Raise your hand if you ended up with leftover cranberry sauce from the holidays. It’s not a bad thing but it could end up as one of those mystery items in the back of the fridge if you don’t use it. You know what I’m talking about.
Well, before you forget you have it, you might want to try this recipe. It makes a generous amount in a 13 X 9-inch baking dish. It’s a nice cake to have on hand to accompany coffee/tea or serve as an after-dinner dessert, have in the freezer to grab for a treat in the future. It’s easy to cut into snack cake size or bite-size chunks.
I recently watched a program about cranberry bogs and was fascinated by the plants themselves and how they grow and are harvested. It’s interesting how they are harvested by flooding the bogs where the plants grow. So all this new knowledge prompted me to use the leftover cranberry sauce in the fridge. It may be a stretch to think like this for some, but it’s my MO. [Fact: we live on a golf course and golf balls remind me of meatballs. Since we’ve lived here I’ve made a lot of meatballs. 🙂 ]
In case you didn’t know, from nj.gov:
“The history of cranberries is older than the recorded history of America. Long before the first European settlers arrived, the Indians not only ate cranberries, but also used them as medicine and clothing dye. The Pilgrims gave this fruit the name “crane berry” because its pink blossom reminded them of the head of a crane, a large wading bird. Over the years its name has been shortened to cranberry. It was a cranberry farmer who first made cranberry sauce in New Jersey. In 1917, Elizabeth Lee sold her canned sauce under the name “Bog Sweet.”
If you want to read more about the cranberry story click cranberries.
Another favorite use for leftover cranberry sauce. Cooks up for an easy dinner: Crazy Chicken.
Sugar and orange zest
Cranberry mixture ready for baking.
And it’s cake!
Sweet goodness!
Save RecipeIngredients
- 3 eggs
- 1½ cups plain Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup (1 stick) butter
- 1 to 1½ cups cranberry sauce, jellied or whole berry
- 3 tablespoon orange juice
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
Instructions
- PREP: Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 13x9-inch baking dish with cooking oil. Option to line with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, yogurt, and vanilla until smooth. Set aside.
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan or in the microwave. Set aside to cool.
- Pour the cranberry sauce into a saucepan along with orange and lemon juice. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently about 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.
- Combine sugar and orange zest in a medium bowl. When sufficiently mixed together the sugar will be fragrant and orange colored. Add the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cardamom to the bowl; whisk to combine.
- Add dry ingredients to the yogurt and cranberry mixtures and stir to combine. Stir in the cooled butter. The batter will be thick.
- Transfer the batter to the baking dish and spread out evenly.
- Bake until golden brown about 45 minutes.
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