This zesty Cranberry Citrus Coffee Cake is as merry and bright as they come. With lemon and orange zest in the batter and the Walnut Streusel, and both zests and juices in the glaze, every bite of this vibrant treat offers an explosion of citrus flavor. We topped the batter with a layer of cranberries before baking for gorgeous color and extra sweetness. For more coffee cakes worthy of your holiday breakfast table, pick up a copy of our November/December 2019 issue!
Cranberry Citrus Coffee Cake
Makes 1 (9-inch) cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, melted
- 2 large eggs (100 grams)
- 2 tablespoons (6 grams) orange zest
- 1 tablespoon (3 grams) lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon (4 grams) vanilla extract
- 1½ cups (188 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons (7.5 grams) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (1.5 grams) kosher salt
- ½ cup (120 grams) sour cream
- ¼ cup (60 grams) whole milk
- 1¼ cups (92 grams) fresh or thawed frozen cranberries*
- Walnut Streusel (recipe follows)
- Citrus Glaze (recipe follows)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray a 9-inch springform pan with baking spray with flour.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together sugar, melted butter, eggs, zests, and vanilla.
- In another medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk flour mixture into butter mixture. Add sour cream and milk, whisking just until combined. Pour into prepared pan, smoothing top with an offset spatula. Top with cranberries; sprinkle with Walnut Streusel.
- Bake until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool in pan for 15 minutes. Remove from pan, and drizzle with Citrus Glaze. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
*If using thawed frozen cranberries, make sure to pat them dry before using.
Walnut Streusel
Makes about 1 cup
Ingredients
- ½ cup (63 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (57 grams) chopped walnuts
- ¼ cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon (1 gram) orange zest
- 1 teaspoon (1 gram) lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons (42 grams) unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together flour, walnuts, sugar, zests, and salt. Stir in melted butter until mixture is crumbly. Crumble with your fingertips until desired consistency is reached.
Citrus Glaze
Makes about ½ cup
Ingredients
- 1 cup (120 grams) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) sour cream
- 1 teaspoon (1 gram) orange zest
- 2 teaspoons (10 grams) orange juice
- 1 teaspoon (1 gram) lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon (5 grams) lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon (5 grams) whole milk
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together all ingredients until smooth.
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Absolutely fabulous
Made this today in 8×8 pan. Baked 50 minutes. Absolutely DELICIOUS. the citrus walnut streusel added a wonderful crunch.
I’ve made this at least 3 times and it’s an ABSOLUTE hit! A little labor intensive but worth it!
I make this every year at Christmas, it is the best coffee cake I’ve ever had!
This is a delicious cake. Suggest either making the streusel a day ahead and refrigerating or making it first instead of mixing up the cake, then making the streusel. Seems more efficient. I cut the citrus glaze in half. Would be just as good without it. I think this would be equally good with wild Maine blueberries.
I followed the recipe exactly as written. I, too, would cut back on the glaze, a little too much and not really necessary. Also, I would cut back the amount of flour in the streusel to 1/3 c. It seemed a bit too “floury” — the cake had a white appearance when I removed it from the oven. The overall taste is very good and I especially like the use of fresh cranberries rather than the dried that appear in most recipes.
I tried to make a gluten-free dairy-free version of this today. Batter tasted delicious so I was very hopeful.
I used an almond based sour cream by Kite Hill and some nutpod unsweetened vanilla creamer for the whole milk (often use Califiya vanilla almond milk but was out). Flour blend was 1 c of Bob’s Red Mill Measure for Measure and 1/2 cup almond flour, my usual favorite blend. Fat was olive oil (again, something Inuse all the time in baking) with great results.
While the flavors are delicious, it was very flat, dense and wet/too moist, like it never rose or fully dried out. I let it bake at least 10min more, not sure if time was the only issue. Syreusel also needs less flour or more oil.
I’d be grateful for any suggested adjustments to make this work a little better as I really love everything else about it!
Hi Carol,
We have not tested this recipe to be gluten and dairy-free. Oil and butter are not equivalent swaps, as butter is solid at room temperature. Since oil is liquid at room temperature, it won’t give the same texture.