White Chocolate Cranberry Cake

5 from 2 votes

White Chocolate Cranberry Cake

Learn how to make the best white chocolate cranberry cake with layers of poppy seed vanilla cake, cranberry compote, white chocolate cream cheese frosting, and sugared cranberries.

Prep Time2

Cook Time40

Chill time4

Total Time6 40

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: slices

Calories: 855kcal

Author: Janice Lawandi

Equipment

Ingredients

For the sugared cranberries

250 grams water
200 grams granulated sugar
150 grams fresh cranberries
50 grams granulated sugar more or less, for dusting the cranberries

For the cranberry filling

100 grams fresh cranberries
50 grams granulated sugar
30 grams water
1.25 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
1.25 mL pure vanilla extract

For the cake

250 grams bleached all-purpose flour
10 mL baking powder
1.25 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
10 mL poppy seeds
173 grams unsalted butter room temperature
250 grams granulated sugar
3 large egg(s) room temperature
5 mL pure vanilla extract
188 mL whole milk (3.25 % fat)

For the frosting

340 grams Philadelphia cream cheese (full fat, regular) softened
255 grams white chocolate
173 grams unsalted butter room temperature
23 grams fresh lemon juice

Metric - US

Instructions

To make the sugared cranberries

Heat together the water and the cup of granulated sugar on medium–low to dissolve the sugar.
Transfer the syrup to a heat proof bowl and let cool 15 minutes.
Add the cranberries, cover the bowl, and chill in the fridge for serveral hours or overnight, stirring every so often.
Toss with half the remaining 50 grams (¼ cup) of sugar to coat all sides. Let dry on a rack set on a sheet pan to set and dry out before using.

To make the cranberry filling

In a small saucepan, heat the cranberries, sugar, water, and salt on low to dissolve the sugar.
Increase the heat to medium, and boil to thicken the filling. The filling should be very thick. Transfer the filling to a container, stir in the vanilla, and refrigerate overnight.

To make the cake layers

Preheat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C). Grease, flour, and line the bottoms of three 6x2-inch (15x5-cm) round cake pans (I like these pans from Wilton available on Amazon) pans. Set aside.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, poppy seeds, and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle, cream together the butter and sugar for 3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla, beating well between each addition and scraping down the bowl as needed.
Add the dry ingredients alternately with the wet, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Finish stirring the last bit of flour into the batter by hand.
Divide the batter between the prepared pans (~330 grams per pan). Tap pans on the counter and smooth the tops with a spatula. Bake the layers for 28 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Let cool on a wire rack completely.

To make the white chocolate cream cheese frosting

Chop the white chocolate and place it in a heat-proof bowl. Melt it over a double boiler until silky smooth, then let it cool before using it.
Whip the cream cheese in a stand mixer until fluffy and very soft, then with the mixer on low, slowly drizzle the cooled melted white chocolate. Continue beating until light and fluffy.
Add the butter, a little at a time, and mix until it's all incorporated. Beat for several minutes until you have a thick, fluffy smooth frosting. If you notice any flecks of butter or white chocolate, you can pass the frosting through a strainer to smooth it out.

To assemble the cake

Remove the parchment paper from the layers. Level the tops of the cakes so they are flat with a serrated knife.
Fill a piping bag (fitted with a 20 mm round tip or with a large opening) with frosting.
Place one layer of cake on the cake stand, pipe a rim of frosting, and fill with half the cranberry filling, smoothing with a spatula.
Pipe frosting over top to completely cover the rim and filling, smoothing with a spatula again.
Top with a second layer of cake and repeat the rim, filling, and frosting step.
Top with the third layer of cake. Completely frost the outside of the cake.
Use your spatula to smooth and add texture to the sides of the cake, and top the cake with sugared cranberries just before serving.

Notes

This recipe calls for Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty!
Layer cakes take time to make. Here's a schedule to help you get organized:
- The day before: make the sugared cranberries and the cranberry compote
- The day you want to serve the cake: bake the cake layers in the morning, then finish the sugared cranberries and make the frosting so that you can assemble the cake.
Frosting—I have made this cake with two different frostings: the white chocolate cream cheese as written below and this thick cream cheese frosting, which is much easier to make than the white chocolate cream cheese frosting. Both work great with this recipe, but the flavour is a little different, obviously, because one is sweetened with white chocolate and the other with icing sugar.
Poppy seed cake—you can omit the poppy seeds if you don't have them or don't want them. They don't add a ton of flavour and are more for looks and texture.
Almond cake flavour—the cake layers would taste great with pure almond extract added to the batter along with the vanilla. Use carefully: add about 2.5–5 mL (½–1 teaspoon) as it can be quite potent.
I split the batter between three 6-inch cake pans. Take the time to prepare the cake pans before baking, by buttering the pans, lining the bottom with parchment, and dusting the sides with flour. This way, your cakes will slide right out of the pan without any tearing.
Store this cake for three days at room temperature, covered. For a detailed explanation of storing after slicing, read about how to store cake.

Nutrition