Apple-Cranberry Cake

16 Posted on November 16, 2011 - by Jules Shepard

Categories: All, Cakes, Desserts, Recipes, Thanksgiving

Tags: , Allergy Friendly, Apple Cranberry, Apple Recipes, Apples, Dairy Free, Fall, GFCF, Gluten Free, Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Desserts, Vegan

Y’all know I love cranberries – such a unique little fruit! – and who doesn’t love apples, right? Well, this is the perfect time of year to put together a simple and sublime cake that’s easy to make and just beautiful when baked. Oh, and eat-it-all-up scrumptious. See if you agree. Enjoy!

(See this cake served in individual ramekins on FOX News DC!)

Apple-Cranberry Cake

1 3/4 cup (approximately 165 grams) fresh cranberries
1 apple, peeled, cored & diced (I used Gala)
1/2 cup brown sugar (light or dark)
1/4 cup apple cider
1 Tbs. orange zest (optional)
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 eggs (or favorite egg substitute like 2 Tbs. flaxseed meal steeped in 6 Tbs. warm water)
3/4 cup granulated cane sugar
1/4 cup butter or non-dairy alternative, melted (Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
1/4 cup “natural” (unsweetened) applesauce
1 tsp. vanilla extract (Neilsen-Massey® Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla)
1/4 cup plain coconut yogurt (So Delicious®) or sour cream, dairy or non-dairy
1 1/4 cup Jules Gluten Free™ All Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. sea salt
Sugar-cinnamon mixture for topping (optional)

Preheat oven to 325° F (static) 300° F (convection).

Wash and remove stems from cranberries. Combine in a medium-sized bowl with the apples, brown sugar, apple cider, orange zest and cinnamon. Pour into a 9 x 9 square baking pan or a 10-inch pie plate and set aside.

Beat eggs and granulated sugar until light, approximately 1-2 minutes. Add butter, applesauce, vanilla and yogurt, beating until well mixed. Stir in the flour, baking soda and salt; beat until fully integrated and smooth.

Pour flour batter over the fruit mixture; sprinkle with sugar-cinnamon mixture, if desired.

Bake for 55 minutes, or until a toothpick or skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Serve warm with or without ice cream (dairy or non-dairy like So Delicious® Coconut Ice Cream!).

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31 Comments

We'd love to hear yours!

Martina said: on November 13, 2010

I am casein and soy allergic. What can I use in place of the sour cream?
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- Roz said: on February 6, 2011
  
  Hey, Don’t know if you could have goat milk, but I use goat yogurt instead of sour cream. It works great!
  Reply
  - Jules said: on February 7, 2011
    
    Great idea! Thanks for sharing!
    Reply
- Cinde said: on December 6, 2011
  
  There is no Casein in Tofutti’s Better Than Sour Cream product(it is a soy product)- my daughter is dairy/casein free and we use this in place of sour cream.
  Reply
- Jules said: on December 7, 2011
  
  I like plain coconut yogurt as a dairy and soy-free option here. It’s so nice to have great alternatives now!
  Reply
Karen said: on November 20, 2010

This was AMAZING!!!!!!!!! I will make it often!!!
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- Jules said: on December 7, 2011
  
  Fantastic Karen! So glad you loved it!
  Reply
Terry said: on November 21, 2010

Made this cake last night and it was yummy and I’ll definitely make it again. Just some comments on the recipe…the list of ingredients calls for 2 tsps of cinnamon while the instructions below are to add 1 TBSP cinnamon. I used 2 tsps and it was fine. Also you don’t specify dark or light brown sugar…I used dark because it was what I had on hand, but it would be helpful to know which the recipes calls for. You also don’t specify whether the cake pan should be greased or ungreased. I took a chance and didn’t grease and it was ok…probably because I used a pyrex pan..I think it may have stuck to the pan if I used a metal pan.
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- Jules said: on November 22, 2010
  
  Hi Terry, so glad you liked the recipe and thanks for taking the time to write clarifying comments! I don’t think it’s necessary to oil the pan in this recipe, but it’s perfectly fine to do so. Thanks again!
  Reply
Laura U said: on November 23, 2010

This recipe is a keeper! I used a metal pan without oil & it didn’t stick.
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- Jules said: on December 7, 2011
  
  Laura – that’s great to hear!
  Reply
Sophie said: on November 25, 2010

What a stunning looking appetizing apple & cranberry cake!!

Looks so tasty!!

