Cranberry Christmas Cake

By jenlin

Ingredients

• Cranberry Filling
• 1 cup fresh or frozen organic cranberries
• 1/2 cup GreenWise dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup GreenWise cane sugar
• 2 tsp. fresh organic orange zest
• 2 Tbsp. fresh organic orange juice
• Cake Layers
• Organic cooking spray
• 1 cup GreenWise unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups GreenWise cane sugar
• 7 large GreenWise egg whites, at room temperature
• 1 tsp. organic almond extract
• 1 tsp. GreenWise vanilla extract
• 2 3/4 cups GreenWise all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 cup GreenWise whole milk
• Vanilla Buttercream
• 2 cups GreenWise unsalted butter, softened
• 7 cups organic powdered sugar
• 1 tsp. GreenWise vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp. kosher salt
• 2/3 cup GreenWise heavy cream
• Candied Cranberries
• Serves 8
• Active 15 min. Total 10 hours, 30 min., including 8 hours chilling
• 1 cup organic pure maple syrup
• 2 cups fresh or frozen organic cranberries
• 1 cup GreenWise cane sugar

Details

Adapted from publix.com

Preparation

Step 1

Prepare Cranberry Filling: Bring all Cranberry Filling ingredients to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer, stirring often, until cranberries break down and mixture thickens, about 10 minutes; transfer to a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid; secure lid on blender, and place a clean towel over opening in lid. Process until mostly smooth, about 1 minute. Transfer to a bowl; cool 2 hours.

Meanwhile, prepare Cake Layers: Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease 3 (8-inch) round cake pans with cooking spray. Line bottom of pans with parchment paper rounds; spray paper.

Beat butter and sugar with a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment on medium-high speed until fluffy and sugar is almost dissolved, about 8 minutes. With mixer running on low speed, add egg whites, one at a time, stopping to scrape sides as needed. Beat in vanilla and almond extracts.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to egg mixture, alternating with milk, in 3 parts, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat until blended after each addition. Divide batter evenly among prepared pans.

Bake in preheated oven until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 24 to 26 minutes. Cool in pans on wire racks 15 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, and cool completely, about 30 minutes. Discard parchment paper.

Prepare Vanilla Buttercream: Beat butter with a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment on medium speed until creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. With mixer running on low speed, gradually add powdered sugar, beating until smooth and stopping to scrape sides as needed. Beat in vanilla and salt. With mixer running on medium speed, gradually add cream, beating until fluffy and spreadable.

Place one Cake Layer on a cake stand. Spoon half of Buttercream into a 16-inch disposable piping bag; cut a 1/2-inch opening in tip. Pipe a 1/4-inch-thick layer of Buttercream in concentric circles on cake layer, starting from outside edge and working toward center; smooth with an offset spatula. Pipe a 1/4-inch-thick ring of Buttercream around outside edge, creating a dam about 3/4-inch wide. Chill Cake Layer until Buttercream hardens, about 20 minutes. Stir Cranberry Filling to loosen. Fill center of Buttercream dam with half of Cranberry Filling (about 1/3 cup), and smooth with offset spatula. Top with second Cake Layer. Repeat Buttercream, dam, chilling, and filling process. Top with third Cake Layer. Frost top and sides of cake with remaining Buttercream, smoothing with offset spatula and letting some of cake on the sides show through.
candied cranberries:
Heat maple syrup in a medium saucepan over medium-low, just until warm, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in cranberries. Cover and chill 8 to 12 hours.
Place cranberry mixture in a colander over a bowl and let drain 15 minutes, reserving maple syrup for another use.
Place sugar in a shallow dish or small bowl. Add cranberries, 4 or 5 at a time, tossing gently to coat. Remove cranberries with a fork or slotted spoon, and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Let stand until completely dry, about 2 hours.

Top cake with a mound of Candied Cranberries; add bay leaves and small sprigs of rosemary and sage. Garnish bottom with a wreath of rosemary, sage, and bay leaves.