This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
Disclosure: Nordic Ware sent me the free product (Nordic Ware Non-Stick Cast Aluminum Fleur De Lis Bundt Pan) to try out - I love my new bundt pan and will be describing my experience with this pan in this post. I was not compensated for this post other than receiving the bundt pan for free! All opinions are my own.
RECIPE: Delicious Buttermilk Bundt Cake with Cranberries, Apples, and Pecans! Buttermilk gives this holiday cake a softer texture and keeps the cake light and moist while adding a nice, subtle tang. The cake will melt in your mouth! Vanilla, cranberries, apples, and pecans give the bundt cake lots of holiday flavor and crunch!
This Cranberry Apple Pecan Bundt Cake is a perfect coffee cake for the Fall, Winter, and Holiday season! So good with coffee or a cup of tea! It's very easy to make and looks pretty and sophisticated with minimal effort.
That's the beauty of using a beautiful bundt pan - it makes all cakes pretty! I've used the bundt pan that measures 9 inches in diameter and holds 10 to 12 cups - use any bundt pan of this size and volume!
The particular bundt pan I used was Nordic Ware Non-Stick Cast Aluminum Fleur De Lis Bundt Pan (which was sent to me for free by Nordic Ware - see the disclosure above). I was very pleased with this pan and will describe my experience with it and the tips on how to successfully release the bundt cake from the pan later in this post. Take a look how pretty this bundt pan is:
Apples and bundt cakes go really well together. I've made apple bundt cakes before and they were all successful, such as this Apple Cinnamon Buttermilk Bundt Cake or Apple Pumpkin Bundt Cake. All these cakes are great recipes to use for your holiday menu, for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year's Eve.
How to make apple cranberry pecan bundt cake
First, make the cake batter. Then, add the dried cranberries (previously soaked in hot water and drained), chopped apple, and chopped pecans to the cake batter:
Fold all the fruit and pecans into the cake batter using the spatula. Your cake batter is ready to be poured into the bundt pan!
And, here are my tips on how to best use this (or any) bundt pan to ensure the successful release of the cake. It starts before you even bake the cake. Even though this bundt pan says it's non-stick, ALWAYS USE THE BAKING SPRAY WITH FLOUR (it's a special baking spray that already has flour in the spray itself). The proper way to do it is to hold the spray vertically and spray your clean and dried bundt pan along the top edges of the pan, going all the way to the bottom. Keep in mind that a bundt pan with such fine detail as this Nordic Ware Fleur De Lis Bundt Pan, does have a lot of detail, so make sure to spray all of the pan insides, not missing anything! Then, pour the cake batter gently into the prepared bundt pan:
Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven, and put the bundt pan on top of the baking sheet. This ensures that if you have a bundt pan with edges like mine, the pan doesn't slant. Bake at 350 F for about 1 hour, until the toothpick comes out clean. Remove the pan from the oven, let it cool for 40 minutes on a wire rack in the pan:
How to remove a bundt cake from the pan
Here is how to make sure the cake releases from the bundt pan without any cake disaster:
- First of all, let me repeat, you should always use the Baking Spray with Flour and generously spray it all over inside your bundt pan before pouring the cake batter.
- After your bundt cake is done baking, and the bundt pan with the cake cooled off for 40 minutes on the counter, place the bundt pan in the freezer for 20 minutes - it will still be quite hot to the touch (even after 40 minutes of cooling), so use kitchen gloves to handle the pan.
- Remove the pan from the freezer after 20 minutes, invert the bundt pan onto a serving plate, and let it sit inverted for a bit to let the gravity do the work (it could take as little as half a minute or as long as 20 or even 30 minutes, depending on your bundt pan). Here is my bundt pan sitting inverted with the cake inside:
- With this pan, it took at least 20 minutes for the bundt pan to sit inverted like that and then release the cake (also, remember that before even inverting the pan, I cooled off the pan with the cake in it for 40 minutes on the rack, and then put the pan with the cake for 15 minutes in the freezer). I actually heard the sound of the cake being released.
- Be patient - gently lift the bundt pan to check and if your cake is not released, let it sit longer until it releases.
