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Cranberry Orange Bundt Cake is an easy and beautiful cake to feed the whole family during the holiday season. This tart and sweet bundt cake is topped with an orange glaze for the perfect finish.
I don’t know what it is about this year, but I am so far behind with holiday shopping right now. I was really ahead, but then I kind of just gave up. And if I’m being honest, just the thought of entering a mall right now gives me anxiety, so I’m thinking it’s going to be the year of the gift cards for quite a few people on my list.
One thing I’m not behind with is holiday baking. In fact, today I’m planning on making peanut butter blossoms and mint chocolate cookies with my girl today.
We may even whip up a couple of batches of snowflake sugar cookies because they are current favorite cookie recipe at the moment.
Glazed Cranberry Orange Cake
As Christmas gets closer and closer, I’m starting to look at the piles of cranberries in my freezer and realizing I might have gone overboard.
But it’s so easy to grab a bag of fresh cranberries every time I’m at the grocery store! And I do love making homemade cranberry sauce and cranberry orange scones, so having extras on hand is always nice.
But…I should probably use some of them up.
So I grabbed my stand mixer, a bag of cranberries, and my zester and put together this easy Cranberry Orange Bundt Cake.
Bundt cakes are great for the holidays because they easily feed as many people as you need, and what better flavor combination for Christmas than cranberries and orange?
This cranberry orange cake is sweet, full of orange flavor, and bursting with fresh cranberries.
The cake is topped with an easy powdered sugar and orange juice glaze for a simple finish. You could even top the cake with sugared cranberries if you want to make it look super fancy.
How to Make this Bundt Cake
As far as made-from-scratch cakes go, this Cranberry Orange Bundt Cake recipe is pretty simple. You’ll need:
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons grated orange zest
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups orange juice
- 2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
Start by whisking together the dry ingredients. Set those aside while you prep the wet ingredients.
In a large bowl, mix together the orange zest and sugar until the sugar is moistened and fragrant. This is my favorite trick to get the flavor of citrus zest to really shine through in baked goods.
Mix in the softened butter, followed by the eggs, vanilla, and orange juice.
Stir in the dry ingredients, then gently fold in the cranberries.
Spread the batter into a greased and floured bundt pan and bake for 70-75 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
I always let my bundt cakes cool at least 10-15 minutes in the pan before turning them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Once the cranberry orange cake has completely cooled, whisk together the powdered sugar and a bit more orange juice. Drizzle the glaze over the cake and serve!
More Holiday Bundt Cakes for Your Table
If you have a large family, bundt cakes are a great cake option for the holidays. They’re easy to make, look pretty without a lot of frosting or decorating, and feed a crowd.
Check out these festive bundt cake recipes that would be perfect for your Christmas dessert table.
Cream Cheese Pound Cake
Citrus Poppy Seed Cake
Dark Chocolate Cranberry Bundt Cake
Chocolate Peppermint Mini Bundt Cakes
Turtle Cake
Eggnog Bundt Cake with Rum Glaze
Cranberry Orange Bundt Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons grated orange zest
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups orange juice
- 2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
For the glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons orange juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a bundt pan. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl, mix together the sugar and orange zest until fragrant. Add in the butter and mix until well combined, stir in the egg and combine until smooth. Stir in orange juice and vanilla. Beat in flour mixture until just moistened (DO NOT OVERMIX); fold in cranberries. Pour into prepared pan.
- Bake for about 70-75 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes; turn out onto a wire rack to cool.
- When the cake is thoroughly cooled, whisk together the powdered sugar and orange juice, adding more orange juice or more powdered sugar as needed to achieve your desired consistency. Spread or drizzle the glaze over the cake.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Just wondering if I could swap out one to one with gluten free flour?
Hi Sandy – I haven’t tried this recipe with that substitution so I’m not sure how it would work. If you give it a try, I’d love to know how it turns out for you. Happy baking!
Jamie
Thinking about making this for Christmas..can i make it ahead of time? If so how do I go about storing it?
Hi Norma-
You can store in the refrigerator for a couple of days and bring to room temp before serving.
-Jamie
Hi there! Just wondering what SIZE Bundt pan you used for this luscious looking cake. Thanks – & season’s best to you & yours!
Hi Terry!
I used a 10-cup bundt pan. Happy Holidays to you and yours! :)
-Jamie
@Jamie, Thanks so much for such a speedy reply. Appreciate it!
We just went into a 1 month minimum lock down. Essential services only. Grocery stores @ max 15% fire code capacity. And NO gatherings of ANY kind with anyone you don’t live with – including outside. Exception is those of us who live alone allowed to meet with 2 others -but must be same 2 others entire lock down.
So – a girls gotta bake! Passes time & makes for delectable drop & drive away goodies. Keeping this cake tho for sharing with building neighbors! Mask & rubber glove knock & drop. Grr
Baking always helps, Terry! Especially during these times. Happy Holidays to you and yours!
-Jamie
Looking forward to making this recipe this weekend. Quick question, can I use (unsalted) butter instead of margarine? Thank you!
Hello! That should work fine. If you happen to give it a try, I’d love to know how they turned out. Thanks so much for stopping by.
-Jamie
CAN YOU ALSO USE FROZEN CRANBERRIES??
Sure!
Can this recipe be adapted for diabetics?
Joy-
I really don’t have a lot of experience adapting recipes for special diets, so I don’t want to advise you one way or another. If you give it a try, let us know how it goes.
-Jamie
Love your recipes..
Thank you, Jenny!
How many does this recipe make? Is it only for 1 bundt pan – 6 in total?
Hi, Hellen! This recipe makes one loaf or six mini bundt breads. Let me know if I can help you any further!