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Cranberry Coffee Cake with Orange and Cardamom

4.56
/5
55 mins
16 Comments
Jump to Recipe
By: Rachel GurkPosted: 11/04/2016Updated: 06/14/2021

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

This cranberry coffee cake with orange and cardamom will fill your home with scents of the holidays. It's perfect for any day but I picture this making a Christmas brunch appearance. Get the recipe on RachelCooks.com!

Cranberry coffee cake with orange and cardamom will fill your home with scents of the holidays. It’s perfect for any day but I picture this making a Christmas brunch appearance.

A piece of cranberry coffee cake on square white plate with fork, garnished with a half moon orange slice.
Can you imagine anything much better than the scents of cranberries, orange and cardamom wafting through your house around the holidays?

I grew up eating a blueberry coffee cake similar to this cake. Both my mom and my grandma liked to make it (and perhaps Betty Crocker too?). I love this recipe base because it’s perfectly sweet, perfectly moist and so simple to make. And of course, because it brings me back to Sunday afternoons at my grandma’s house. So it makes sense that I love to create new takes on it — the peach spice coffee cake is still one of my faves.

Front view of a piece of coffee cake, with remainder in clear glass baking dish in background.

In an effort to not eat all this cranberry coffee cake myself, and to get to know our new neighbors, I sent out a group text after I baked this cake inviting our neighbors to swing by for a piece of coffee cake. An impromptu hour getting to know new friends on a sunny Sunday afternoon transpired quickly after sending out the text.

Cake brings people together.

Partial overhead of cake in clear glass baking dish, on white cloth background.

Although cranberries are plentiful and easy to find in stores around Thanksgiving and Christmas, you may not be able to find them other times of the year. If you love cranberries as much as I do, buying frozen cranberries is a great way to enjoy them all year round. I almost always have a bag in my freezer.

In fact, fresh cranberries are super easy to freeze. When they’re plentiful, buy extra and put them into a freezer bag, label, and put into the freezer. They’ll keep for 10-12 months. Make sure you wash them before you use them or wash them before you freeze them. Either way is fine. 

You can use frozen cranberries right from the freezer, no need to thaw them first. I love the addition of tart cranberries to cranberry pecan pie. The combination of sweet and tart is irresistible!

Soon I’ll be making these holiday recipes using cranberries: baked brie with cranberries and bourbon pecans, cranberry salsa,  Brussels sprouts with cranberries and walnuts, and orange cranberry sauce with cardamom. Have you ever tried sugared/candied cranberries? So cool!

Craving more cakes? Try:

 

  • Coffee Cake with Streusel
  • Flourless Chocolate Cake with Coconut and Ganache
  • Vegan Coconut Lemon Cake
  • Easiest Double Chocolate Pecan Cake
  • Black Forest Dump Cake
  • Clementine Vanilla Bean Yogurt Cake
  • Grandma’s Butter Bundt Cake (Well Plated by Erin)
  • Strawberry Lemonade Coffee Cake (Well Plated by Erin)

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

A serving of cranberry coffee cake on a square white plate with baking pan in background.
Recipe

Get the Recipe: Cranberry Coffee Cake Recipe

4.56 from 18 votes
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 40 mins
Total Time: 55 mins
15 servings
Print Rate Recipe
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Cranberry coffee cake with orange zest and cardamom will fill your home with scents of the holidays and is perfect for brunch.

Ingredients

  • ⅓ cup unsalted butter, softened
  • ¼ cup orange juice
  • ¾ cup whole milk
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon orange zest (from 1 orange)
  • 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1 ½ cups cranberries, frozen or fresh
  • 3 tablespoons turbinado sugar

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9 ×13 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
  • In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to mix together softened butter, orange juice, milk and egg. On top of wet ingredients, add flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, orange zest, and cardamom. Beat on low for 20 to 30 seconds until combined and then increase speed to medium-high and beat for 2 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.
  • Pour half of batter into prepared pan and spread to evenly cover bottom of baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 cup cranberries. Spread remaining batter over cranberries (see note) and then sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of cranberries.
  • If desired, top the batter with turbinado sugar (see note).
  • Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean or with a few crumbs.
  • Let cool slightly before cutting and serving. May be served warm, room temperature, or cold.
  • Store covered for 2 to 3 days at room temperature.