- My cake was released from this bundt pan beautifully, there was only one small piece of cake that got stuck in the bundt pan - I gently removed it and stuck it back on the cake where it belongs! 🙂 You can't even see this minor imperfection on the photos:
I love-love this bundt pan, the cake looks like it came from a high-end bakery, with minimal effort on my side. With proper handling and patience, the cake will release beautifully!
If you ever had trouble with removing your bundt cake from the pan, read and re-read this post - it has all the tips you need to make sure you have success with your bundt pan this holiday season!
Apple Cranberry Pecan Bundt Cake
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter room temperature softened
- 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar or cane sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 Fuji apple cored, peeled, and cubed
- 1 cup pecans chopped
- powdered sugar for decorating
Instructions
- Special equipment: Use the bundt pan that measures 9 inches in diameter and holds 10 to 12 cups.
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Soak 1 cup of dried cranberries in 1 cup of boiling-hot water, covered.
How to make cake batter:
- In a medium bowl, combine 2 and ½ cups flour, baking powder and salt.
- In a separate large bowl, add together the softened butter and sugar and mix, using mixer, on high setting for about 3 minutes until even consistency is reached.
- Add 3 eggs and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract to the butter-sugar mixture and continue beating until well-incorporated and light in color.
- Now we’ll be adding flour mixture into the butter-sugar mixture in 3 gradual steps, instead of dumping all of flour at one time. If you dump all of flour mixture into your butter mixture at one time, it will be more difficult to stir and you won’t get a smooth texture. So, we’ll be adding flour and buttermilk in 3 additions:
- With your mixer on low speed, add ⅓ of flour mixture to butter-sugar mixture, beating just a little until all is well combined. Then follow by ⅓ cup of buttermilk. Add the second ⅓ of flour mixture, beating with mixer just to combine. Follow by the second ⅓ cup of buttermilk, beating just to combine. Finally, add the third ⅓ of flour mixture, followed by the final ⅓ cup of buttermilk. Again, beat just enough to combine.
- Make sure to have your mixer on low speed while adding flour, otherwise flour might fly around your kitchen. Make sure to not overmix or overbeat, use mixer just to combine the ingredients.
- Drain the dried cranberries that you soaked in hot water and wring the water out of them. Dried cranberries now should be plump and juicy - it's OK if they retain some water.
- Using spatula, fold in these dried cranberries (after you soaked them and drained them), chopped apple, and chopped pecans into the cake batter.
How to fill bundt pan with cake batter:
- Spray your bundt cake pan with a Baking Spray with Flour (it's a special spray that already has flour in it). The proper way to do it is to hold the spray vertically, and spray your clean and dried bundt pan along the top edges of the pan, going all the way to the bottom. Spray every single little detail, especially if your bundt pan has lots of fine detail.
- Pour batter gently into prepared bundt pan. Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven, and put the bundt pan on top. This ensures that if you have a bundt pan with edges like mine, the pan doesn't slant.
How to bake bundt cake:
- Bake at 350 F for about 1 hour, until toothpick comes out clear. Remove the pan from the oven, let it cool for 40 minutes on wire rack.
Tips on releasing the cake from the bundt pan:
- First of all, you should always use the Baking Spray with Flour and generously spray it all over inside your bundt pan before pouring the batter.
- After your bundt cake is done baking, and the bundt pan cooled off for 40 minutes on the counter, place the bundt pan in the freezer for 20 minutes - it will still be quite hot to the touch (even after 40 minutes of cooling), so use kitchen gloves to handle the pan.
- Remove the pan from the freezer after 20 minutes, invert the bundt pan onto a serving plate, and let it sit inverted for a bit to let the gravity do the work (it could take as little as half a minute or as long as 20 or even 30 minutes, depending on your bundt pan). Then, gently lift bundt pan and your cake should be released. Sometimes, you will actually hear your cake release. Be patient.
- Sprinkle the cake with powdered sugar before serving.
Notes
Looking for a complete THANKSGIVING MENU?
