Holiday Cranberry-Raisin Spice Cake

By Hklbrries

"My mother always made this cake for the Christmas holiday. She made it a couple of days ahead of time, because it got moister the longer it sat. Just like my mother, I bake it every year."

Mary Helen Jeffrey, Robertsdale, AL

Ingredients

• Cake:
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup canned cranberry sauce
• 3/4 cup sour milk
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
• Icing:
• 1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp milk
• Maraschino cherries (optional)

Details

Servings 16

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a 10-inch tube pan.

To prepare cake, sift together flour, baking soda, spices and salt. Combine shortening and brown sugar in a large bowl. Beat with a mixer at high speed until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time. Blend in cranberry sauce. Add flour mixture alternately with sour milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Stir in raisins and nuts.

Pour batter into pan. Bake 55 to 60 minutes, until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Invert onto a serving plate.

To prepare icing, combine cream cheese and vanilla in a bowl; mix well. Add powdered sugar and milk, stirring until smooth. Spread over top and sides of cake. Decorate with cherries, if desired. Store cake in the refrigerator.

Tip from our test kitchen: To make sour milk, combine 3/4 cup milk with 2 tsp cider vinegar iin a small bowl. Let stand 10 minutes.

Nutrtion Information:
Per serving
340 calories
14 g fat
4 g protein
51 g carbohydrates
2 g fiber
260 mg sodium