This Cranberry Christmas Cake consists of citrus flavoured sponge studded with fresh cranberries and iced with fluffy cream cheese frosting with a light flavour of orange. Easy to follow instructions and the right tools will set you up for success in the kitchen this Christmas season.
For another cranberry Christmas dessert, check out my Christmas Chocolate Cake with Cranberries for a chocolate lover in your family.
It’s always incredibly fun to open the holiday season with a cake that looks like a snowflake itself! It doesn’t hurt when it tastes light, flavourful and delightfully sweet with each mouthful.
My cranberry Christmas cake recipe covered with orange flavoured cream cheese frosting is all that and more. The recipe for this cake is very familiar.
It consists of a classic British sponge with a handful of fresh cranberries folded in for a fresh and tangy pop in each bite. Tart cranberries provide a much needed balance for the sweetness of cream cheese icing the cake is wrapped in.
The sponge itself is so delicate and fluffy we found it a bit challenging to slice it cleanly. The texture was so light!
How to make a perfect sponge cake
I don’t know about you but I always get slightly nervous before I whip up cake batter for a proper sponge. It feels like every batch is different and has a mind of its own.
I always follow my recipes with precision as I know all too well that baking is a science. There is little room for improvisation.
Proportions have to be maintained. Mixing, whipping and folding techniques must be executed perfectly each time.
Yet mistakes happen, each sponge is slightly different and each cake bakes differently. It is life but it sure helps when we have time-tested recipes that make us kitchen heroes in our family’s eyes! Who is with me?
The sponge recipe I come back to over and over again is classic. It’s the one that is used for Victoria Sponge Cake.
What is so unique about this recipe is that it uses equal amounts of butter, flour and sugar. 250g of each to be exact, and it consistently gives me moist sponge with tender crumb.
No butter cream cheese frosting
This cream cheese frosting is a favourite with my children. It’s not too sweet and not too heavy since it’s basically a combination of cream cheese, double cream (whipping cream with at least 36% fat content in the US), icing sugar and flavourings of your choice.
For this cranberry cake I flavoured my frosting with the juice of one clementine and 1 tablespoon of Cointreau, an orange flavoured liqueur. If you don’t want to use orange liqueur, an equal quantity of orange extract will work as well.
The method for this frosting is dead simple. Simply combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and whip until stiff. Using an electric mixer or stand maker is the easiest way.
In the US whipping cream is lower in fat than here in the UK, so I would recommend whipping the cream cheese with icing sugar lightly and whipping cream separately.
Then fold the whipping cream into the cream cheese. This will prevent cream cheese from splitting.
The silky buttercream is perfect for the sweetness of the cake and tartness of the cranberries. The fresh orange juice adds a lovely citrus twist to this sweet buttery cake!
Recipe Tips and Notes
- The key to making the perfect cake with the fluffiest sponge is in the mixing. The batter should be so light that it almost has the consistency of sour cream. You shouldn’t be able to feel sugar granules in the prepared batter, so use caster sugar aka superfine sugar for best results.
- I also advise adding eggs one at a time then thoroughly whipping them into the batter until you reach the desired consistency. The beating incorporates air into the batter, which in turn creates a very soft and light sponge. Using an electric hand mixer is very helpful and quite important for success.
- It’s vital to let the cake cool completely before adding the icing, otherwise it will melt as it comes into contact with the cake. Use a wire rack for cooling the cake layers.
- An effort saving tip is to bake the sponges one day in advance. Let them cool, then wrap the sponges in cling film until you are ready to assemble the cake. All the more important as no one wants to spend Christmas Eve or Christmas Day baking in the kitchen!
- It’s possible to use frozen berries for this cake. No need to defrost them first.
- Sugared cranberries on the top of the cake are a lovely way to decorate this beautiful cake. I did this for my Christmas Chocolate Cake, so you can see how in the recipe card. While you can feel free to decorate any way you want, the little drops of red will make this cake look even more like Christmas morning!
- Because the sponge is so light, a sharp knife will help you get a lovely clean cut.
- Once assembled, store the whole cake in a refrigerator and take out 20 minutes before serving.
Storage and leftovers
Once you have assembled the cake, store it in a refrigerator until you are ready to serve. It will store best in an airtight container, so this is a great excuse to buy a cake box!
Take it out of the fridge 20 minutes before you plan to serve. Buttercream tends to be best at room temperature.
As anyone who has held onto remains of wedding cake knows, cake freezes surprisingly well. To prevent mashing your lovely icing, give it a couple of hours in the freezer before covering in plastic wrap. The buttercream should be pretty solid.
Defrost the cake on the counter or overnight in a fridge.
More Christmas cake recipes
- Chocolate Truffle Cake
- Cranberry Orange Bread
- Frostbitten Raspberry Cake
- White Christmas Truffle Cake
- English Fridge Cake
- Raffaello Cheesecake
Cranberry Christmas Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
For the cranberry cake
- 250g/1cup butter, unsalted
- 250g/1⅓ cup caster sugar/superfine sugar
- 4 eggs, large
- 1 tsp vanilla
- zest of 1 clementine or mandarin orange
- 250g/1¾ cup all purpose flour
- 2½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda/baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 100g/1cup fresh cranberries plus a handful for decorating
Orange Cream Cheese Frosting
- 400g/2cups cream cheese, full fat
- 300 ml/1¼ cup double cream/whipping cream 36% fat
- 65g/1/2 cup icing sugar/powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp fresh orange juice
- 1 tbsp orange flavoured liqueur such as Cointreau or Grand Marnier
Instructions
For the cranberry cake
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Butter two 8 inch baking pans and set aside or spray them with a cake release spray.
- In a large mixing bowl cream softened butter with sugar until light and fluffy with an electric hand mixer. Start adding eggs one by one, beating them until well combined after each addition for about a minute. Add vanilla and orange zest.
- Combine sifted flour, baking soda and baking powder and salt in a separate bowl. Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mix well, stopping the mixer and scraping sides and the bottom of the bowl, then fold in fresh cranberries. Divide the batter between two pans. Weigh them to get exactly the same size cakes.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Remove from the oven and set on a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool completely.
For the orange cream cheese frosting
- In a mixing bowl combine the full fat cream cheese, double/whipping cream, icing sugar, orange juice and Cointreau and whip with an electric mixer until stiff. This will take between 3-4 minutes. For the US readers: Whip room temperature cream cheese with powdered sugar, orange juice and Cointreau until light and fluffy. Whip the whipping cream separately. Fold the whipping cream into the cream cheese mixture until well combined.
To assemble the cake
- Set one sponge on a cake stand and spread ¼ of the cream cheese frosting on it, then top with the second layer. Cover the top and sides with cream cheese frosting using an offset spatula. Reserving ½ cup of the frosting to pipe rosettes on top if desired. Or finish the cake with pretty swirls using the back of a spoon. Top with sprinkles and fresh cranberries.