- Be sure to check out my 50 Best Thanksgiving Recipes (The Complete Holiday Menu) - it includes everything: Fall-inspired holiday appetizers, side dishes, salads, main courses, pasta recipes, desserts, and even breakfast. This holiday menu features proven, tried, and true Thanksgiving dishes that have been reader favorites for years (I've been publishing recipes since 2012). Most of these recipes can also be re-purposed for Christmas and New Year's Eve.
Looking for THANKSGIVING SIDE DISHES?
- I have created a comprehensive recipe collection of 60 Thanksgiving side dishes conveniently categorized by ingredient: Green Beans, Butternut Squash, Sweet Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts, Potatoes, Acorn Squash, Spaghetti Squash, Asparagus, Broccoli, etc. It's a great resource to browse through for a last moment holiday inspiration! This side dishes will also work great for Christmas and New Year's Eve.
Looking for THANKSGIVING salads?
- I have created a comprehensive recipe collection of 30 Thanksgiving salads - this collection exclusively features Thanksgiving salads that highlight Autumnal ingredients, such as apples, roasted butternut squash, sweet potatoes, beets, Brussels sprouts, green beans, pecans, cranberries, pears, pomegranates, mandarin oranges, pumpkin seeds, and the list goes on and on! These Fall salads will add freshness, colors, and vibrancy to otherwise heavy and creamy comfort food (stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes) that we often cook for the holidays. These salads would also be perfect for Christmas and New Year's Eve.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Disclosure: Nordic Ware sent me the free product (Nordic Ware Non-Stick Cast Aluminum Fleur De Lis Bundt Pan) to try out - I love my new bundt pan and will be describing my experience with this pan in this post. I was not compensated for this post other than receiving the bundt pan for free! All opinions are my own.
Hi thanks for the recipe. I was wondering can I use less sugar in this cake?
Monica, yes, you can get away by using 1.5 cups of sugar in this cake! Happy Holidays! 🙂
Hi Julia. I'm so excited to see this recipe because I was given a bundt cake ware last Xmas! Thank you so much! Quick question, how much oil is equivalent to 225g butter please?
Molly, I am glad you're excited about this recipe. You're in for a treat - it's so good! If you want to use oil in this cake - use the same amount (in weight or cups) as butter. Let me know how it turns out! ❤️
This cake was easy to make, moist, and the flavor compels you to go back for seconds. Our family all ENJOYED it. I will be making this again and again.
Made it three times now. Replaced regulator sugar with brown sugar and also added orange zest. Makes a great breakfast or afternoon snack Love this recipe I also made it lactose free for a friend. It was a hit.
Maria, thank you so much for the detailed review and 5-star rating! ❤️
I have made this cake twice this is a spectacular cake! I went by the recipe first time, second time I put coconut, apples and white cream cheese chips and raisins…., WOW!!
Pam, I am glad you enjoyed this recipe! Love your version with coconut and cream cheese chips! ❤️
Made it a month ago turned out delicious. About to make it again. Can I substitute oil instead of butter. Making it for lactose intolerant friend
Maria, yes, you can use oil instead of butter here. Happy Holidays! 🙂
Can i use fresh cranberries instead of dried?
Linda, yes, this would work well with fresh cranberries! But do keep in mind, that fresh cranberries are obviously more tart than dried cranberries.
Even though this recipe is best with dried cranberries, you can use fresh cranberries with a few adjustments. The recipe calls for 1 cup of dried cranberries, I would use 1 1/4 cups of fresh cranberries (since there are a lot more dried cranberries in a cup than there are in a cup of fresh, so you have to compensate for that). Also, I would add extra sugar, such as using 2 cups of sugar vs 1 3/4 cups. Also, chop up fresh cranberries before adding them to the cake batter if you like.
Delicious recipe, I used 3/4 cup of canderel and one cup sugar, baked it in a loaf tin . It took around an hour and a half to cook. Came out caramelized and absolutely yummy
Caroline, thank you for trying the recipe, and glad it was enjoyed! 🙂
I used fresh cranberries but followed recipe exactly. Put in bread pans so I could slice and freeze. Very tasty, light texture. Will make again.
