Cream Cheese Cranberry Cake

A friend posted this recipe on another site in Dec. I was always going to try it and never got around to it until today. Decided to bake it and take it to quilt group tonight for dessert. Smelled really good while baking...and it tastes wonderful..even after just coming out of the oven! Next time I'm gonna try it with raspberries. YUM!
Cream Cheese Cranberry Cake


2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, room temp
2 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 lemon, juiced and zested (I used 3T. of Real Lemon and 1 tsp of lemon peel (from the spice section)
1/4 tsp almond extract
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 tsp salt
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, tossed with 1 Tbsp flour
Whipped cream, optional


Preheat oven to 350. Spray a bundt pan with baking spray, coating well.
Beat butter and cream cheese until combined. Add sugar and turn mixer to med-high and cream for 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time until combined. Add lemon juice and zest, almond extract, and vanilla and mix thoroughly. Turn mixer to low and add salt. Add the cake flour in two batches. Fold in the cranberries.

Spread batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake 60-70 minutes, until the cake has browned and a skewer inserted in the center comes out with only moist crumbs attached. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes and then turn out onto a rack and cool completely. Cover tightly overnight (I put it in on a cake plate and cover with a glass dome) and enjoy the next day. (You can certainly eat it the same day but it gets better with an overnight resting period.)



Yields: 1 bundt cake, 8-12 servings depending on slice size