It’s November, and that means that we’ve undeniably entered the holiday season. In my world that means lots of family, lot of parties and eating a ridiculous, almost painful amount of food. Cocktail parties. Tacky Christmas sweater parties. Surprise guests and…. my oh my… is it too early to be this excited?
Despite all of my (possibly premature) excitement, I’ll admit that I’m sometimes at a loss when it comes to a holiday night out. If I’m not fussing over what I’m going to wear, I’m getting nit picky about the dessert that I’m going to bring. It’s enough to drive myself crazy and send me straight to the egg nog bowl when I hit the party. The egg nog is always such a nice thought, but the actual introduction of egg nog into my system is a very, very bad idea.
This weekend I picked up a few party dresses and tights- festive and hip but not over the top. I also baked up the perfect all purpose holiday cake. It’s a winner because you can throw it together with virtually anything and everything you have in your pantry.
Let’s discuss…
Here’s how this simple cake is going to rock your holiday party life just as hard as I’m going to rock my fierce new black dress and silver heels:
-Bundt pans equal instant pretty whether dusted with powdered sugar or dripping with glaze.
-If you have apples, you have a cake.
-No mixer necessary! All you’ll need is two bowls and a wooden spoon.
-Your house will smell like warm apples and cinnamon. Winner!
-Rum or Bourbon or orange juice- choose your adventure.
-This cake stays moist for days and even tastes better the second day!
-Some of the variations I thought of are all included in the ingredient list.
Bring on the holidays. Bring on the parties. I’ve got the goods. I’ve got the heels. I’ve got the cake. I’m ready to go.
Incidentally, you may need to remind me of my early enthusiasm sometime in early December. I’m not very good at pacing myself.
All Purpose Holiday Cake or Apple Cranberry Bourbon Cake
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 Tablespoon dark Rum (or Bourbon or orange juice)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 Cortland or Empire or Granny Smith or Gala apples, peeled, cored and cut into a 1/4 inch dice (you can make the apple slices slightly bigger if you like a chunkier cake)
1/2 cup fresh cranberries, coarsely chopped (or raisins or dried cranberries or dried apricots diced or chopped walnuts maybe even chocolate chips)
Put a rack in middle of oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan, knocking out excess flour.
Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt into a bowl.
Whisk together oil, eggs, sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg, rum or bourbon and vanilla in a large bowl until just combined. Fold in flour mixture until just combined, then fold in apples and cranberries. The batter will feel thick and heavy. Spoon the batter into pan.
Bake until a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center of cake comes out clean, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Cool cake in pan on a rack for 30 minutes, then turn out onto rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.
Mimi Findlay
I would like to make these as small loaf cakes, with a glaze for gift giving this Christmas. Has anyone tried this and if so can you offer me any guidance?
Verena
I have made this countless times and for diverse audiences and it’s always a hit. It never fails me. Can put it together in a few minutes and have it ready while guests wait. Over the years, this cake has been a staple in my baking repertoire.
Den C.
hello, can i skip the alcohol in this cake? :D
Sarah
I made this last night and it was so delicious! The smell of the cake baking literally lured my friends into the kitchen. Then, we proceeded to eat half of the cake. Thank you for the recipe, I am sure to keep it in my holiday baking repertoire!
lovefeedingmyfamilyandtryingnewrecipes
I was making a ice cream roll up cake with chocolate ganache for Christmas day dessert, on Christmas Eve, and stumbled onto your site when I had a question about prepping the sheet pan. I put your site on favorites and could hardly wait to come back. Your sense of humor and enthusiasm are fantastic and warm my heart and I am just thrilled to “visit” someone who loves to bake, and is so darned good at it. I am inspired, and I laugh, and my family reaps the rewards! Win, win, thank you!
Charity
I made this last night and it turned out so yummy! I halved the recipe and got 16 muffins. I did use 3/4 cup chopped cranberries and shredded the apples with the peels still on them. (So much easier using the food processor than all that slice and dicing.) I also added 1/8 teaspoon of cardamom since I love it. So delicious. Will be making again soon though I might dial down the white sugar by about 1/4 cup.
Dagmar
Just made the cake ….. It smells, looks and tastes divine :))))))) Thank you and greetings from Germany !!!!!
NIcole @ The Dirty Oven
BAMMM…got my Christmas eve dessert! Thank you mucho!!!! Thanks :)
Angela
I made this a few hours ago, and it is gone :( but it was oh so good.
Kathy
Could you add a little bit of shredded coconut to this and maybe some pineapple??
Cat
Just to update, I pulled one of the muffins today that I baked back on April 24, and after a few minutes thawing in the microwave at 20% power, I’m thrilled to report that it tastes exactly as the freshly-made ones did. These are absolutely phenomenal as jumbo muffins. The next time I make them, I’m going to substitute shredded carrot for half of the apples. No doubt, they’re going to be just as superb.
Cat
BTW, just to clarify, I meant that I replaced half the total sugar in the recipe, or one cup (2 cups total:- 1-1/2 cups white, 1/2 cup brown) with an equal amount (1 cup) of Splenda. Often when Splenda is eaten warm in a baked product, it tastes fakey. Not in these. It’s fabulous, and I just saved a bundle of calories and carbs. Makes me want to eat another…
Cat
I made these today as jumbo muffins, and they’re unreal! Couldn’t even wait until they cooled to try. I made with 1/2 Splenda in place of a cup of the white sugar. You truly can’t tell. That nice little burst of tart from the cranberries is a great foil for the juicy, sweet apple pieces. A coffee shop could make a killing with these! It made a dozen of the huge size muffins. Baking them for 30 minutes was just right. With half of them, I filled the muffin cup 1/2 full, spooned on 2 Tb of a mixture made from 4 oz cream cheese, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1 egg yolk stirred together to blend, (but not beaten until soupy!) then filled the muffin cup the rest of the way. OMG – Muffin NIRVANA!!! Thank you for a wonderful recipe that I’m sure I’ll make over and over. Going to throw the rest of them in the freezer so I don’t eat them all right here and now!