Food Recipes Desserts Cake Brown Sugar Bundt Cake With Candied Cranberries Is a Giftable Holiday Treat 5.0 (1) 1 Review It’s a festive treat to gift, serve, or just keep all to yourself. By Lisa Donovan Lisa Donovan Lisa Donovan is a James Beard Award-winning writer and chef who has redefined what it means to be a Southern baker as the pastry chef to some of the South's most influential chefs.Expertise: baking, pastry, foodways, social justice.Experience: Lisa Donovan has been formative in developing, writing, and establishing a technique-driven, historically rich narrative of traditional Southern pastry in restaurants across the country and in print. She is a regular contributor to Food & Wine and has been a featured speaker at René Redzepi's globally renowned MAD Symposium, discussing the culture and responsibilities of restaurants. Lisa centers her work on advocacy and education. Her recipes and writing have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Eater, Literary Hub, and Saveur. She is the author of Our Lady of Perpetual Hunger, which earned her a Les Dames d'Escoffier International M.F.K. Fisher Prize in 2021. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Published on October 30, 2023 Tested by Food & Wine Test Kitchen Tested by Food & Wine Test Kitchen Recipes published by Food & Wine are rigorously tested by the culinary professionals at the Dotdash Meredith Food Studios in order to empower home cooks to enjoy being in the kitchen and preparing meals they will love. Our expert culinary team tests and retests each recipe using equipment and ingredients found in home kitchens to ensure that every recipe is delicious and works for cooks at home every single time. Meet the Food & Wine Test Kitchen Rate PRINT Share Trending Videos Close this video player Photo: Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Ana Kelly / Prop Styling by Audrey Davis Active Time: 40 mins Cool Time: 2 hrs Total Time: 4 hrs 15 mins Yield: 12 servings This cranberry bundt cake from chef Lisa Donovan brings pops of bright acidity and jewel tones that play off the sweet buttermilk glaze that’s flecked with vanilla bean seeds. The cake itself is almost pound cake-like, with a tender, delicate crumb, subtle spice, and tang from orange zest. Don’t forget to save the cranberry syrup, a delicious byproduct of the candied cranberries. It has a nice hint of spice from cinnamon and tart flavor from both the berries and orange juice. Use it for drizzling over slices of cake and stirring into cocktails. Frequently asked questions Can I make cranberry bundt cake ahead of time? Absolutely. This cake can be stored, covered, at room temperature for up to 1 day or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Can I use fresh cranberries? This recipe calls for frozen cranberries, which allows you to make it all year round, since frozen cranberries are often available in the freezer section of grocery stores such as Whole Foods. If you have access to fresh cranberries, they can be used instead, however they might take a minute or two less to cook. Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen Try not to stir your cranberries too often while they cook. You want to try to preserve their shape as much as possible. Some will burst during the process, though, and that’s okay. Our testers all agree this cranberry bundt cake is great as dessert, of course, but also as a gift or for a bake sale. It’s exceptionally good with morning or afternoon coffee as well. Ingredients Candied cranberries 1 pound (about 4 cups) frozen cranberries 3 cups granulated sugar 1 cup water 6 tablespoons fresh orange juice 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon Cake 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (about 10 5/8 ounces), plus more for pan 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 2 cups packed light brown sugar 1 tablespoon grated orange zest 1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pan 1 vanilla bean pod, halved lengthwise and seeds scraped, divided 3 large eggs, at room temperature 1 1/4 cups buttermilk, at room temperature, divided 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar, sifted Directions Make the candied cranberries Stir together cranberries, sugar, 1 cup water, orange juice, salt, and cinnamon in a large saucepan; cook over medium, stirring occasionally, until cranberries are softened but mostly retain their shape, 14 to 16 minutes. Pour cranberry mixture through a fine wire-mesh strainer set over a medium bowl; let cool completely, about 30 minutes. Reserve syrup for serving or another use, if desired. Make the cake Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease a 12-cup Bundt pan with butter, and sprinkle with flour; set aside. Sift together flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl; set aside. Combine brown sugar and orange zest in bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Rub zest and sugar using your fingers to release oils. Add butter and half of vanilla bean seeds. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat batter on medium speed 1 minute. Reduce speed to medium-low; add flour mixture in three additions alternately with 1 cup buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat until just combined after each addition. Fold cooled cranberries into batter. Spoon batter into Bundt pan, and spread into an even layer. Bake cake in preheated oven until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Let cake cool in pan 10 minutes. Invert cake onto a wire rack, and remove pan. Let cool completely, about 2 hours. Whisk together powdered sugar, remaining vanilla bean seeds, and remaining 1/4 cup buttermilk in a bowl. Place cake on wire rack over a baking sheet; pour glaze evenly over cake, allowing glaze to run down sides of cake. Let harden 10 minutes. Serve cake with cranberry syrup, if desired. Originally appeared in Food & Wine magazine, November 2023 Rate It Print