No, sometimes it has little chunks. It should be fine. You could also melt the butter next time.
Making this for Christmas Eve tomorrow! Should I leave it out or put it in the fridge overnight? Also, is it salted butter for the frosting portion? Thanks!!
You can leave it out for up to 24 hours, then I’d refrigerate it. I’d use unsalted butter and add salt to taste for the frosting.
I only have 9ā round pans. Will this work? Would I just do two layers instead of three?
That should be fine.
Just making sure, you throw the whole sticks of butter in? No need to cream the butter and mix other well ingredients before mixing with dry ingredients?
Correct. You could melt the butter a bit too, if youād like. As a result, itās a pretty dense cake.
I’m so hoping you will see this question as I would love to make this cake for Christmas. Question is: are you using “white chocolate chips” that actually have cocoa in them? All the “White chocolate chips” I find are technically White Baking chips as they don’t actually have cocoa in them. Will those work? Thanks!
I donāt think any white chocolate or white chocolate chips really have cocoa in them or they wouldnāt be white. The ones you are seeing are probably all fine.
Can I use frozen, whole cranberries in this recipe
That should be fine. I might let them thaw first and drain the excess liquid. The cake is already fairly dense so I wouldnāt want to add additional moisture to it, which would make it more dense.
If I want to do just 2 layers should I cut the recipe by 1/3 or make the whole recipe and use just the amount I need?
I think it depends. If you feel like you can accurately cut it by 1/3, then do that. Otherwise, maybe make the full amount and use what you need.
Can I freeze this cake?
Are you wanting to freeze just the layers or the fully frosted cake? Freezing the layers before decorating should be fine. It could change the texture of the cranberries a bit and make them a little more mushy but otherwise be fine. I donāt typically recommend freezing full cakes, but you could certainly try it.
My family loved this cake. Iāve made for a contest today. Should refrigerate until time to serve ?
You could, but this one doesnāt really have to be refrigerated.
Czy mogÄ upiec ciasto żurawinowe w jednej foremce.Prosze o odpowiedz
My daughter in law and I have made this cake twice and it is excellent. I want to make it for a Christmas gathering, but as a Bundt cake. Just worried it may overflow the Bundt pan. Has anyone made this cake in a Bundt pan?
Iām so glad you enjoy it! I believe people have made it as a Bundt cake because I have gotten questions about it. But I canāt remember if anyone has actually come back to share their results.
Thanks for your speedy reply. Just worried that it may be too much batter for the Bundt pan, but Iām gonna try it. Will let you know how it goes.
Hello again, soā¦I made this recipe as a Bundt cake and it turned out just as good as the 3 layer version, however, it took a little longer to cook. I just tested it frequently, using the toothpick method. Also, there was way more frosting than I needed, so I would half the frosting recipe for the Bundt cake in the future.
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I hope you can open the pics!
Very dramatic presentation, and delicious!
I am making it again, for a holiday dinner.
Is it ok to freeze the cake prior to frosting it?
I typically do this for my cakes, but have not tried one with fruit in the recipe.
Thanks!
I havenāt tried it either be able to say for sure. It might be fine. Iām not sure if the fruit will end up kind of soggy or not.
Is this cake very sweet? I donāt like very sweet. The amount of sugar in the frosting seems crazy.
That is a very subjective thing. It would probably depend on who you ask. The cranberries in the cake do add plenty of tartness. The frosting does have a good bit of powdered sugar – feel free to reduce it if you like.