MMMMMMMMMMMMM,…!
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Rebecca said: on January 18, 2011

I made this cake for Thanksgiving and again for Christmas. Everyone loved it!! I am the only gluten free person in our family, so no one even knew it was gluten free!! Thanks so much!!
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- Jules said: on December 7, 2011
  
  Rebecca – so glad everyone loved it! How wonderful to have a great gluten-free dessert to share proudly!
  Reply
Stephanie said: on November 16, 2011

ok, I am totally making this for Thanksgiving (my DH doesn’t like pumpkin, gasp)! with real whipped cream on top–yum!
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- Jules said: on December 7, 2011
  
  Stephanie – it’s nice to have a non-pumpkin option for Thanksgiving, even if you do like pumpkin. You can never have too many desserts for Thanksgiving!!
  Reply
Mary said: on November 17, 2011

How many days would this keep? Thinking of making it for Thanksgiving and wanted to know if I could include this in the items I could make ahead of time?
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- Jules said: on November 20, 2011
  
  Great question Mary, and good thinking to want to make some of your Thanksgiving goodies ahead of time! I made this cake again on Thursday as ramekins to take onto Fox News on Friday, and served the remaining cake in Cleveland on Saturday. I had one ramekin of cake that I left home in Maryland and just enjoyed it after lunch today (Sunday) — it was still delicious and moist. I imagine it would still be great tomorrow too! That’s one great benefit of my flour, because the modified tapioca starch acts helps to extend the shelf life of your baked goods! SO…. you have at least 3-4 days grace period to make this cake ahead! Just be sure to seal it up well to keep air out and it will stay nice and moist for you! Happy Thanksgiving!!!
  Reply
Hal |www.questorganic.com said: on November 17, 2011

Jules, this cake looks phenomenal. I am going to try, and will likely serve it to everyone, GF or not. I think that is the true mark of great GF free food, and you seem to be hitting it all the time?
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- Jules said: on November 20, 2011
  
  Hal – I agree with you. The standard should always be that everyone will love it, not just the gluten-free’ers amongst us. I served this after the FOX News broadcast on Friday, and again at the Celiac Awareness Tour in Cleveland on Saturday. EVERYBODY loved it! Thanks for the compliment, as well – I aim to please!!!
  Reply
Susan said: on November 20, 2011

For the dairy-free/soy free person above, you might try soured coconut milk. I have done that with several recipes requiring buttermilk or sour cream. You may need to cut the amount so it isn’t too runny.

To sour milk/soy milk/coconut milk, etc.: add 1 tsp. apple cider or white vinegar to 1 cup liquid. Stir and let sit for 10 minutes. It will curdle, but that is harmless in baked goods. (Sour cream is really curdled, too.)
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michelle partin said: on November 21, 2011

Do you turn out the cake when done?
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michelle partin said: on November 21, 2011

Do you turn out the cake when baked?
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- Jules said: on November 21, 2011
  
  Michelle – I do not turn it out once baked. You could though, for a different (but equally beautiful!) presentation!
  Reply
Judy said: on November 23, 2011

This is absolutely delicious; even my DH loves it. I used vanilla soy yogurt and forgot to put in the melted butter, and even that didn’t make a difference; it still tasted great. BTW, do you have a GF/dairy free cinnamon roll recipe? That’s one thing I really miss and haven’t found a good substitute recipe.
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- Jules said: on November 26, 2011
  
  Judy – so glad you loved this recipe! It really is tasty! As for the GF/DF cinnamon roll recipe, I have 2 recipes (one for rolls and one for buns) in my book Free for All Cooking. I also have republished my Grandma’s Cinnamon Sticky Rolls recipe in my Holiday Ebook! They’re TOO good, and I even offer a crockpot recipe for them as an option!
  Reply
Bonnie Belliston said: on November 28, 2011

I made this yesterday and it turned out great! We loved it! Thanks.
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- Jules said: on November 30, 2011
  
  Yay Bonnie! So glad you got to try it! This is one of my new favorite Fall desserts!
  Reply
Tina Peterson said: on December 11, 2011

I use coconut milk in place of anything milk related. It’s worked pretty well for me – you do need to watch it though if you use it as part of a sauce. It thickens up rapidly – no need to stir it for 10 minutes!
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Kath Humphrey said: on April 11, 2012

Hi, I love the sound of this recipe and look forward to trying it although I cannot obtain fresh cranberries where I live. Is it possible to use frozen ones , or rehydrate dried ones, or perhaps use another type of berry (blueberry)
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- Jules said: on April 11, 2012
  
  Absolutely! Frozen cranberries would work just fine here. Hope you get to make this recipe soon!
  Reply