Spiced Cranberry Cake(s)

Made many mini-cakes but adding a middle layer of leftover cranberry sauce. Adapted from Bon Appetit.

Ingredients

cake

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup almond flour or almond meal* (about 2 1/2 ounces)
• 2 1/2 teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder**
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup plain Greek-style yogurt
• 1 cup chopped toasted almonds
• 1 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
• 1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries
• 
  

Preparation

cake

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 12-cup Bundt pan (or many mini-bundt pans). Whisk first 8 ingredients in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Add both sugars and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating 1 minute after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract, then Greek-style yogurt. Add dry ingredients; beat just until blended. Fold in almonds and cranberries. Fill prepared pan(s) halfway, evenly spread cranberry sauce, then carefully spread remaining batter on top.
• Bake cake until tester inserted near center comes out almost clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes (much shorter if in separate pans). Cool cake in pan 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto rack and cool completely.
  Frost or sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Cranberry Coconut Avalanche Bars

For a mom who doesn't like peanut butter, a Mother's Day adaptation of the chocolate/PB avalanche bars...

12oz bag white chocolate chips
1/3 cup almond butter
3 cups Rice Krispies, or "Puffed Rice" if you're buying generic
1 2/3 cups mini marshmallows
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup white chocolate chips
1/3 cup sredded coconut
1/3 cup slivered almonds

Lightly grease a 9x9 pan (or 8x8 if you prefer thicker bars)
1. In microwave-safe bowl dump in white chips and heat on med power for 1 minute. Stir and continue in 30 second increments until chips are melted.
2. Combine the almond butter with the melted chips
3. Add the krispies.
4. Let cool approx 15 - 20 minutes stirring every 5 minutes or so to help cool.
5. Add the marshmallows, white chocolate chips, craisens, coconut, and almonds and stir to combine.
6. Dump mixture into the prepared pan and spread evenly, pressing lightly with the back of your spoon, but do not compact too much, otherwise they will get hard.
7. Press some remaining white chocolate chips, almonds, and craisens into the top for garnish.
When the bars are completely cooled cut into squares and enjoy!

Medley Muffins

This recipe comes from Gimme Some Oven, and having sampled a couple of muffins hot out of the oven already, I'm a big fan! They're definitely not for everyone...for example, my father would never try something that looked so brown (and wasn't chocolate) and had visible lumps of fruit and nuts. But if you're not afraid of a little health in your baked goods, these are really pretty good. They don't rise much, so next time I'd fill my muffin cups up the whole 2/3 of the way it recommends (weary of altitude effects, I only filled them halfway).

Ingredients:
1.5 cups wheat flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 cup wheat germ or flax seed (optional)
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 can pumpkin
1/3 cup milk (can use soy milk)
1/3 cup applesauce
2 ripe bananas
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 egg
1 cup oatmeal (quick or old-fashioined)
1 cup dried cranberries or raisins
1/2 cup almonds or walnuts

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare 18-22 muffin tins with paper cups, or lightly grease.
In a bowl, stir together flour, salt, baking soda, and wheat germ (or flax). Set aside.
In mixing bowl, mix together the next eight ingredients (butter through egg) until combined. Then slowly add in the flour mixture until combined. Then stir in oatmeal, cranberries and almonds.
Pour the mixture into the baking cups, so that each is about 2/3 full. (I sprinkled coarse sugar and a few oats on top of each of mine for a prettier top.)
Bake for about 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes, and serve. These also freeze well.

White Chocolate and Cranberry Bars

Threw these together the other night on a whim -- idea was good but cake mix not the best -- bubbled up over edges, and was crust stayed too dry in places. Edges also baked way before the insides did, so probably better for Baker's Edge pan. Next time I'll just make a good butter-cookie-like crust and then following the remaining steps...

Ingredients

1/2 cup + 2Tbsp butter
1 box white cake mix

1 cup dried sweetened cranberries
12oz (1 bag) white chocolate chunks
1 cup coconut
14oz (1 can) sweetened condensed milk

Directions
1. In a 13x9 pan (or a Baker's Edge pan) melt 1 stick+2Tbsp butter, then sprinkle cake mix over top.
2. Layer cranberries, chocolate chunks, and coconut evenly over top.
3. Drizzle condensed milk evenly over pan.
4. Bake at 350 for 30-40min, until bubbly and golden brown on edges.
5. Let cool *completely* before cutting; drizzle white chocolate frosting/drizzle over top for decoration.

Blackberry Cranberry Sauce

I got this recipe from Baking Bites and made it for Thanksgiving this year, though I left out the allspice lest my very traditional family mutiny. I liked it a lot, but maybe added too much water at the beginning, as it stayed fairly watery.

Blackberry Cranberry Sauce
12-oz bag cranberries
2 cups blackberries (approx 12-oz)
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
[1/4 tsp ground allspice...I omitted]

Place cranberries in a medium saucepan and fill about 1-inch deep with water. Cook over medium-high heat until cranberries start to pop. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until popping slows. Add in blackberries, sugar, salt and allspice. Stir well and cook over medium heat until sauce comes just to a simmer and starts to thicken.
Use a potato masher to gently crush the berries, the cook for an additional minute.
Pour sauce out into a heat resistant dish, cover and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Berries will keep, refrigerated, for at least a week.

Makes about 4 cups

Cranberry Ribbon Cake

I saw this on Coconut & Lime and got very excited about the use of yogurt and cranberry sauce, as I had both to use up. Haven't tasted it yet but am excited to!

Ingredients:
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 cup plain yogurt, at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup whole berry cranberry sauce at room temperature (I used this recipe that I made for Thanksgiving this year...)
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder

[Added a little more flour (~1-2 Tbsp) and slightly less baking soda and powder (reduced by about 1/8 tsp) for altitude...also baked at 325 for about 40min]

Directions:
"Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour or use a baking spray 1 bundt or tube pan. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, butter, vanilla and sugar until well mixed. Slowly add in yogurt. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder and a dash of salt. Slowly incorporate into the yogurt batter. Mix thoroughly. It might not look like you have enough batter to fill the pan, but you do. It is not a super tall cake, but it will rise and have a great texture, I promise. Spoon 1/2 of the batter into the prepared pan. Smooth with the back of a spatula. Carefully spoon the cranberry sauce to form a ring around the middle of the pan, without touching the middle or sides. Top with the remaining batter and smooth with the back of a spatula. Bake 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan about 5 minutes, and then remove to a wire rack. Slice and eat."

(I also made 4 mini cakes in my snowflake pan for added holiday spirit :-P)