Cranberry (or Cherry) Coffee Cake

Coffee cake has to be one of the greatest things.  Cake for breakfast? Which obviously means cake with coffee? Genius.  I had a bag (or two) of fresh cranberries that had been sitting in my fridge since Christmas and this was the perfect way to use them. Also, it seemed like a great way to celebrate the 4-day weekend my husband had for the 4th of July.

Of course, to one that doesn't hoard fresh cranberries in their freezer (you're missing out, you know!), this would be amazing with cherries.  Actually, it was my original intent to make this a combination of cherries and cranberries.  I thought the sweetness of the cherries and tartness of the cranberries would be great.  However, I only had fresh cherries and long story short, that didn't work out so well.  Next time, I'll be sure to buy frozen, pitted cherries instead!

Since this recipe would be great with cranberries or cherries, it's one you can make all year long! And it's perfectly acceptable for breakfast or dessert.  The streusel is sweet, I love the thick layer of berries and the cake is nice and airy.  I think I slightly overcooked my cake -- I had a hard time testing it since the layer of berries was so thick.  But it's very forgiving and still turned out great.  We especially liked it after warming it in the microwave (and, of course, with a cup of coffee!).

Cranberry (or Cherry) Coffee Cake
Taken from: King Arthur Flour
Makes about 12 2-inch pieces

Streusel

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• big pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup all-purpose, white whole wheat flour or almond meal (I did 1/4 cup all-purpose flour and 1/4 cup almond meal)

Filling

• 8 ounces fresh cranberries or cherries (or a mixture)
• 2-4 Tbsp sugar (I would omit the sugar if using something besides cranberries)

Batter

• 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp) butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup all-purpose or white whole wheat flour (I used 1/2 cup all-purpose and 1/2 cup white whole wheat)

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 8x8 pan.
2. To make the streusel: In a large bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla. Add the flour/almond meal, beating until even crumbs form. Scoop the mixture into a smaller bowl, and set it aside.
3. To make the batter: In the same bowl in which you've just made the streusel (you can use a different bowl if you want, but this saves on washing dishes), cream together the butter and brown sugar, beating until smooth. Beat in the egg, scraping the bowl and again beating until smooth. Beat in the yogurt, extracts, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and flour. The mixture will be fairly stiff. Scoop the batter into the prepared pan. 
4. In a food processor (or by hand), add cranberries and 2 Tbsp sugar and process until very finely chopped. Taste and if it is too tart, add a tablespoon or two more sugar to your liking. (Remember that the streusal and cake will be sweet - I like a tarter fruit to balance that sweetness.) If using cherries, chop or process in food processor.
5. Dollop the cranberries/cherries on top of the batter. Sprinkle the streusel over all.
6. To bake the coffeecake: Bake coffeecake for 40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove it from oven, and cool for 30 minutes before serving (or serve it hot from the oven, if you don't mind it crumbling a bit!)