Comments on: cranberry vanilla coffee cake

By: sarah s.

sarah s. — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 22:21:40 +0000

Hello from snowy seattle! first time posted and new to smitten kitchen, but loving digging through the site.

Had a snow day today and took the chance to use up leftover cranberries in my fridge. the cake was almost perfect – it burned a little bit when i forgot about it while shoveling the sidewalk (whoops). even with the toasted sides, it was very delicious and still moist. i substituted regular vanilla for the bean (a dash in the cranberries and a dash with the butter), almond milk for the whole, raw cane sugar for the regular, and cooked it in a spring-form pan (and had a little trouble getting the bottom off. Better greasing up next time). Fantastic. Will definitely try again… this time with a louder timer.

By: Shilpa

Shilpa — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 03:30:41 +0000

Hi deb! Been looking for something to do with a bag of cranberries my dad bought. Since we don’t eat fresh cranberries this side of the world,(for good reason, how tart!!), thought to check your site, for something-cranberry, and wow, was I satisfied :) this is so going to be breakfast tomorrow!

Question: can I use vanilla extract/essence instead of a bean? They sell beans like they sell gold here! Also you think using brown sugar for the struesel might be a good idea?

By: alexandra

alexandra — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 14:32:09 +0000

thanks SO much! appreciate the response!

By: deb

deb — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 04:11:39 +0000

Lowfat milk would probably be the better choice. Buttermilk works better in recipes with baking soda…

By: alexandra

alexandra — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 03:25:55 +0000

hi deb! i’m not sure that you will see this, as you posted this recipe in 2008 – but – i googled “cranberries” on your site because i wanted to make a dessert for christmas eve with them and found this recipe. i don’t have any whole milk on hand. in a pinch, would you recommend using buttermilk, which i do happen to have, or reduced fat milk in place of the whole milk? thanks for your time and happy holidays!

By: Kara

Kara — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 02:21:50 +0000

Help! I just moved across the country so I’m crazy broke and have limited kitchen supplies, I only have pans with 1 in. sides. Should I try to make two cakes with this recipe? Should I use more cranberries? Suggestions would be great. I got some wonderful cranberries at the farmers market last week and I already made the pear and cranberry gingersnap crumble (which was amazing). Thank you!

By: Alex

Alex — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 06:36:31 +0000

Just made this for a New Years Eve party and it was a big hit! I added about 3/4 tablespoon of orange zest–I couldn’t resist. Thanks, Deb!

By: kazuko

kazuko — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 05:03:36 +0000

What went wrong with my cake ? The batter was way too short for a 9″ round pan, so layer ended up very thin. But the cake rose pretty good. Next time I will use a 8″ round pan.

By: lil

lil — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 13:24:34 +0000

I know this an old post but I wanted to comment on it. I’ve been making this for the past two Christmases (RIP Gourmet!). It is so easy and so good. I also love to candy a few cranberries and add them on top. I think it gives it an extra pop, both of tart flavor and of color.

By: Tanya

Tanya — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 22:10:19 +0000

i made this cake last night and i have to say that although it was just OK last night, it is amazingly good and yummy today! so let your cake rest overnight and then eat it! it makes all the difference!
i did use vanilla extract instead of vanilla beans and just added it after the eggs. next time i would also use less sugar because it was a little too sweet for me. also the crumb topping was not what i expected; i think the directions are off a bit, not enough flour but i’m kind of glad because i’m not a huge fan of crumb toppings anyway.
overall, though, delicious!
thanks.