Sparkling Cranberry White Chocolate Cake

Every time I go to decorate a cake I think I should get a turntable and bench scraper. I feel I get my frosting pretty smooth, but if only I had the right tools I could get it even smoother. The only trouble is finding space to store even more baking supplies.

Anyways, even though my frosting is not as smooth as I would like, it most definitely does not affect the wonderful taste of this cake. The sweet white chocolate frosting goes perfectly with the tart taste of the cranberries in the cake.

Now for a quick note about the cake. This cake is not mixed like your traditional cake, where you cream the butter and sugar first, then add the eggs and then the combined dry ingredients alternated with the wet ingredients.

When getting ready to make the cake I noticed the difference in how it was mixed and almost made it the way I am used to, but decided to follow the recipe and give it a chance. The cake did not rise quite as much. It was not as light and airy, a little more dense, but too dense and it was plenty moist. Turns out I loved how the cake tasted. It was a bit more firm then I am used to and did not make crumbs everywhere. I feel it worked great with the cranberries and produced a delicious cake.

Sparkling Cranberry White Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

Sparkling Cramberries

• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
• 1 cup water
• 2 cup fresh cranberries
Cranberry Cake

• 3 1/3 cups all purpose flour
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 eggs
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup milk
• 3 cups fresh cranberries
White Chocolate Frosting

• 12 ounces white chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 7-9 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

Sparkling Cranberries

1. In a small saucepan add 1 cup sugar and the water. Bring the mixture to a simmer and simmer until the sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture turns clear.
2. Pour the mixture in a heatproof bowl and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.
3. Add the cranberries and stir to coat. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours, stirring several times to coat the cranberries in the syrup.
4. Place the remaining 1/2 cup sugar into a bowl.
5. Remove the cranberries from the syrup with a slotted spoon and add to the sugar. Gently stir the cranberries in the sugar to coat them. You will need to do this several times to get a couple layers of sugar on them. Place the cranberries on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or wax paper and allow them to dry for 1 hour.

Cranberry Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350º F. Spray three 8 inch round cake pans with cooking spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer whisk together the flour, sugar and baking powder.
3. Add in the butter, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream and milk. Mix on medium speed just until smooth. The butter will not be fully incorporated, you will still see pieces of it, you just want the overall mixture to look smooth. Do not over mix.
4. Gently stir in the cranberries.
5. Divide the batter equally between prepared cake pans and spread into an even layer.
6. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until an inserted toothpick come out with just a few crumbs. Allow to cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove the cakes from the pans and place on a cooling rack to completely cool.

White Chocolate Frosting

1. Place the white chocolate chips in a metal bowl.
2. Heat the heavy cream either in the microwave or on the stove top until it starts to boil. Remove form the heat or microwave and pour over the chocolate chips. Cover the bowl with saran wrap and let sit for 5-7 minutes.
3. Whisk the chocolate and cream together until smooth. Allow the mixture to cool, it will be thick.
4. With a mixer, beat the chocolate mixture until smooth and fluffy. Add in the butter and beat until completely combined. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and beat until fluffy and the right consistency for spreading on the cake. Add more cream if need to get the right consistency.

Cake Assembly

1. Slice the domes off of the cakes, creating a flat surface. Place one cake on serving plate and spread some frosting on top into an even layer. Top with another cake and spread more frosting on top into an even layer. Top with remaining cake and lightly ice the entire cake. Refrigerate the cake to allow the frosting to set and seal in the crumbs.
2. Add a final coat of frosting to the entire cake and smooth into an even layer. Line the bottom of the cake in cranberries and place the remaining cranberries on the top of the cake.

Enjoy!!!
*Adapted from Live Love and Sugar.