12 Weeks Of Christmas | Week 12: Cranberry Orange Streusel Cake

Is there anything more Christmasy than the combination of orange and cranberry? From scones to muffins, cookies to cakes, it’s a flavour combo that works well. This recipe comes from one of my favourite blogs, The Yellow Table. I love loaf cakes because they are easy to carry around and make a great gift, too.

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Unfortunately,  I don’t have a better picture- I baked it and sent it across for a family dinner and it was eaten before we could get a good picture. The streusel is really nutty and delicious- I like the fact that it’s a flourless streusel, so the flavour of the walnuts really shines through. I didn’t have fresh cranberries so I used dried cranberries instead. And I mixed in a little butter with the streusel, because butter makes everything better 😀

CRANBERRY ORANGE STREUSEL CAKE (From The Yellow Table.)

INGREDIENTS

For The Streusel:

• 1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces

For The Cake:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 1/2 cups fresh or dried cranberries, chopped
• 1 cup castor sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
• 3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

METHOD

• Preheat oven to 175 C. Grease a 9×5 inch loaf tin and set aside.
• Combine the walnuts, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl for the streusel. Work in the cold butter with your fingers, till it resembes damp sand, set aside.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
• Stir in the cranberries, toss to coat.
• In another separate bowl, cream the sugar, butter, and egg.
• Add the zest and juice, stirring to combine.
• Slowly fold the dry ingredients into the wet, and stir till no streaks of flour remain in the batter. It is quite a thick batter.)
• Pour the batter into the loaf tin. Sprinkle with streusel topping.
• Bake at 175 C for 35 to 40 minutes or until the streusel topping is nicely browned and a toothpick comes out clean.
• Cool on a wire before serving.