Chocolate Cake with Cranberries and Orange (gluten-free)

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This Chocolate Cake with Cranberries and Orange has two layers of moist chocolate orange sponge sandwiched with cranberry sauce and generously frosted with creamy chocolate orange buttercream, sugared fresh cranberries and candied clementine slices. Made with gluten-free flours.

this recipe

Jump to:

• Why you'll love this Chocolate Cranberry Cake
• Ingredients and Notes
• How to make Chocolate Cake with Cranberries
• Expert Tips
• FAQs
• More Chocolate Cakes You'll Love
• Chocolate Cake with Cranberries and Orange (gluten-free)

This gorgeous Chocolate Layer Cake with Cranberries and Orange is a perfect compromise for all the cake lovers in your family who aren’t impressed with a traditional Christmas cake. However you can bet your bottom dollar they are big fans of a good fudgy chocolate cake.

Fresh orange zest is used in the cake sponge to make a lovely moist chocolate orange cake which is sandwiched together with cranberry sauce also laced with orange which is tangy and sweet. 

Why you'll love this Chocolate Cranberry Cake

• The dark chocolate cake sponge is incredibly easy to make and you don't need a fancy stand mixer. A large mixing bowl and a wooden spoon can beat the ingredients up just fine.
• Boasts all the best flavours of the season – fruity cranberry, zesty orange and fudgy chocolate.
• The chocolate sponge is made with both cocoa powder and melted chocolate for full-on chocolate flavour.
• Ideal alternative to a traditional Christmas Cake if you need a change of pace from all the spiced dried fruit.
• It’s a real showstopper of a cake. The sugared whole cranberries and candied orange slices are well worth the extra trouble for their beautiful frosted effect.
• A great recipe to use up leftover cranberry sauce!
• The whole Cranberry Chocolate Cake is generously slathered with the most chocolatey of buttercreams using intense cocoa and melted dark chocolate and fresh orange juice.

Ingredients and Notes

Gluten-Free Flours

Chocolate cakes are quite forgiving gluten-free recipes as they let you get away with most flours. This little trio though is perfect if you want a cake that is moist but with great structure.

Rice flour. This is a great economical gluten-free flour which works here due to its neutral taste and light texture. Too much rice flour though can get a little gritty so we need to balance it out.

Oat flour. Used here for fluffiness and flavour. That toasted butterscotch taste is a great backdrop for the chocolate. Make sure it is certified gluten-free.

Tapioca starch (tapioca flour). Needed to help with the structure of the cake. Tapioca flour is a great starchy flour that is ideal for binding.

For flour substitutions see section below.

The rest of the ingredients

Dark chocolate. This recipe uses 70% dark chocolate. However, you can use 50-60% chocolate for a softer chocolate flavour.

Cocoa powder. Choose a high quality organic brand if possible. This recipe was tested with Dutch-processed cocoa powder (which is the more common type in the UK) which means it has been treated with an alkalizing agent to neutralize its acidity, resulting in a smoother, milder flavour.

Bicarbonate of soda. Also known as baking soda, this is a white crystalline powder that is commonly used as a leavening agent in baking.

Espresso powder. Brings out the chocolate flavour rather than giving a coffee flavour. It can be omitted.

Salt. I like to use kosher salt in my baking as it has a round gentle flavour. Using salt in your baked goods lifts and sharpens all the other flavours.

Buttermilk. It’s a fermented dairy product with a tangy flavour and used here to tenderise the crumb, act as a leavening agent, add moisture, and enhance the flavour.

Caster sugar. A fine white baking sugar which gives lightness and helps with the structure as well as the sweetness of the recipe.

Light soft brown sugar. Using brown sugar adds a gentle molasses flavour and moisture to the batter, enhancing the depth of taste and providing a subtle caramel undertone, contributing to a more flavourful and moist cake.

Oranges. We use all the orange in this recipe. The zest is used for the sponges and the juice is used for the buttercream. If you can buy unwaxed organic oranges. If you can’t then you will need to scrub off the wax lightly with a wire brush. 

Olive oil. This is my preferred oil to use in cakes but to avoid a strong flavour use a flavourless mild and light olive oil.

Eggs. This recipe uses medium size, about 60g each with shell (50g each without shell).

Vanilla extract. Use a good quality extract, I like Nielsen Massey.

Cranberry sauce. I recommend this Homemade Cranberry Sauce for the cake filling. Alternatively, you can use any leftover cranberry sauce, homemade or shop bought, warm it up in a small saucepan with the zest of 1 clementine and leave to cool until needed.

