Cranberry-Vanilla Cake with Whipped Cream Frosting

By sandrac-2

Ingredients

• 3 c. cake flour (not self-rising)
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder Salt
• 1 c. (2 sticks) butter or margarine, at room temperature
• 2 c. granulated sugar 5 Ig. eggs, at
• room temperature
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract 1'.4 c. low-fat buttermilk
• FILLING
• 1 bag (12 oz.) fresh or frozen (thawed) cranberries
• 1 c. granulated sugar Y3 c. apricot jam
• '.4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• GARNISH
• '.4 c. water
• % c. granulated sugar
• 1 c. fresh or frozen (thawed) cranberries
• FROSTING
• 2 c. heavy (whipping) cream
• 1 c. confectioners' sugar
• Y3 c. creme fraiche or sour cream
• 1 tsp, vanilla extract
• (16 9 saturated), 2 9 fiber, 137 mg cholesterol, 300 mg sodium.
• :h thousands of easy, delicious, triple-tested recipes at goodhousekeeping.com/recipefinder

Preparation

Step 1

1. Prepare Cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line bottoms of 3 (8-in.) cake pans with parchment paper. Grease sides of pans and parchment. Into large bowl, sift flour, baking powder, and '.4 teaspoon salt.
2. In large mixer bowl, with mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and
2 cups sugar until smooth and fluffy. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until incorporated. Beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low; alternately add buttermilk and flour mixture, beating well after each addition.
3. Divide batter evenly among pans; smooth tops. Tap pans firmly against counter. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Coolon wire rack 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto rack; remove pans and peel off parchment. Cool completely. Cakes may be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature up to 1 day.
4. Prepare Filling: In 3-quart saucepan, combine cranberries, sugar, apricot jam, and cinnamon. Cook on medium 8 to 10 minutes
or until most berries burst, stirring often. Transfer to bowl; refrigerate until cold. 5. Prepare Garnish: In 1-quart saucepan, combine water and Y. cup sugar. Heat to boiling on high. Stir in cranberries. Cool completely, then drain. Place remaining V, cup sugar on plate. Toss berries in sugar to coat. Place on wire rack; let dry 1 hour.
6. To assemble: Place 1 cake layer on cake stand; spread half of filling on top. Repeat with another layer and remaining filling. Top with third layer.
7. Prepare Frosting: With mixer on medium speed, whisk cream until soft peaks form. Reduce speed to low; add confectioners' sugar, creme fraiche, and vanilla. Whisk until stiff peaks form. Spread frosting all over cake. Garnish with sugared berries. Cake can be covered and refrigerated up to 1 day. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before serving.
EACH SERVING• iii About
590 calories, 6 9 protein, 85 9 carbohydrate, 26 9 total fat