Cranberry Pound Cake is a perfect holiday dessert, food gift, or brunch addition! This easy recipe takes just 20 minutes to prep before baking, and when garnished with rosemary and extra cranberries, it becomes a festive and beautiful treat.
Cranberry pound cake is a show-stopping quick bread that’s easy to make and perfect for gifting. With its tender, buttery smooth texture and bursts of tart cranberries, it’s ideal for holiday celebrations.
Make it a Christmas cranberry pound cake by garnishing with rosemary and fresh cranberries for a festive look that makes a perfect presentation.
This festive cake is as popular as my homemade spice cake with caramel frosting this time of year. It’s classic and nostalgic with the perfect texture and flavor for fall and winter.
For more ways to use cranberries try my delicious cranberry sauce using dried cranberries.
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Why you'll love this cake recipe
This tender and sweet cake is a delightful treat and as delicious as my other quick breads and loaf cakes. Try my easy One Banana Banana Bread, or Pumpkin Loaf with Cream Cheese Frosting.
Here are the other reasons you'll love this cake:
- Festive and beautiful: The bright cranberries and white icing make it the ultimate holiday dessert.
- Easy to make: You can prep it in just 20 minutes and bake multiple loaves at once.
- Versatile: It can be made in one large loaf or 3 mini loaves. Perfect as a dessert, brunch addition, or food gift.
- You can add nuts, white chocolate chips, or orange zest for an orange cranberry pound cake.
Ingredients
Other than seasonal cranberries, this recipe uses simple baking ingredients you most likely already have. Store cranberries in the freezer to make this throughout the fall and winter.
See full recipe below for quantities.
- All-purpose flour
- Unsalted butter: Gives the cake a rich buttery flavor while letting you control the amount of salt and flavor.
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs and leavening
- Salt
- Cranberries: Use fresh cranberries, or frozen and thawed cranberries.
- Almond and vanilla extracts
- Sour cream and milk: You can also use full fat Greek yogurt if you’d like.
- Confectioners’ sugar and milk: Used for a simple glaze.
How to make cranberry pound cake
See the detailed images below for reference on how to make this pound cake. I prefer to make 3 mini loaves rather than 1 standard loaf because they cook evenly and quickly. Here are steps for making the cake.
- Prepare the pans: Grease, then line one standard loaf pan, or 3 mini loaf pans with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Mix the batter: Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy, then alternate adding the dry ingredients and the sour cream mixture.
- Fold in cranberries: Stir in by hand so they don’t get crushed.
- Bake: Divide the batter between pans if using minis and bake until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Ice and garnish: Drizzle the icing over cooled cakes and top with rosemary and extra cranberries if garnishing.
Make the cake batter:
- Step 1: Mix together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
- Step 2: Add eggs one at a time, mixing between each addition.
- Step 3: Add one third of the flour mixture, and mix to combine.
- Step 4: Add half of the sour cream mixture and mix to combine.
- Step 5: Continue alternately mixing in flour and sour cream, beginning and ending with flour.
- Step 6: Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is evenly mixed.
- Step 7: Stir in the cranberries by hand.
- Step 8: Evenly divide between three mini baking pans to bake.
Hint: Make sure your oven is heated, at least 30 minutes before baking, so it has time to come to the right temperature. I like to use an oven thermometer as I heat the oven to make sure it is the right temperature. Adjust your oven if it is off 25ºF or more.
Make the icing:
- Step 1: Mix together the milk and confectioners' sugar.
- Step 2: Use a wooden or metal spoon, as the icing is meant to be very stiff and thick.
- Step 3: Continue mixing until the sugar is completely incorporated and a thick, smooth icing has formed.
- Step 4: Use a spoon to frost each mini loaf, guiding the frosting to the edges. It will set after a few minutes.
Other flavors you can add
Elevate your cranberry pound cake with these flavor ideas:
- Orange zest: Adds a bright, citrusy note. Add 2 teaspoons to the batter before adding the cranberries.
- Chopped nuts: Chopped pecans or macadamia nuts are a great choice for extra crunch. Stir in ¾ cup with the cranberries.
