This sweet and moist almond cranberry cake has semolina flour, almond flakes, and dried cranberries. Cardamom and cinnamon give this cake a pleasant fall flavor. It is a good holiday dessert to serve with tea or to give as a gift to family and friends.
Table of Content
Fresh or dried cranberries are the flavor of fall and when combined with almonds it is a match made in heaven.
Today, I take my classic vanilla cake and substitute some of the flour with semolina. Semolina has a soft flaky texture that is very crumbly with that melt-in-your-mouth effect.
Semolina cake is one of my absolute favorite cakes to eat as a kid. Growing up, I didn't care much for cakes made with all-purpose flour. If you've never tried a cake with semolina I highly recommend trying this one.
Why make this cake
- Rich, moist semolina cake is loaded with cranberry and almonds. It is soft and moist with a tender crumb.
- Using my simple and easy butter-based vanilla cake as a base that takes 10 minutes to mix and 50 minutes to bake.
- Most of the ingredients in this recipe are easy to find or pantry staples.
- If you don't like or don't have semolina on hand, try this moist cranberry almond cake I shared over at the Cake Decorating Tutorial website.
Ingredients and substitutes
- Semolina - A coarse purified wheat middlings of durum wheat, used to make pasta and couscous. This can be found in most baking aisles these days. But, can also be found in Asian, Middle-Eastern, and Indian shops.
- Butter - I always use unsalted butter so I can control the amount of salt. If salted butter is all you have, use it and omit the salt in the recipe.
- Cranberries - I love the combination of almonds and cranberries, and yet you can use other dried fruits just as well.
- Almond meal - This is ground almonds and you can make this at home. To prevent it from getting too oily in the food processor, add a few tablespoons of flour from the recipe.
- Almond flakes - These are just chopped blanched almonds. You can chop them yourself at home.
Semolina almond cranberry cake
- Preheat the oven to 325°F / 165°C / Gas Mark. Grease and dust with flour a 9-inch bundt pan or one 9-inch square cake pan.
Pro tip - In the video, I used 2 x 6-inch (6 cups) bundt pans to give as gifts for the holidays.
- Dry ingredients - In a bowl, combine the semolina, almond meal, flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and spices.
- Cream - In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract and almond extract.
Pro tip - make sure the butter is at room temperature. Creaming will lighten the color of the butter
- Flour - Add the flour mixture along with the sour cream and milk in three additions. Then add the cranberries and almond flakes.
Pro tip - combine but do not overmix at this point otherwise the cranberries will sink to the bottom of the cake.
- Bake - Pour into the prepared baking pan or bundt pan. Bake in the preheated oven on the middle rack for 55 to 65 minutes until a skewer inserted in the center comes clean
Pro tip - if you make smaller cakes it will take about 35 to 40 minutes each. - Coo - Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then invert onto a cooling rack and cool completely. When cooled dust with powdered sugar
Tips for Success
- Substitute other dried fruits if you don't have cranberries. Try dates, apricots, or dried figs.
- You can also use other nuts instead of almonds. Try pecans, hazelnuts, or walnuts instead.
- Make sure the butter is at room temperature otherwise, it will curdle
- Ensure the eggs are at room temperature. If the egg curdles the batter just add a tablespoon of flour and that should help.
- The semolina needs moisture so use full-fat sour cream so it can soak up all its richness.
- The texture of the cake is crumbly because of the ground almonds and semolina. If you want a less crumbly texture pulse the almonds until finely ground.
This semolina cake will keep for about 3 to 4 days at room temperature or 6 to 8 days well wrapped in the fridge. You can even freeze it for up to three months.
The best test for cake doneness is to insert a skewer into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean without any cake better, the cake is done. Additionally, you will also notice that the cake starts to pull away from the edges of the pan.
yes, this cake is the perfect base for other recipes. Try walnuts, dates, apricots, and figs along with pecans, almonds, hazelnuts, etc.
This cake can be eaten on its own, especially when it's fresh. It tastes absolutely delicious warm fresh out of the oven. But there is so much more you can serve it with. But, you can also use a classic vanilla glaze, and try whipped cream and fresh fruits. In addition, you can try fruit coulis or fruit fillings. My favorite is blueberry filling and cherry filling. Also, If you love curds try lemon curd or orange curd.