Brenda, thank you for providing such helpful feedback about using fresh cranberries! Glad this recipe worked just as well with fresh ones! Good idea to put this cake into smaller pans for freezing!
Could you make a glaze instead of powdered sugar....
Diana, I would use dulce de leche or caramel sauce as a sauce on top - and then sprinkle it with chopped pecans. Similar to this recipe:
https://juliasalbum.com/apple-pumpkin-bundt-cake/
Another option would be to use a small amount of honey or maple syrup as a "glue" over the cake and then sprinkle with chopped pecans on top - one of the readers suggested that on a different cake and I thought that was brilliant idea! 🙂
Could you use fresh cranberries? Teresa
Teresa, yes, this would work well with fresh cranberries! But do keep in mind, that fresh cranberries are obviously more tart than dried cranberries.
Even though this recipe is best with dried cranberries, you can use fresh cranberries with a few adjustments. The recipe calls for 1 cup of dried cranberries, I would use 1 1/4 cups of fresh cranberries (since there are a lot more dried cranberries in a cup than there are in a cup of fresh, so you have to compensate for that). Also, I would add extra sugar, such as using 2 cups of sugar vs 1 3/4 cups. Also, chop up fresh cranberries before adding them to the cake batter if you like.
This made a wonderful Christmas cake. I used fresh cranberries and a bit of extra sugar, as recommended. The extra sugar was not needed though since I used powdered sugar on top. It took longer to cook than stated, so keep an eye. This cake is wonderful. I will make it again using two loaf pans instead, and oil just to try and see if it comes as good as the original receipe. Thanks for sharing.
Arlene, your comment truly made my day! 🙂 So glad you chose this recipe for your Christmas cake! 🙂 Good to know that fresh cranberries worked fine. Thank you for all the helpful feedback!
Finally!
Directions on how to use these pans!
Many years ago I bought several of these Nordic items …with horrid results! I stopped buying them and stopped using them…even though they are quite beautiful!
They did not come with these instructions!
Looking forward to retrying them w this method!
Laxmi, thank you so much for such an enthusiastic comment! I hope you were able to use your Nordic ware bundt pans using these instructions.
Hi, can you soak your cranberries in orange juice or rum instead of water will it make any difference?
Janet, yes, you can! I think quite a few people who made this soaked the dried cranberries in orange juice or rum - it the cake came out delicious!
I have even used apple cider or apple juice which works well
Ronnie, that's a great idea, too!
This is soooo good! It is not a sweet cake, which is nice sometimes. The cranberries add just the right amount of tartness. I will make this again and again!!
Linda, I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for your wonderful comment and the 5-star rating! 🙂
I’m thinking to make this beautiful cake,but I have one problem I don’t have a Fuji apple can I use any other apple for the time being.Thank you
Doris, you can use any other medium or large apple. I like Honey Crisp or Gala.
Can this be made gluten free?
Ellie, yes, you can make it using King Arthur gluten-free measure-for-measure flour.
Can this cake be frozen? It looks delicious!
Chris, yes, you can freeze this cake.
Id like to make this cake as a tray/ sheet cake. What size tray should i use please?
You can use (9x13-inch) baking dish. You can also use these pan sizes: 10×2 inch round pan (10 cups), 10×2 inch square pan (12 cups), 11×7 inch pan (10 cups).
The baking times will probably have to be reduced or watched carefully if it is a shallow baking pan.
Thank you for the different pan sizes.
Pam, I am glad you found this info useful! 🙂
Hi Julia
Any chance of the recipe in grams and not sure what cup size to use.Also an alternative for flour spay as I can't get that in Switzerland. ILook forward to hearing from you. Berni
Berni, I just added the conversion to Metric system - under the Ingredients List there are 2 links now: US Customary - Metric. If you click on Metric, it convert to grams, etc.
If you don't have a flour spray, I would use a high-quality non-stick oil spray - spray the inside of the bundt pan really well not missing any spot. And then dust with flour. Do all that immediately before pouring the cake batter.
And, make sure to read my whole recipe post as I provide tips on how to successfully release the cake from the bundt pan.
Enjoy - I hope you love it! Let me know how it turns out. ❤️