Cranberry Crumb Cake

Part of the fun of cooking and baking is taking a recipe and making it your own. I am always changing something in a recipe to make it fit my family a little better. This recipe originally called out for blueberries and while I love blueberries, I thought it might be fun to give fresh cranberries a try since it is Christmas. As an adult I am better able to appreciate the tartness of cranberries and have learned to enjoy them on and in many things. This recipe is not too sweet and yet sweet enough to add a bit of sweetness to those tart little berries. Remember you can always add blueberries instead.

CAKE

1 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 3/4 cup granulated sugar 2 large eggs 2 large egg yolks 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2-3 cups cranberries

Preheat oven to 350°. Line a 9″x 13″baking pan with foil and butter the foil. Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Using a heavy-duty mixer on medium speed, beat butter and sugar until soft and light (about 5 minutes). Add whole eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. On low speed, add half the flour mixture and mix well. Add yolks, mixing well, then add remaining flour mixture. Scrape batter into prepared pan. Smooth the top. Scatter cranberries over the batter. CRUMB TOPPING 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir in melted butter and combine with your fingers until the mixture is coarse crumbs. Scatter the crumbs evenly over the berries. Bake for 40 minutes, or until cake is firm. Cool cake in pan on wire rack.