- White chocolate chips: Stir in ¾ cup along with the cranberries for sweet and creamy pockets of flavor.
Storage, freezing, and make-ahead:
Freezing: Wrap cooled, unglazed cakes tightly in plastic wrap and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature and glaze before serving.
Make-Ahead: Bake and glaze the cakes up to 2 days ahead. Store in an airtight container, and add garnish just before serving for the freshest look.
Mini loaves vs. one standard loaf
Many loaf quick-breads and loaf cakes can be made in a standard 8.5 inch loaf pan. They have to cook long enough to bake the inside of the loaf and the outside edges get quite dark.
That's why I strongly suggest baking this recipe in three mini loaf pans. Invest in a good set of mini loaf pans for perfect baking.
The cakes bake quickly and evenly. Plus! They are easy to serve and easy to gift when they are small and individual.
Top tip: Mixing correctly
Creaming the butter and sugar properly is key. Beat them until light and fluffy to ensure your cake has an airy texture. This action acts as part of the leavening for the pound cake.
When adding the eggs, mix one at a time so as not to deflate the air in the butter and sugar you just created! Mix each egg just until incorporated.
FAQ
The cranberries do not sink in this recipe. The pound cake batter is thick enough that they stay in place. If you do have an issue with sinking fruit, you can toss them lightly in flour before folding them into the batter. This is not a fail-proof method and depends on the recipe and the batter.
This versatile pound cake is great with mix-ins. As I mentioned above, orange zest, white chocolate chips, and chopped nuts are delicious. You can comment below if you find other mix-ins you think people should know about.
Insert a toothpick into the center of the loaf. If it comes out clean, or with a few dry crumbs the cake is ready. If it comes out with wet batter on it, cook the cakes a little longer.
You can use frozen cranberries and you don't even need to thaw them, but you can! Just chop them frozen, or use them whole for bigger bites of berry in each loaf. If you do thaw them, make sure to drain the excess juice off before stirring into the batter
Muffins and Quick Bread Recipes
Looking for other recipes for loaf pans and muffin tins?
More easy cake recipes
If you love this cranberry Christmas pound cake, try these other simple and delicious cakes:
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📖 Recipe
Cranberry Pound Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- ¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter (softened)
- 1¼ cups granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs (room temperature)
- 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries (coarsely chopped)
Icing
- 6 teaspoons whole milk
- 1½ cups confectioners' sugar
- Rosemary (for garnish)
- Cranberries (for garnish)
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350ºF. Butter and line 3 mini loaf pans with parchment paper.
- Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl and set aside. Combine sour cream, milk, and extracts in a bowl and set aside.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat butter until smooth and creamy. Add sugar and beat until pale and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add eggs, one at a time, incorporating each into the batter.
- Alternately mix in the flour and sour cream mixture in 3 additions, starting and ending with flour. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat the batter for 20 to 30 seconds after the last addition of flour.
- Fold the chopped cranberries into the batter by hand. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared loaf pans. Place spaced out on a baking sheet to bake in the oven.
- Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Let cakes cool in the pans a few minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.
- When cakes are cooled, make the icing. Mix together the confectioners’ sugar and milk until smooth. Icing will be thick–it’s best to use a wooden or metal spoon to mix.
- Spoon icing onto each cake, gently spreading it over the top. Let the icing set about 30 minutes before topping with garnish.
- Baked and iced cakes can be stored airtight for up to 3 days. Garnish just before serving or gifting for best results.
Tara Teaspoon
I’ve been in food publishing for over 25 years, creating recipes & food-styling for magazines, books, television, food brands, & advertising. With two cookbooks under my belt and thousands of my recipes at your fingertips, I hope you'll be inspired to spend more time in the kitchen!
Tara Teaspoon says
You are going to love this recipe. It's the perfect, tender pound cake with tart cranberries and sweet icing. Leave a 5 star rating if you enjoy it!
Julie says
Was able to use up the last of my fresh cranberries to make this pound cake. It was very moist and I loved the tang of the cranberries. Highly recommend!
Tara Teaspoon says
Oh wonderful! Glad you liked it.