I'll Be Making This 3-Step Cake from Ina Garten for Every Holiday

This dessert feels like the perfect holiday season treat.

I may have been an event planner in another life because I love to host. From conceptualizing the gathering to welcoming guests at the door with cocktails, I could name few situations more ideal than a friendly soirée. And my favorite part of the weeks-long planning process is the desserts.

After everyone’s had their fill of the main meal, I like to entice them with an impressive dessert. During the warmer months, I might rely on something fresh like our Oatmeal Cookie Fruit Pizza or Strawberry Poke Cake. But for the colder seasons, I may have just found my new favorite dessert courtesy of Ina Garten’s pre-holidays party menu: Easy Cranberry & Apple Cake.

With a soft, buttery-looking crumb and jammy cranberries, the cake immediately caught my eye when Garten shared it on Instagram, accompanied by a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream. I knew I had to try the cake for myself—and the results did not disappoint. Here’s how you make Ina’s Easy Cranberry & Apple Cake.

How to Make Ina Garten’s Easy Cranberry & Apple Cake

This is basically a three-step dessert: make the fruit mixture, make the cake batter and bake. You’ll need your oven preheated to 325°F and a 10-inch pie pan. To make the fruit mixture, you'll combine fresh cranberries, a Granny Smith apple, light brown sugar, orange zest, orange juice and cinnamon in a bowl. Set that aside while you prepare the batter.

Grab your electric mixture and beat together extra-large eggs on medium-high speed. Ina recommends using a paddle attachment for this step. Next, add granulated sugar, butter, vanilla extract and sour cream until combined. Lastly, add in the flour and salt. Be sure to do this step at low speed so the flour doesn't scatter all over the place.

When you're ready to bake, pour the cranberry mixture into a pie pan, then cover it completely with the batter. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon and sugar, which will create a delicious crust. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes. When it's finished, a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.

My Notes on Ina Garten’s Easy Cranberry & Apple Cake

At first glance, I had my doubts about this cake. I wondered if the cake would stay together, and I was worried about how the cranberries would fare after an hour of baking. Here are my thoughts:

• This cake has a nice structure: After cooling, the first slice was as clean as could be, and the cranberries adhered to the upper layer of cake batter very nicely. The final product looked uncannily similar to the photo from Ina’s cookbook, which left me very impressed.

• The texture is similar to a pound cake: The cake had a perfect textural balance between dense and tender—it was just right Plus, the cinnamon-sugary crust on top was so perfect, it could be its own dish entirely.

• Refrigerate this cake overnight: I was not impressed with the taste of the fruit when the cake was fresh out of the oven and cooled to room temperature. The cranberries were fairly bitter, probably due to the hour-long bake time. After storing the cake in the fridge overnight, it became an entirely different dessert, and I liked it much better. The cranberries’ bitterness dulled down (in the best way), which allowed the other flavors of apple, orange, spice and vanilla to shine. Next time, I fully recommend chilling the cake overnight before enjoying it.

At the end of the day, this cake is a super-simple and delicious dessert that’s perfect for the holidays. The orange, cranberry and cinnamon create a flavor profile reminiscent of a spiced cranberry sauce with a slight bite from the green apple. Plus, the texture of the cake top sparks a memory of those festive holiday cakes. Unfortunately, my partner and I ate so much of the cake so quickly that there wasn’t any left to share with friends and family—oops! Luckily, I plan to make it again for the holidays, and I know everyone—even the cranberry haters—will love it.

Make this recipe for your upcoming festivities, or try some of our highly rated cranberry desserts, such as our easy, three-step Apple Crisp with Cranberries or this tangy and luscious Cranberry Buttermilk Pie.

Related: 24 Cranberry Recipes You'll Want to Make Forever

Read the original article on Eating Well.