Yesterday I mentioned that I was making a Cranberry Apple Cake from Ina Garten’s new cookbook, Barefoot Contessa How Easy Is That?: Fabulous Recipes & Easy Tips
The cake that I made today might be my new favorite all-purpose cake. It has cranberries and apples with hints of orange and cinnamon. Perfect for this time of year. You could easily swap those out, though, for whatever fruit is in season — berries, peaches, pears….they would all work beautifully. Just something to keep in mind. It is a very unassuming, rustic cake baked in a glass pie pan. I’ll warn you if you take it to a pot luck and surround it with the traditional pumpkin pies and fancy cakes then it may just remain the best kept secret on the table. In other words, it may be easily overlooked. Save this one for a smaller crowd and serve it warm in huge portions with vanilla ice cream. Or save it for yourself and eat it straight from the pan like I did.
Whole Wheat Cranberry Apple Cake
The original recipe called for white flour and sugar, which I replaced with white whole wheat flour and a combination of honey and palm sugar. You can read the original recipe here and make substitutions, as desired. I used a larger 10 inch tart pan, which is why mine looks a little different than her picture.
12 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over for stems
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and diced
1/2 cup honey
1 tablespoon grated orange zest (2 oranges)
1 1⁄8 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon palm sugar
1/2 cup coconut oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans, optional
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Combine the cranberries, diced apple, honey, orange zest, and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon in a medium bowl. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs on medium-high speed for 2 minutes. With the mixer on medium, add 1 cup of the palm sugar, the coconut oil, vanilla, and beat just until combined. On low speed, slowly add the flour and salt.
Pour the fruit mixture evenly into a 10-inch glass pie plate. Pour the batter over the fruit, covering it completely. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon of palm sugar, 1⁄8 teaspoon of cinnamon and pecans and sprinkle it over the batter. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean and the fruit is bubbling around the edges. Serve warm or at room temperature.