Fresh cranberries and extra oranges. These are for the sugared cranberry and caramelised orange slices decoration and they are totally optional but worth the little extra effort.

Flour Substitutions

All Purpose Flour. If you don’t have to follow a gluten-free diet then all of the amount of flour (230g) can be subbed for all purpose flour.

All Purpose Gluten-Free Flour. Or if you have my Homemade Gluten-Free Flour to hand then you can swap the total amount of flour (230g) for the same amount of this gluten-free flour blend. Please note. I do not recommend a substitution for another gluten-free all purpose flour as it won’t give the same result.

Rice flour. It can be swapped for for tigernut flour, buckwheat flour, teff flour or sorghum flour.

Oat flour. As above, it can be swapped for tigernut flour, buckwheat flour, teff flour or sorghum flour. But try to swap with a different flour to the one used above which helps with the balance of the flour blend.

Tapioca starch. It can be swapped for arrowroot powder.

Other Substitutions

Buttermilk. If you can't get hold of buttermilk then you can use whole milk + 1 ½ tablespoons vinegar stirred together and allowed to sit for 5 minutes. (apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar is fine). If you need a dairy-free alternative then you can use your favourite plant milk. Almond milk, oat milk or coconut milk work very well here.

Olive oil. You can substitute for vegetable oil or coconut oil.

​Cranberry sauce. You can substitute for a fresh cranberry compote or even an easy cranberry chia jam.

How to make Chocolate Cake with Cranberries

For full recipe instructions go to the recipe card at the end of this post.

1. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler (bain marie or bowl set over pan of simmering water) then set aside.
2. Whisk the dry ingredients together (flours, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda, coffee and salt) in a separate bowl and set aside.
3. In another bowl (or a stand mixer) beat together the wet ingredients (buttermilk, the sugars, orange zest, olive oil, eggs and vanilla).
4. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and beat until combined.
5. Pour in the melted chocolate and mix in until fully incorporated.
6. Divide the cake batter between the two cake tins then bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove from the cake tins and allow to cool completely on a wire rack before adding the cranberry filling and covering with buttercream.

How to Make Chocolate Orange Buttercream

1. Beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
2. Add cocoa powder, melted chocolate, orange juice, salt and vanilla extract and beat into the creamed butter and sugar until everything is smooth and evenly combined.

How to Make Sugared Cranberries

What makes this cake truly special is the festive decoration of this cake. Of course it’s absolutely delicious as it is but if you want to go that extra mile then this decoration is easier than you think and incredibly effective.

1. Simmer caster sugar with water until the sugar dissolves.
2. Allow to cool a little then pour in the cranberries and stir to coat evenly with the sugar syrup.
3. Place in the fridge overnight.
4. Remove the cranberries from the syrup with a slotted spoon, pat dry with a kitchen towel then spread out evenly onto baking parchment.
5. Roll the cranberries so they are totally coated with sugar.
6. Leave to dry for at least an hour before using.

For full instructions on how to make the delicious Candied Orange Slices then I have written a full recipe with all the steps so it's totally foolproof. 

Expert Tips

• You can melt the chocolate in the microwave instead. Place chopped chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl, heat in short 15-20 second intervals, stirring each time until smooth and melted.
• Using good quality 70% dark chocolate will give your cake the best flavour. No cooking chocolate here!
• Gradual Mixing: Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients to avoid overmixing, which can lead to a dense cake; this technique preserves the aeration and contributes to a light and tender chocolate cranberry cake.
• For the ultimate version of this cake I recommend making this Homemade Cranberry Sauce – the flavours are perfect, the recipe is super quick and you’ll have a decent amount leftover for the rest of the holiday season.
• However if you are using your own recipe or a shop bought cranberry sauce then I suggest warming it up gently in a saucepan with extra orange zest. The heat will allow the zesty flavour properly penetrate the sauce. Allow to cool completely before you use though.

How to Assemble Your Chocolate Cranberry Cake

• Place one of the sponge layers on a cake board and pipe a circle of buttercream at the very edge of the top of the cake to act like a dam for the cranberry sauce.
• Spread the cranberry sauce on top of the sponge, right to the edges of the buttercream dam in an even layer.
• Place the second cake layer on top and cover the top and the sides of the cake with the buttercream.
• Decorate the top of the cake with the sugared cranberries and caramelised orange slices.

Recommended Equipment: Double Boiler, 8 inch round cake tins, Stand Mixer, Silicone Spatula, Cooling Racks

FAQs

More Chocolate Cakes You'll Love

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