Ina First Fridays: Cranberry and Apple Cake

Our Ina First Friday group is coming to an end. Never fear, we'll all still be making Ina dishes, but we agree it's time to move on to new things. You can always go to our Ina Pinterest board and find recipes. As we make Ina recipes in the future, my hope is everyone will pin them there. I'm going to. It's been a fun experience, making new blog friends and seeing everyone's take on Ina Garten recipes. Ina is the greatest!

Ina labels this cake easy. Something we all like to read this time of year. The recipe was inspired by a cranberry pie from Sarah Chase's book Cold Weather Cooking. (I love Sarah's cookbooks and am going to look up her pie recipe ASAP!) The cake didn't take any time at all to prepare and I think everyone in the family will enjoy it. Ina used a 10" pie plate and I used a lovely Emile Henry ceramic pie dish my DIL gave me....somewhat smaller, but deeper. When I looked the recipe up online, every photo looked different. It all depended on size of your pie pan. My cake was a tad moist at the bottom, no doubt the result of using frozen cranberries. Use fresh if available. I was using up frozen cranberries from last year. Still, it was light and delicious. 

Easy Cranberry and Apple Cake
2010, Barefoot Contessa, How Easy Is That?

Ingredients:

12 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over for stems

1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and diced

1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

1 tablespoon grated orange zest (2 oranges)

1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1 1/8 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided

2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 cup sour cream

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Method:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Combine the cranberries, apple, brown sugar, orange zest, orange juice, and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon in a medium bowl. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs on medium-high speed for 2 minutes. With the mixer on medium, add 1 cup of the granulated sugar, the butter, vanilla, and sour cream and beat just until combined. On low speed, slowly add the flour and salt.

Pour the fruit mixture evenly into a 10-inch glass pie plate. Pour the batter over the fruit, covering it completely. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar and 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon and sprinkle it over the batter. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean and the fruit is bubbling around the edges. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

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Ina Fridays participants:

•  Alyce @ More Time at the Table
•   Anna @ Cheese with Noodles
•  Ansh @ Spice Roots
•   Barbara @ Moveable Feasts  
•   Bhavna @ Just a Girl From AAmchi Mumbai..
•   Chaya @  Bizzy Bakes
•   Linda,  @ Tumbleweed Contessa
•   Mary @ The Egg Farm
•   Minnie @ The Lady 8 Home
•   Mireya @ My Healthy Eating Habits
•   Patti @ Comfy Cuisine
•   Peggy@ Pantry Revisited
•   Rocky Mountain Woman @ Rocky Mountain Woman
•   Veronica@ My Catholic Kitchen
• Linda @ There and Back Again
• Roz @ La Bella Vita Cucina