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 just made this cake for our family Christmas eve dinner. Please note in your recipe that you use salted butter. Most bakers like myself use unsalted butter. This cake needs salt! Also, the recipe for the white chocolate buttercream doesn’t list vanilla extract, but in the instructions, it says to add vanilla with the powdered sugar, how much? My cake turned out beautifully but lacks flavor without the salt.
I’m so sorry that the butter ingredients weren’t clear – I’ve added that it should be salted. There actually isn’t any vanilla in the icing, so I’ve removed that from the instructions. Thanks for pointing it out. Merry Christmas!
I was thinking about using a cream cheese frosting. Do you think it would be too heavy or too rich??
I think that’d be delicious!
wow i’m so making it!!! it looks great, i don’t know if i can find any fresh cranberries in istanbul, but what the hell, i’ll sure try!!
Thanks Alev! I hope you’re able to find them! š
This was BY FAR, the best cake I’ve ever made!
I saw this recipe and immediately wanted to make it for Christmas. As someone who has baked for about thirty years it struck me however that it seemed to have a flaw in the directions. It says nothing about using only the egg whites (you get a yellow cake if the whole egg is used) it also seemed like a lot of flour but then I figured the sour cream and milk amounts would thin the batter out. I went ahead and followed the recipe as written. The batter was very very thick and the color was yellow. It was very difficult to spread into the pans. I can live with that but the cake even though distributed into three cake pans didn’t seem to fully bake in the middle due to the density of the batter. The texture of the cake was far too dense and heavy. I suppose it could be made into a fruit cake with brandy infused into it but it came no where near to the what the photo portrayed. I needed to make my standby cake and added the cranberries. As for the frosting. not sure if I’ll try it. It sounds good but I don’t have a back up at this point if it doesn’t turn out…..maybe I’ll give it a try after Christmas.
Hi Jeanette. This cake actually uses 3 whole eggs, not egg whites, so no flaw in the instructions in that sense. Did I mention egg whites somewhere that gave you the impression they should be used? I can’t find it myself, but if there’s something that’s confusing, I’d like to fix it. My understanding is that a traditional yellow cake uses mostly or all egg yolks. This is not a yellow cake, but it’s also not a white cake. Just a vanilla cake with cranberries and white chocolate icing. I hope that helps clarify. It is a little denser of a cake – that’s how it’s meant to be.
I think there is an ingredient missing. Should there be baking soda
Nope, the ingredients are correct as listed.
Making this tonight, it looks so delicious!!! When you mix the sugar water for the syrup will it be thick? Simmer on low not boiling?
Hi Shannon! No, the mixture will not be thick. It’ll be a little syrup-y, but not much. And yes, you don’t want to boil it.
This is beautiful!! I waited until the last minute to make for tonight. Hoping the cranberries can sit in my fridge a few hours before baking cake and it will still work??? Also is this cake super sweet? Or does the tartness of the cranberries balance it out? Thanks for sharing!
I’m sorry Jennifer, I was a little confused. Were you wondering if you could refrigerate the cranberries before using them in the cake? If so, yes, they should be fine. I wouldn’t say the cake is super sweet. The tartness of the cranberries definitely balances it. Enjoy it!
Beautiful looking cake. I am making it for Christmas. Does it need to be refirgerated? Since the icing has cream in it I am thinking it does. I will need to make it a day or 2 before.
I didn’t refrigerate it, but if you’d be more comfortable doing that because of the cream, you certainly can.
I love the images on your site and this cake is gorgeous. You have such a fun job! I am by no means a baker but I would like to try this recipe for Christmas. I suspect mine wont be nearly as gorgeous as this but here goes….Thanks for sharing! Merry Christmas!
Thanks Rachel! I hope you get a chance to try it! Merry Christmas!
In Germany, where I live, cups are not used. Instead ingredients are weighed by grams. I want to try this recipe but I am very confused with your measurements. Could you please review what you have written in grams, because you have written the same grams amounts on another recipe, but used different cup sizes. For example, here you have 3 1/3 cups flour = 240 g. and on your eggnog cupcakes you have written 1 2/3 cups flour = 240 g. https://www.lifeloveandsugar.com/2014/11/24/eggnog-cupcakes/
This cake looks so delicious, but I cannot trust the ingredient amounts posted.
Hi Anne! So sorry about that – thanks for point it out! This recipe is actually a double batch of the base recipe that I use and I forgot to change the gram and ml measurements. Again – so sorry! They should all be double what was shown and I’ve updated the recipe. Thanks!!
I’ve only been to IKEA once before, but oh my goodness it was overwhelming! We were just looking at bed frames, and it took 10 minutes to get up to the second level and weave around to find them. Then getting back of the store… Man. I needed a cinnamon roll to make up for all those walking calories I burned! š Since we live in CA, we haven’t had a white Christmas either, but I’m surprisingly okay with that. I’m a wimp when it comes to the snow, so I’d much rather have your snowy cake instead! Pinned!
First off gorgeous! I’m in the process of making it. 2 tbsp of Vanilla, seems like a whole lot? Was that an accidental typo? Or is that correct?
It is correct. You can reduce it though, if you’d like to.
Wow what an amazing looking cake – can’t wait to try this. Just a question about the icing – is this an icing you roll or spread. It looks so smooth on the beautiful pictures you have taken.
Thanks Amanda! It’s a spreadable icing, like buttercream. I just go through the trouble of smoothing it out. š
Hooray for your new office and photography studio! IKEA is right across the highway from me…it’s intimidating and huge! LOVE, love, love this cake! It is so gorgeous! It took me a good 3 minutes to figure out which picture I wanted to pin. {sadly, I’m not kidding}
Ha! Thanks girl! I wondered if IKEA was close to you! Now I know. š
This cake is a masterpiece — pinned <3
Thank you so much Sue!
Whoa, I am so in love with this cake and those beautiful sugared cranberries!!
This cake is just gorgeous Lindsay! I love those sparkling cranberries!! š
So pretty! This could be better than a white Christmas š