Saturday, January 24, 2009

Not Just-For-Thanksgiving Cranberry Shortbread Cake

I stocked up on cranberries when they were cheap at the grocery store and wanted to give this cake a try. I am always curious about the recipes in Dorie's Baking book that don't have pictures and it makes me want to try them. I happened to have an extra egg yolk hanging out in the fridge, so I mixed up the filling and the dough and let them sit in the fridge overnight. Very easy dough to put together.
I baked this cake the next day and instead of using plain old sugar on top- I used some of my red and white decorating sugar.
It was really good. Tart and shortbread- A great combination.



Not-Just-For-Thanksgiving Cranberry Shortbread Cake (Adapted from Baking From My Home To Yours)
For the filling:
1 large navel orange
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
12 ounces fresh or frozen cranberries
3/4 to 1 cup granulated sugar
For the cake:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoons salt
13 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup plus 2 teaspoons granulated sugar, divided
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
To make the filling:
Grate the entire zest from the orange and remove the white pith left behind with a sharp knife. Slice between the membranes of the orange to remove the segments. Cut each segment into 1/4" pieces and place them, along with the zest, in a medium saucepan. Squeeze any of the juice left in the membranes of the orange into a measuring cup - you need about 1/4 cup total juice, if you don't get that much just add extra orange juice (or water if need be) to reach that amount.
Stir the cranberries and 3/4 cup granulated sugar into the pan.
Place over medium heat and bring to a boil - cook, stirring constantly, until the cranberries pop and the mixture thickens enough that your spoon will leave a track when you move it through. This should take around 5 minutes once it comes to the boil.
Scoop the jam into the bowl and let it cool slightly - if it is still too tart, add enough of the remaining 1/4 cup sugar to even out the flavor.
Allow to cool to room temperature then cover and refrigerate it until needed.
To make the cake:
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter until creamy - about 1 minute. Add 1 cup granulated sugar and mix until completely combined. Add the egg and yolk - beat the mixture until combined.
Mix in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture and stir by hand just until the flour has been absorbed. Divide the mixture in half and place each half on a piece of plastic wrap.
Flatten each portion into a disk and cover with another piece of plastic wrap - place in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350
Working with one portion of the dough at a time, roll one piece out between two pieces of plastic wrap until it is large enough to cover the bottom of a 9" springform pan coated with nonstick spray. Carefully lift up the dough and lightly press it around to fit it into the pan. Scoop the cranberry filling on top of the dough and use an off-set spatula to spread it to an even layer. Remove the second piece of dough from the refrigerator and roll it out again to the same size as the first. Carefully flip the dough on top of the filling and use your fingers to lightly even it out so the dough completely covers the filling. Lightly brush the top of the dough with water and sprinkle the remaining 2 teaspoons granulated sugar on top. Bake until the top of the cake is a light golden and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out mostly clean - about 35 to 45 minutes.
Remove and place the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes - gently run a thin knife around the edge to loosen the cake, then remove the sides of the pan and let cool completely
Coming Tomorrow- Gonzo Garbanzos

9 comments:

Jessica said...

I adore all things cranberry, this dessert looks wonderful! (This year I waited too late to stock up on bagged cranberries to freeze, do you know of a store that carries them in the freezer section?)

The Food Librarian said...

Looks yummy! I have 3/4 bag left in the freezer, although I saw some fresh ones at Trader Joe's the other day ($2). Also, I made some muffins you might want to try. :)

Barbara Bakes said...

Orange and cranberry filling sounds wonderful in a shortbread!

Jessica said...

Yum! I am so glad that you made this cake because I kept reading about it and wondering what it looked like. I might have to make a smaller one for myself.

Jersey Girl Cooks said...

This looks like a great combination. It would be very pretty for Valentines Day.

Anne said...

This looks so good! Thank you!

Karen said...

Boy, that looks good - love the filling in this and it looks like a tart!

Cathy said...

This looks so great! Somehow I've ended up with quite a little stash of egg yolks in my fridge, and this looks like the perfect way to use up one of them! I love that you are testing out the pictureless Dorie recipes for us --I am usually scared that I am going to mess it up when I can't see what it is supposed to look like.

Pamela said...

That layer of cranberry certainly looks inviting. I think the colored sugar on top is very pretty, too.