Cranberry Orange Pound Cake with White Chocolate and an Orange Glaze
Citrus is such a fun addition to the holiday season. We’re truly so lucky and blessed to be able to get to enjoy these fresh, vitamin C filled gems all winter long. And cranberries? Don’t get me started. My goal in life is to visit a cranberry field one day. I’d swoon over those floating rubies. What better way to honor these amazing fruits this holiday season than in this cranberry orange pound cake?
Whenever I think of citrus in winter, it’s always in the movie Little Women. And to be clear, it’s from the real version of Little Women and the only one I’ll watch, with Winona Ryder, Cristian Bale, and Susan Sarandon. Any other attempt at the book just doesn’t compare.
“Why, you see, the girls are always buying them, and unless you want to be thought mean, you must do it, too. It’s nothing but limes now, for everyone is sucking them in their desks in schooltime, and trading them off for pencils, bead rings, paper dolls, or something else….If one girl likes another, she gives her a lime; if she’s mad with her, she eats one before her face, and doesn’t offer even a suck. They treat by turns, and I’ve had ever so many but haven’t returned them, and I ought, for they are debts of honor, you know.” – Amy March, Little Women
I don’t have a reference to cranberries in the movies, they’re just delicious.
I grew up on cranberries only on Thanksgiving and Christmas, and they were only from the can. Five minutes before serving my mom or grandma would whip out the can opener, spin off the lid on a can of jellied cranberries, and it would make that sucking sound as they plopped it onto a crystal dish. And that was cranberries growing up. It was also one of my favorite thing to eat at those holiday dinners!
Flash forward many years and I found out you could make cranberry sauce from fresh cranberries. And my life was changed forever. I soon realized they were amazing in so many other dishes, like my Starbucks copycat Cranberry bliss bars. And today I get to share my latest recipe with you, cranberry orange pound cake.
And don’t skip the glaze!
Make just as the recipe lays it out and enjoy the melody of flavors in your mouth. They are the perfect sweet and fruity combo.
If you’re not yet, make sure to follow along on Instagram for all my recipes and creations in real-time, as well as my movie musings. 😉
Enough of all that now, let’s get to the recipe!
Cranberry Orange Pound Cake with White Chocolate and an Orange Glaze
Orange and cranberry are the perfect pairing in this delicious pound cake. Nothing says the holidays like cranberries and citrus. Put them in a dessert and it's sure to be a hit. Follow the directions in this simple, straightforward recipe and bring it to your next gathering to enjoy with family and friends.
Ingredients
- Bread
- 1 & 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup cranberries
- 3 tbsp orange zest
- 1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- 1/2 cup white chocolate chunks
- 1/2 cup butter at room temperature
- 1 & 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 3 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- Glaze
- 3 tbsp melted butter
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar
- Fresh squeezed orange juice to glaze consistency
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350, line a loaf pan with parchment paper.
- Combine flour, baking powder, and salt and sift together. Don't skip this step, it is imperative to the outcome.
- Whisk together eggs, vanilla extract, orange zest, and juice. Set aside.
- Mix butter on medium speed until smooth. Add in sugar, heavy cream, and cream cheese. Incorporate well.
- Slowly add in eggs mixture with butter mix.
- Then begin to add in flour mixture. When half the flour is added, take the remaining flour and add in the cranberries and white chocolate. Stir and add the remaining flour mixture to batter. This just helps the cranberries and chocolate to stay separate and not clump together in the batter.
- Pour into loaf pan and tap gently to remove bubbles
- Bake at 350 for one hour or until toothpick in center comes out clean and there's no wiggle to the bread.
- This is a bread best served cool. The flavors pop better this way.
- Right before serving, beat together the melted butter, powdered sugar, and orange juice. Drizzle over bread and apply extra orange zest for garnish.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 258Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 77mgSodium: 178mgCarbohydrates: 24gFiber: 1gSugar: 19gProtein: 3g
Want more Christmas goodies? You need to try my thumbprint cookies. They’re a bit different than others out there and are filled with a thick, raspberry preserve. Fruit and dessert just go together!
