Dense Blueberry/Cranberry Cake

 I liked it better with cranberries.

See, I made this cake for co-workers over the Christmas holiday. A gift of sorts. People went nuts for it. Over fudge and magic dream bars even. I was kind of surprised. It was good…but, over fudge?!

Anyway. I decided to make it again and since cranberries aren’t in season and I stupidly didn’t freeze twenty bagillion bags of fresh ones…well…blueberries were my only option. And they were on sale. Ok, I guess I could have used raspberries or something but. Whatever.

Bottom line is, I like this cake better with cranberries. I love the density of the cake…it’s not a crumb-y cake. It doesn’t fall apart in your hand. Actually it is quite the opposite. You could even add a brown sugar crumble to the top and call it a coffee cake if you were so inclined.

But for the love of God…make it with cranberries.

Enjoy!

Blueberry/Cranberry Cake

Adapted from The Kitchn 

3 eggs
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened and cut into chunks
1 teaspoon vanilla *oh definitely use this one!
1 teaspoon almond extract (optional) *I used this one
1 tablespoon kirsch (optional) *I didn’t not use this one…couldn’t find it.
2 cups flour
2cups blueberries OR 2 1/2 cups fresh cranberries (1 bag)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9×13 pan or a 10″ springform pan.

Beat eggs and sugar together for 5-7 minutes; the eggs will increase in volume quite a bit, streaming into ribbons when you lift the beaters. They will also turn pale yellow. Add butter and flavorings and beat for 2 minutes. Stir in flour and fold in cranberries. Pour into greased pan.

Bake 45-50 minutes for a 9×13, or a little over an hour for the springform.