Cranberry Cake with Cake Mix for Christmas

Close up of a Cranberry Christmas Cake topped with powdered sugar.

4.89 from 9 votes

Cranberry Cake with Cake Mix for Christmas

This delicious Cranberry Cake with orange and almond is the perfect bundt cake to serve for the holidays! With tart flavor and a light dusting of powdered sugar, this recipe is quick and easy thanks to starting with a boxed cake mix!

Prep Time10

Cook Time45

Total Time55

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Calories: 204kcal

Author: Sharon Garofalow

Equipment

Bundt Pan

Ingredients

15 ounce white cake mix (dry)
3 ounce vanilla pudding powder
3/4 cups vegetable oil
4 eggs
12 ounces fresh cranberries
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup milk
1 tbsp orange zest

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, add the dry cake mix powder and the dry vanilla pudding powder. Blend quickly with a fork.
To the same bowl, add the oil, almond extract, vanilla extract and milk.
Give everything a quick mix with a spatula to moisten the dry ingredients so they don't fly all over.
Add one egg at a time, beating with a hand mixer between each egg until they are fully incorporated.
Add the orange zest.
Add fresh cranberries to a plastic storage bag with a little bit of flour (about 1 tablespoon) and toss it all together.
Remove any excess flour then add the coated cranberries to the cake batter. Fold in with a spatula.
Scrape batter into a bundt cake pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
Bake for 40-50 minutes.
Use a toothpick or cake tester to make sure the middle is cooked through.
Add more time if needed.
Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before remove to a plate or cooling rack.

Notes

You may be able to bake this cake in a 9 x 13 pan although I haven't tried it. Because it won't be quite as thick as in the bundt pan, you may want to check it at about 30 minutes to see how the cooking is coming along.
While my recipe calls for almond extract and orange zest, you can leave that out if you prefer. I love the flavor it gives since it is a classic combination when paired with cranberries. But it's totally up to you.
I add 1 tablespoon of orange zest but this is really up to you. I love the zing of orange but you can cut this back if you want.
Use a serrated knife to cut. It will help to not squish the bread but slice through to create a beautiful piece to serve.
To add a little bit of crunch you could easily add some chopped almonds to the batter. That would be delicious along with the almond extract.

To serve, sprinkle with a light dusting of powdered sugar. For a festive holiday look, add fresh cranberries and rosemary to the serving plate.

Nutrition