Orange Cranberry Chocolate Cake – easy chocolate cake packed with my favorite fruits of the season: cranberries and orange! This dairy-free, vegan cake will easily become your favorite!
It’s not secret that cranberries and oranges go together like peanut butter and jelly. They are made for each other! But have you tried to throw chocolate into the mix? I did and created one of my favorite cakes of late!
Enter Orange Cranberry Chocolate Cake.
I used my very favorite chocolate cake (egg-free, dairy-free) and added fresh cranberries and orange. This cake blew my mind!
Thanksgiving is next week and after that it’s all about Christmas. That means more snow outdoors and more movie time indoors. At least for me. A steaming cup of lemon tea and a slice of orange cranberry chocolate cake while the “Christmas Story” is playing on TV – that sounds like a great evening to me! Some days just require a great and easy cake. This one is just it!
This cake is based on my go-to chocolate cake recipe. It doesn’t use eggs or milk, but rather relies on a mix of baking soda, cocoa powder and vinegar to create a fluffy, rich and gorgeous crumb. Top the batter with fresh cranberries (see tip for using frozen) and orange zest and juice and the cake gets an infusion of seasonal flavors that explode in your mouth unexpectedly. You may think, it’s just a chocolate cake dusted with powdered sugar. But take one bite and you will fall in love! This cake is absolutely delicious!
This recipe makes 12 pieces.
- 1.5 c all-purpose flour
- 1 c granulated sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/3 c unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 c vegetable or canola oil
- 1 c water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 Tbsp apple cider or red wine vinegar
- 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries (see note)
- 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour , for coating berries
- juice of half of orange
- zest of one orange
- powdered sugar for dusting
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a 8"x8" square pan with parchment paper. Grease the paper. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, soda, salt and cocoa).
- Pour orange juice into a measuing cup. Add enough water to make 1 cup of liquid.
- In another mixing bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients (oil, water with orange juice, vanilla and vinegar).
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and whisk together until smooth.
- Add orange zest and mix well.
- Pour the batter into prepared pan.
- Toss cranberries with two teaspoons of flour. Arrange on top of the batter. Gently press into the batter but do not cover.
- Bake for 30 to 33 minutes, OR until the toothpick inserted into few place in the cake comes out clean. (Out of toothpicks? Use an uncooked spaghetti noodle!)
- Cool in pan for 2 minutes. Transfer onto a cooling rack to cool completely before dusting with powdered sugar.
*If using frozen cranberries, place them in a heat-proof dish, pour the freshly squeezed orange juice over the berries and microwave for 20 seconds. Gently mash the berries so they will release the juice. Drain the berries, reserving the juice.
Enjoy!
Related Recipes:
Cranberry Bundt Cake with White Chocolate Glaze
Nancy says
Gaaaaah, this cake looks so moist, rich ‘n chocolatey! In other words, absolute perfection. And I love your creativity by mixing orange, cranberry and chocolate together. I’m actually drooling right now.
Sara says
Chocolate and orange is a great combo AND THEN you added cranberries to make it even more delicious. This sounds like the cake my dad begs for every year on his birthday. YUM!
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
Thank you so much, Sarah!
Katerina says
What.A.Cake! That’s damn gorgeous!
Sue says
I have a whole cranberries Pinterest board and I’ve yet to see them paired with chocolate…I love this recipe!
Kelly says
Oh I love cranberry anything – this cake looks wonderful!
Marla Meridith says
LOVE these fruity flavors with chocolate!! Pinned 🙂
Sues says
Such an awesome flavor combination and a SERIOUSLY moist cake!!
Liz says
I think it’s so crazy that you can put vinegar in a cake and not taste it! I am not vegan, so I will probably stick to my eggs and milk, but it’s cool that there are alternatives available!
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
Liz, I am not vegan either but I love how perfectly moist and fluffy the cake comes out! And so gorgeous with it’s reddish hue! Thanks so much!
Melanie says
What a gorgeous cake, perfect for holiday gatherings!
Rachel says
I can’t get over how moist that slice looks!! Incredible. And the flavor pairing is just perfect. I’m such a sucker for orange and cranberry together but chocolate too?! I’m sold!