Cranberry. Gingerbread. Dark Chocolate. That's a lot of different holiday flavors in one cake, but I assure you they come together to create the quintessential Christmas taste, Cranberry Chocolate Gingerbread Cake. You may notice in the ingredient list that there is no molasses, which you would typically see in gingerbread, but I have recreated the tastes with the use of low-glycemic coconut sugar, pure maple syrup, and a hefty dose of ginger.
I have a hard time digesting high levels of free-fructose, so I typically stay away from molasses despite it's high mineral content and health benefits. To understand different types of sugars and why I tend to use raw honey, pure maple syrup, and coconut sugar take a look at this article from Mark Sisson.
I love this time of the year. Baking in my kitchen and creating new recipes with the seasonal flavors is one of my most favorite traditions. Sadly, this year I have not had nearly as much time as I would have liked to create and share recipes with you, but this one is surely a winner and can even be made into mini loaves to make and distribute with love to your friends and family. It's moist, full of flavor and easy to prepare. Make a small jar of my chai tea concentrate to go with it, and you have the perfect homemade gift!
*Note – if you plan to serve cranberry compote over top of the cake, you will need to double the amount used in step 2 and reserve half of it when you do the swirl.
If you really like the flavor of molasses and want to include it in this recipe, you could probably substitute the 1/4 cup of maple syrup in the batter for molasses.
Cart
To make this SCD legal I know I could use honey, but what could I use for the ½ cup coconut crystals (palm sugar) or could I leave it out? This looks delicious!
April
I’m going to try and use Xylitol instead of the 1/2 cup coconut crystals.
Becky @ A Calculated Whisk
This looks delicious! I am so excited about everything cranberry right now 🙂
angela
the pictures you take are stunning!
Kimberly Reed
2 questions. How do you think this will freeze? And how long to cook if doing mini loafs? Thanks! Looks awesome. Can’t wait to make it!
Against All Grain
I haven’t honestly tried to freeze this, so I am not sure. As far as the loaf pans, again, I haven’t tried that either. Let me know if you try it!
Alison
I’m wondering if there’s a reason why you don’t use a mixer. I tried making a cake recipe that called for using the blender, and it came out too dense to be palatable. It made me leery of using it again for making cakes. Can I use my mixer for this?
James
Was it a gluten-free cake?
Kelly @ The Nourishing Home
What a beautiful festive cake! I would never have thought to combine chocolate with cranberry and ginger, I can’t wait to try it. Always so inspired by your creativity. Wishing you and your family a very blessed Christmas, Kelly 🙂
Against All Grain
Thanks Kelly! Merry Christmas!
Kelly @ The Nourishing Home
You too! Appreciate your kindness! So happy for all your success and now I’m praying for Food Network to make you their first Grain-Free Star – you are so beautiful and talented! I bet when they see your Tastemade video series, they’ll snap you up in an instant! Praying for your health and continued success in the New Year! Many blessings, Kelly
Nikki
I’m absolutely making this for Christmas – thank you! A quick question – what kind of chocolate do you use for the chocolate chunks? I have such a hard time finding chocolate for baking without added sugar & soy & etc. Thanks!
Against All Grain
I like to use Enjoy Life Chocolate chunks.
Cathy
This recipe looks fabulous! Can you suggest a subsititue for coconut crystals if we can’t find them?
Against All Grain
Coconut crystals is also referred to as coconut sugar or palm sugar. You should be able to find it at a local health food store or Whole Foods, and it is also available at my Amazon store: https://bit.ly/1ebbmv0.
Donna
Got the ingredients to make the Cranberry Chocolate Gingerbread. Wondering if the cranberry compote is the same recipe as your cranberry sauce? If not, would you provide it.?
Jordan
Any suggestions for how long I would bake this if I put it into mini-loaf pans? Want to make some for my neighbors…
Thanks! 🙂
Juile M
This recipe passed the test of the kids in my house 100%! A delicious blend of flavors and they make great muffins too!
wendy
Tried this recipe last night and the entire house smelled delicious while it was baking!
Next time I want to try the cranberry sauce on chocolate cake 🙂
Chris
This sounds great and I would like to prepare it for Christmas. However, one of the grandsons coming for the holiday is allergic to eggs. Is there anyway I can make it egg free?
Against All Grain
You could try using a “flax egg”, flax seed mixed with warm water.
Rita
Thank you! This is wonderful! I left out the dark chocolate chunks, since I didn’t have any.
Amy Holowaty
Oh my goodness.. Danielle! Dark chocolate, cranberry, gingery genius! This recipe is heavenly. I made it for the first time for my church today and it was gone in a hot minute. Thank you! 🙂
Against All Grain
So happy you like it Amy!
Jose
I think the timing is not right. I had it at the right temp and after 45 mins it was still lot completely done in the center and I left it for another 30 and was still not done and it burnt on the outside. Any suggestions?
Against All Grain
Hmm That’s strange. I guess everyone’s ovens are different but with a 9-inch pan I don’t know why it would be that different. It doesn’t seem like it’s been a problem for many others, so I would suggest lowering your oven temperature to 325 and baking longer 45min-1hour.
Mary
I made this as Christmas dessert for my in-laws & mom. Oh my goodness, everyone loved it! This dessert is heavenly! I made some whipped cream from grass-fed heavy cream and it was the perfect compliment to this dessert. Bravo and thank you for this perfect Christmas dessert. No one could believe it was gluten-free!
Joanna
Hi Danielle
I made this and LOVE it. One of my favourite recipes! And so pretty too! You posted on FB that you made it into loaves for presents. I was wondering how many loaves the recipe makes and also the capacity of the ‘mini’ loaf tins you used. Thanks
Amy
I made this for Christmas dinner’s dessert. It was easy to put together and my family loved it. It was a great combination of flavors. I loved the chunks of chocolate in each bite!!!
Hayley
This was amazing. I made it for my family and we enjoyed it on Christmas Eve. Absolutely divine.
Michele Cady
An absolutely delicious cake! I did decide to use molasses in place of the maple syrup, and I baked it in a bundt pan. The original plan was to have some whipped cream on hand, but time ran away from me and I served the cake as is. A big hit! Thank you for the recipe.
Trisha
I made this for a holiday celebration with my family and it was delicious! Turned out perfectly and was a great ending to our meal! Yummy!
Diana
I made this last night and it turned out absolutely delicious-so light and fluffy. My non paleo parents did not even suspect it had no flour in it. The combination of different flavors is really something to die for.
I will definitely make it again. Thanks, Danielle for all your great recipes.
brandi
I don’t do sugar – honey or otherwise – and I’m wondering what a good sub would be in your recipes as I’m guessing the honey does some textural magic. I use stevia/xylitol so I can get the sweet taste, but curious on the about of liquid/binding/etc. the honey gives.
Any suggestions would be great!
Love your cookbook, use it ALL the time!!!
Against All Grain
I have not tried it, so I really don’t know. I don’t use stevia or xylitol. 🙂
Mollie
The “melted butter mixture” makes an excellent caramel sauce! The first time I made this cake I forgot to add it in step 5 and ended up drizzling it over the top once it was baked. Yum! (The cake was a bit dry without it inside….but I found a yummy caramel sauce by mistake!)
Susan Despotovska
Here in Australia the cherries are in season and I was wondering how this recipe would go with a cherry compote? Thanks and Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year