Notes

  • If you don’t have turbinado sugar, you can omit it or use regular granulated sugar instead. The cake is great with a streusel topping, too. 
  • It may look like there isn't enough batter but don’t worry – the baking powder will work its magic while this bakes and it will end up perfect!
  • Try this cake with blueberries, raspberries, or cherries instead of cranberries.
  • Cinnamon can be substituted for the cardamom, if you prefer.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 177kcal, Carbohydrates: 31g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 23mg, Sodium: 172mg, Potassium: 61mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 17g, Vitamin A: 176IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 70mg, Iron: 1mg

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk
Did You Make This?Be sure to upload a photo & tag me at @RachelCooksBlog. I love seeing what you made!
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This post is in partnership with Wyman’s of Maine. All opinions are my own – thanks for supporting Rachel Cooks by reading about brands I use and love in my own home.
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  1. Jacquie says

    December 1, 2021 at 9:30 am

    5 stars
    This came out delicious! I also made it in the middle of prepping several meals, so I just threw all the ingredients in the food processor and then poured into the greased pan. The cranberries aren’t whole so they can’t give the same bright pop, but it’s wonderful all the same!

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      December 3, 2021 at 3:01 pm

      So glad you liked it!

      Reply
  2. jennifer secreto says

    December 24, 2019 at 4:32 pm

    Do you think this would work with a streusel topping?

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      December 25, 2019 at 7:23 am

      I think that would be delicious!

      Reply
  3. PonyCarGirl says

    October 28, 2019 at 2:42 pm

    I made this delicious coffee cake but quickly noticed that there was not enough batter to fill a 9×13 baking dish. So I baked it in an 8×8 dish which was the better size. The sticky batter was a bit difficult to spread. I substituted the frozen cranberries with my homemade cranberry sauce and it worked wonderfully. I omitted the sprinkled sugar but drizzled the cake after baking with a thin icing made from powdered sugar and orange juice. It only required 25 minutes to bake in the smaller dish. Fantastic flavours and hubby-approved. I will definitely make this coffee cake again.

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      October 29, 2019 at 11:05 am

      The batter puffs up a lot when it bakes – I agree, as batter, it never seems like there is going to be enough, but surprisingly there always is! I’m glad to hear that it worked well in a 8×8 dish too, though. I’m glad you liked it!

      Reply
  4. Kadi says

    September 21, 2019 at 1:16 am

    I ended up using an 8×8 pan because the recipe seemed to be small

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      September 21, 2019 at 10:30 am

      Was it okay or did it overflow? This one puffs up a lot as it bakes.

      Reply
  5. Ann says

    December 6, 2016 at 3:44 pm

    Can you use fresh cranberries instead of frozen? 

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      December 6, 2016 at 4:54 pm

      Yes, absolutely!

      Reply
  6. Tracey says

    November 20, 2016 at 11:23 am

    I made it the bundt pan and it turned out perfectly. I sprayed my pan and then dusted the turbino sugar in the pan. Mixed the cranberries in the batter to keep them evenly distributed and baked it for 45 minutes. Wonderful recipe and the outside has that nice crunch from the sugar and inside is very light and airy. Thanks for the great recipe.

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      November 20, 2016 at 1:46 pm

      Awesome! Thanks for reporting back! So happy you liked it.

      Reply
  7. Tracey says

    November 15, 2016 at 4:18 pm

    Do you think this could be cooked in a bundt pan? I love coffee cakes in that shape. LOL Is the batter fairly thick like most coffee cakes as I think if it was then I could just adjust the time in the oven and still have it turn out.

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      November 15, 2016 at 4:21 pm

      The batter is thick but the cake itself is really light and airy – I’m afraid it might not transfer well out of a bundt since it’s fairly fragile. If you do end up trying it, I’d love to hear how it turns out!

      Reply
  8. Sabrina says

    November 13, 2016 at 9:16 pm

    this looks absolutely wonderful, love all of these flavors and cardamom too! thank you for sharing this!

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      November 14, 2016 at 8:56 am

      Thank you!

      Reply

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