I had the best sangria in Spain when my husband and I visited a few years ago. Honestly, I fell in love with the country as a whole, and if asked, I would say that it’s my favorite trip we’ve ever taken together. And that’s not just because of the sangria, but I can assure you it was factored into my decision. With that being said, I came across the recipe for this Sangria Cake on BBC Good Food and I knew I had to try it immediately. I adapted it to use in-season fruit. The wine gives the cake a nice, almost spice-like, flavor that lends itself so perfectly to this time of year. If you’re looking to revamp some of your Thanksgiving Day dessert options from the normal every day pumpkin pie, I think this would be a great contender and dare I say, might even steal the show. Give it a go. I know you’ll fall in love just like I did.
In a large bowl, toss together the pear, plums, strawberries, cranberries, apples, 1/4 cup sugar and lemon juice until evenly combined. Set aside and allow to macerate for 30 minutes.
**Tip: You can use any combination of fruit here. Whatever is in season and whatever you prefer in your sangria! It’s a great way to use up fruit that is on the way out.**
In a large bowl, beat together 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, butter, orange zest and 100ml of the wine.
**Note: It’s important to mention that the mixture won’t come together smoothly at this point but that’s okay. It’ll be fine later on, I promise!**
Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Again, don’t worry too much at this stage about it looking curdled. The wine prevents the mixture from being smooth at this point.
Add the self-rising flour, almond flour, and baking powder (I know it already has some in the flour but a little more helps the cake really rise) and stir until just combined but smooth.
**Tip: If you don’t have self-rising flour at home, or don’t want to spend money for a bag of flour for just this recipe, you can make your own at home. For every cup of flour, stir together (the 1 cup of flour) with 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt.**
Use a slotted spoon to scoop out half of the chopped fruit mixture and then add to the batter. Add 1 tablespoon of the liquid from the fruit and fold gently until evenly combined. Transfer the batter to a 9-inch springform pan and spread out into an even layer. Bake at 350°F until golden brown and a skewer, inserted in the middle, comes out clean, 45 mins to 1 hour.
Once the cake is cool enough to handle, but ideally still a little warm, heat the remaining 50ml red wine and orange liqueur with the remaining 1 tablespoon granulated sugar in a small saucepan until melted, raise the heat and boil for a few mins until thickened and syrupy.
Pile the remaining fruit on top of the cake and arrange the sliced oranges, lemons, strawberries and cranberries on top. Drizzle with the boozy syrup while still warm.
Because of the fruit and the syrup, this cake is best eaten the day you make it. But if you want to plan ahead you can bake off the cake a day before. Keep the fruit separate from the top and then just assemble and make the syrup the day you serve it. You can warm up the cake slightly before assembling so that it’s slightly warm but also to allow the syrup to soak in nicely.
I’m not saying you should eat this cake with a glass of sangria (for the ultimate sangria experience and flavor) but I’m also not not saying it as well. I leave that decision up to you, but I hope you make the right one. What that is, I’m sure you’ll know.
The cake is perfect as is, but I like to slice and serve with a dollop of fresh, lightly sweetened, whipped cream. It’s not necessary but delicious all the same. A scoop of vanilla ice cream would be great as well! Or even a warmed custard poured over the top. Look at all these options!
Give this cake a try this year, whether it finds a place on your Thanksgiving table or you just feel like making a cake for fun. You’ll love it, I know you will. It’s not super strong in wine flavor, but rather just the right amount of sweet, spicy, tangy, deliciousness. Let me know what you think below. Thank you for reading and following along.
Sangria Cake
Equipment
- 9-inch springform pan
- Mixing Bowls
- Mixer
- Saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 large pear peeled and chopped
- 2 plums or peaches chopped
- 1/2 pint strawberries stemmed and chopped
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
- 2 green apples chopped
- 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar divided (plus 1 tablespoon)
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 sticks unsalted butter softened
- 1 orange zested
- 150 ml red wine divided
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour *see note
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 50 ml orange liqueur
To Decorate:
- 1 small orange cut into wedges
- 1 lemon cut into wedges
- handful of strawberries
- handful of cranberries
- fresh whipped cream for serving
Instructions
- In a large bowl, toss together the pear, plums, strawberries, cranberries, apples, 1/4 cup sugar and lemon juice until evenly combined. Set aside and allow to macerate for 30 minutes.
- Heat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch springform pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat together 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, butter, orange zest and 100ml of the wine. The mixture won't come together smoothly at this point but that's okay. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Add the flour, almond flour, and baking powder and stir until just combined but smooth.
- Use a slotted spoon to scoop out half of the chopped fruit mixture and then add to the batter. Add 1 tablespoon of the liquid from the fruit and fold gently until evenly combined. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread out into an even layer. Bake until golden brown and a skewer, inserted in the middle, comes out clean, 45 mins to 1 hour. Remove from oven and allow to sit in the pan for 15 minutes before removing the sides of the springform and flipping the cake upside down onto a plate or cake stand.
- Once the cake is cool enough to handle, but ideally still a little warm, heat the remaining 50ml red wine and orange liqueur with the remaining 1 tablespoon granulated sugar in a small saucepan until melted, raise the heat and boil for a few mins until thickened and syrupy.
- Pile the remaining fruit on top of the cake and arrange the sliced oranges, lemons and strawberries on top. Drizzle with the boozy syrup while still warm. Cut and serve with whipped cream. Enjoy!
I can’t wait to try these!