Sour Cream Cranberry Coffeecake from THE MARSHALL FIELD'S COOKBOOK--Serves 8 to 10
When Elizabeth's mom was a young bride who had just married a minister, an elderly church member passed this recipe along to her. It's one her family still treasures--a classic American coffee cake, ultra-moist and rich, with a nutty, brown sugar layer in the center. In the summer,
Elizabeth likes to substitute fresh blueberries and sliced almonds for the cranberries and pecans.
1 cup unsalted butter. melted and slightly cooled
2 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs. beaten
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon table salt (not kosher salt)
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 scant cups fresh cranberries. roughly chopped
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a lO-cup, fluted, nonstick Bundt pan with nonstick spray.
Combine the melted butter, sugar, eggs, sour cream, and vanilla in a large bowl and mix well. Stir in the flour, wheat germ, salt, and baking powder and mix until just combined; do not over-mix. Fold in the cranberries.
In a separate bowl, combine the pecans, brown sugar, and cinnamon and toss to mix well.
Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle on the nut mixture. Cover with the remaining batter. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until firm and golden brown on top. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before inverting onto a plate to unmold.
Notes from Wigs: It took my coffeecake about 63 minutes until a wooden skewer came out clean. Next time I will spray my non-stick Bundt pan with a floured spray. PAM by itself wasn't enough to prevent sticking. Or perhaps my sticking problem was due to some of the brown sugar & cinnamon & nut mixture getting next to the pan sides--that might have been what caused the sticking of some of the bottom section. I was able to carefully scoop out the stuck part which I used to patch the top of the cake successfully before sifting non-melting powdered sugar over all, and then I added kiwi slices on top to cover up my snafu! I put 3 stuffed strawberries in the center hole (the Heavenly Filled Strawberry recipe from TOH that I posted before Thanksgiving). I thought my coffeecake looked very festive for the holiday season!
Also, I didn't have any wheat germ on hand so I subbed ground flax seed and that worked very well.
When Elizabeth's mom was a young bride who had just married a minister, an elderly church member passed this recipe along to her. It's one her family still treasures--a classic American coffee cake, ultra-moist and rich, with a nutty, brown sugar layer in the center. In the summer,
Elizabeth likes to substitute fresh blueberries and sliced almonds for the cranberries and pecans.
1 cup unsalted butter. melted and slightly cooled
2 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs. beaten
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon table salt (not kosher salt)
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 scant cups fresh cranberries. roughly chopped
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a lO-cup, fluted, nonstick Bundt pan with nonstick spray.
Combine the melted butter, sugar, eggs, sour cream, and vanilla in a large bowl and mix well. Stir in the flour, wheat germ, salt, and baking powder and mix until just combined; do not over-mix. Fold in the cranberries.
In a separate bowl, combine the pecans, brown sugar, and cinnamon and toss to mix well.
Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle on the nut mixture. Cover with the remaining batter. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until firm and golden brown on top. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before inverting onto a plate to unmold.
Notes from Wigs: It took my coffeecake about 63 minutes until a wooden skewer came out clean. Next time I will spray my non-stick Bundt pan with a floured spray. PAM by itself wasn't enough to prevent sticking. Or perhaps my sticking problem was due to some of the brown sugar & cinnamon & nut mixture getting next to the pan sides--that might have been what caused the sticking of some of the bottom section. I was able to carefully scoop out the stuck part which I used to patch the top of the cake successfully before sifting non-melting powdered sugar over all, and then I added kiwi slices on top to cover up my snafu! I put 3 stuffed strawberries in the center hole (the Heavenly Filled Strawberry recipe from TOH that I posted before Thanksgiving). I thought my coffeecake looked very festive for the holiday season!
Also, I didn't have any wheat germ on hand so I subbed ground flax seed and that worked very well.