Printable Recipe
Semolina Almond Cranberry Cake
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Video
Conversions Used
1 lb = 453 grams, 1 cup = 240 ml, 1 stick = 113g, 1 tbsp= 15 ml, 1 tsp= 5 ml,
Ingredients
Make one 9-inch (12 cups) bundt cake or 2 x 6-inch (6 cups) bundt cakes
- ¾ cup (95 g) All-Purpose Flour
- ½ cup (60 g) Almond meal (ground almonds)
- 1½ tsp Baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon Baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ⅛ teaspoon Cardamon powder (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg (freshly grated)
- ¾ cup (125 g) Semolina
- 8 oz (226 g) Butter (unsalted)
- 4 Eggs (large)
- 1¼ cup (250 g) Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ¼ tsp Almond extract
- ¾ cup (175 ml) Sour cream
- ½ cup (120 ml) Milk
- 1½ cup (150 g) Cranberries (dried)
- 1 cup (100 g) Almond flakes (or chopped almonds)
Plus
- 2 tablespoon Powdered sugar (For dusting (optional))
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F / 165°C / Gas Mark. Grease and dust with flour a 9-inch bundt pan or one 9-inch square cake pan.Pro tip - In the video, I used 2 x 6-inch (6 cups) bundt pans to give as gifts for the holidays.
- Dry ingredients - In a bowl, combine the semolina, almond meal, flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and spices.
- Cream - In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract and almond extract. Pro tip - make sure the butter is at room temperature. Creaming will lighten the color of the butter
- Flour - Add the flour mixture along with the sour cream and milk in three additions. Then add the cranberries and almond flakes. Pro tip - combine but do not overmix at this point otherwise the cranberries will sink to the bottom of the cake.
- Bake - Pour into the prepared baking pan or bundt pan. Bake in the preheated oven on the middle rack for 55 to 65 minutes until a skewer inserted in the center comes cleanPro tip - if you make smaller cakes it will take about 35 to 40 minutes each.
- Coo - Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then invert onto a cooling rack and cool completely. When cooled dust with powdered sugar
Recipe Notes & Tips
- Substitute other dried fruits if you don't have cranberries. Try dates, apricots, or dried figs.
- You can also use other nuts instead of almonds. Try pecans, hazelnuts, or walnuts instead.
- Make sure the butter is at room temperature otherwise, it will curdle
- Ensure the eggs are at room temperature. If the egg curdles the batter just add a tablespoon of flour and that should help.
- The semolina needs moisture so use full-fat sour cream so it can soak up all its richness.
- The texture of the cake is crumbly because of the ground almonds and semolina. If you want a less crumbly texture pulse the almonds until finely ground.
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Suhana Hamid
Made this tdy in a bundt pan.
The recipe listed missed out the sour cream so I winged it (added a cup).
Just how much is needed anyway?
Cake was delicious and every one liked it.
Veena Azmanov
Thanks, Suhana - Happy you enjoyed this recipe. There is 1/2 cup sour cream in the recipe. Thanks
Girija
Hi! What can be substituted for eggs in this recipe?
Veena Azmanov
Hey Girja. I heard the girls say they substituted with yogurt but I have not tired. Sorry, not sure how this cake would work eggless.
Cathleen @ A Taste of Madness
This cake looks amazing!! My stomach literally just rumbled. Although that may be because I haven't had dinner yet. In any case, I would devour the entire thing if no one stopped me!
Veena Azmanov
Thanks, Cathleen. You will love this cake.
Natalie
This cake goes perfectly with afternoon tea. It looks absolutely perfect and so delicious. It's also super easy to make so I'll be making this very soon.
Veena Azmanov
Thanks, Natalie. I hope you enjoy it.
Catherine
What a gorgeous cake for the holidays, Veena. I love the combination of flavors and I especially love that you used semolina in this...I have to try this recipe. I'm truly craving a slice of this with a warm cup of tea right now.
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Catherine. I hope you enjoy it