Remember how I made homemade Cranberry Sauce oh I don’t know, about three months ago and I bought the largest bag of cranberries on the face of the earth and I tried to find as many cranberry recipes as possible to use them? Well half the bag is still sitting in my freezer at this very moment. Which is why when I was searching through my list of recipes, I decided that making Joy’s Cranberry Orange and Pecan Coffee Cake was the only proper thing to do.

Except I took out the pecans since Meg is allergic to all tree nuts and I am too cheap to buy any. They’re way too expensive, like come on. I am a poor college student, I can’t afford pecans.

I know I’ve said in the past that I’m not really a breakfast person, but I’m wondering if that’s starting to change. I’ve always loved coffee cake either for breakfast or as a snack. The cake is always light and fluffy and the crumb topping just takes it to another level. It’s the perfect “running out the door, and need breakfast” breakfast, but it’s delicious. It’s not just coffee cake that has be re-evaluating my relationship with breakfast, but remember those Cinnamon Bacon Pancakes I made a few weeks ago? Phenomenal. And I have quite a few french toast recipes I really want to make for you as well. I don’t understand myself anymore.

If you are a breakfast person, and preferably one that enjoys both coffee and coffee cake, this Cranberry Orange Coffee Cake will change your life. I wish I was joking, but just ask Meg. She doesn’t really like cranberries and I caught her multiple times sneaking pieces out of the pan.

I mean the least she can do is help me eat it since I did squeeze the orange juice by hand. Yes, by hand. I never buy orange juice since I don’t particularly enjoy drinking it but I do love eating oranges, weird? Probably. But so I had extra oranges and I don’t own a juicer so I figured, I’d just do it myself. Boy, was that a terrible decision. Squeezing oranges takes a lot of work and energy.

Cranberry Orange Coffee Cake
Slightly changed from the recipe by Joy the Baker

Yield: one 9×5 inch loaf
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 50-60 minutes

Ingredients:
Cake
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into chunks
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 tablespoon orange zest
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped fresh cranberries

Crumb
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add in the chunks of butter and work it into the flour, making sure that it is evenly dispersed throughout the dry ingredients. The mixture should look like a coarse meal when it’s distributed.

In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, orange juice, orange zest, and vanilla extract. Pour into the dry ingredients and stir together just until it’s combined. Fold in the chopped cranberries and pour into the loaf pan.

To make the crumb: combine all of the ingredients together and cut the butter into the mixture until it is roughly the size of peas. I recommend using a pastry knife or a dinner knife so the pieces are about the same size.

Sprinkle the top of the loaf with the crumb so that it evenly covers the cake. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool, slice and enjoy!

But let me tell you, it was so ridiculously worth it.

Tagged: Coffee Cake, Cranberry, Orange