Cranberry Streusel Coffee Cake

Cranberry streusel coffee cake is a perfect weekend breakfast treat or make-ahead holiday brunch. Bright citrus and tart cranberry is a perfect balance with rich buttery cake and a sweet streusel topping. Drizzle your slice with a quick and easy homemade icing for a memorable breakfast your whole family will love.

this recipe

With fall well underway, I have inevitably started thinking about the holidays. Christmas, in particular. Christmas is my favorite time of year, and I’m one of those (admittedly annoying) people that is already humming Christmas songs under my breath. Especially in Hobby Lobby. I promise, I will wait to start playing them in my car until at least Halloween. I promise… 

What I just can’t wait for any longer is testing out new holiday recipes! Although I’m usually not a big baker, Christmas is the one time of year where I really enjoy it! I love making Christmas cookies with the kids, and decadent breakfasts like sweet cream pancakes and brioche French toast casserole. This holiday season, this delicious cranberry coffee cake recipe is definitely on the docket. With lots of tart cranberries and bright citrus, this classic coffee cake is perfectly balanced with just the right amount of sweetness. Topped with a brown sugar streusel topping, and drizzled with a simple homemade icing, this easy cranberry crumb coffee cake is sure to be a family favorite. 

Add some easy egg bites, homemade hash browns or a festive fruit tray for a completely delicious breakfast on Christmas morning. But before then, you will definitely want to eat several pieces of this tender cake with your afternoon cup of coffee… after all, it is never to early to start your holiday recipe testing!

You Will Love This

• This simple cranberry cake is so pretty for the holidays – those bright red berries are super festive!
• The combination of orange and cranberry in this recipe make a delicious cake that’s a perfect balance to the sweet and crumbly streusel topping. 
• Sour cream is the perfect way to make moist cake! This coffee cake has a sweet buttery cake flavor with a super tender crumb. 

Ingredients

To make cranberry streusel coffee cake you need the following ingredients (full ingredients list with exact measurements is included in the recipe card below):

Ingredient Notes

• Sour cream: Sour cream is perfect for making a super moist coffee cake. I recommend full fat. You could also try substituting full fat greek yogurt. 
• Orange juice: This recipe uses orange juice in the batter and zest in the crumble for a cranberry orange coffee cake with a delicious balanced flavor. Fresh squeezed orange juice or concentrated orange juice can be used, fresh squeezed will have a stronger orange flavor.
• Butter: I suggested unsalted butter in this recipe. You can substitute vegetable oil if that’s what you have on hand. 
• Cranberries: Use fresh cranberries in this recipe, not dried cranberries. I have not made this recipe with frozen cranberries, but if that’s what you have on hand I recommend fully thawing them and drying them with a paper towel before adding them to the cake. Frozen fruit release a lot of moisture, so drying them thoroughly will help with that. You can also use leftover cranberry sauce, if you’d like. If you do, place dollops of cranberry sauce directly in the batter in the baking pan. Do not fold it into the batter or it will overtake the entire coffee cake.

Instructions

Step One: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper and set aside.

Note: You could also use an 8inch round springform pan for this recipe. 

Step Two: Make the crumb topping. In a medium bowl, combine the brown sugar, all purpose flour, orange zest and butter. Mix until little balls form a crumble then set aside.

Step Three: In a large bowl, whisk together the butter, eggs, orange juice and vanilla extract for the coffee cake. Add sour cream and mix until smooth.

Step Four: In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, granulated sugar, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and slowly mix until just combined. Fold in cranberries.

Step Five: Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan then sprinkle half the streusel on top. Add the rest of the batter then sprinkle the remaining streusel on top of the cake. Bake for 45 minutes or until a knife comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool for about 5 minutes in the pan, and then remove it to a wire rack. 

Step Six: While the cake is cooling, make the icing. Mix together the powdered sugar and milk in a small mixing bowl until smooth. Once cake is cooled to room temperature, drizzle the icing over the top and serve.

Note: If you are planning to make the cake ahead, I recommend waiting to add the icing until just before serving.

Storage

Wait until the cake is fully cooled to room temperature before storing. To keep the cake moist, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and store it in an airtight container on the counter for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. If you are planning to make the cake ahead, I recommend waiting to add the icing until just before serving.