This amazing low carb cranberry white chocolate cake makes an ideal Thanksgiving or Christmas dessert recipe. It feeds a crowd and tastes like pure holiday joy.
So I appear to have entirely skipped over Thanksgiving this year and gone straight to Christmas. I don’t know why but I am ridiculously excited to get into the Christmas goodies this year. I have zillions upon zillions of ideas and not even a snowball’s chance in hell of having time to make them all. I will probably manage to make a small fraction of them but if you’re talking zillions, that’s still a lot of holiday recipes to be made. And since I actually got started on them a few weeks back, I am well on my way to making this the best low carb Christmas season ever. That’s my plan, anyway.
I used to have a rule a silly little rule that I mustn’t start my holiday baking until after Thanksgiving. But as I’ve grown older and infinitely wiser, I’ve realized that this is an absolutely arbitrary and senseless impediment to my holiday enjoyment. ‘Tis the season of joy, after all. Why put limits on enjoying the joy? So this year, I quite unabashedly got an early jump on it and now I am bringing you the first low carb Christmas recipe of the season.
And what a recipe it is. Tender grain-free white cake, creamy white chocolate frosting, tart-sweet cranberry filling. And I maintain that because of the cranberries, this could easily be a contender for your Thanksgiving dessert instead. You know, if you aren’t like me and haven’t already skipped ahead in your mind to December.
I am also unabashedly proud of the various parts of this cake too. The white chocolate buttercream was a recent “discovery” when I was making my daughter’s birthday cupcakes. For some reason, it got lumpy and weird and I realized I’d probably added the cream when it was too cold. So I melted a little cocoa butter and beat it in, and the frosting became creamy and smooth again. And tasted delightfully like white chocolate.
And the “sugared” cranberries…I have tried making these several times by soaking fresh berries and then rolling them in Swerve. But since Swerve doesn’t get sticky like sugar, it would all fall off as the cranberries dried. But a flash of inspiration when my eye fell on some isomalt fiber syrup in my pantry. I use it sparingly because I think it’s not as diabetes-friendly as other sweeteners. But 2 little teaspoons was enough to coat my berries in something sticky so that the Swerve would stay on. Worked like a charm!
So here’s to the holiday season, be it Thanksgiving or Christmas or both. This is a showstopper of a cake and serves a crowd. Enjoy!
Cranberry White Chocolate Layer Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 1/2 cups almond flour
- 1/3 cup coconut flour
- 1/3 cup unflavoured whey protein powder
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 5 large egg whites room temperature
- 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream room temperature
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Cranberry Filling:
- 3 cups fresh cranberries
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/3 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
White Chocolate Frosting:
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 3/4 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 3/4 cup whipping cream room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 ounces cocoa butter melted (and cooled a bit)
"Sugared" Cranberries (optional)
- 1/2 cup fresh cranberries
- 2 tsp isomalt fiber syrup
- 1 tbsp Swerve Sweetener
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 325F and grease 3 (three) 9-inch or 8-inch round baking pans very well (if you only have two pans, you bake the cake layers in batches.
- In a medium bowl, combine the almond flour, coconut flour, protein powder, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large bowl, beat butter with sweetener until well combined and fluffy. Beat in the egg whites. Add half the almond flour mixture and beat in, scraping down the sides of the bowl and the beaters as needed.
- Beat in the cream, water, and vanilla extract, then beat in the remaining almond flour mixture until well combined. Divide the batter among the prepared pans and spread to the edges. Smooth the tops.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until edges are just golden and the cake layers are firm to the touch. Remove and let cool 10 minutes, then flip out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Cranberry Filling:
- In a large saucepan over medium heat, bring cranberries and water to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the berries have all burst and can easily be mashed with a fork, about 10 minutes. Whisk in sweetener.
- Place on cake layer on a serving plate and top with half of the cranberry filling, spreading all the way to the edges. Repeat with a second layer and the remaining filling. Top with the final layer of cake.
White Chocolate Frosting:
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, and sweetener together until well combined. Beat in whipping cream and vanilla until smooth.
- Drizzle with melted cocoa butter and beat in until well combined. Spread frosting over top and sides of cake.
Sugared Cranberries:
- In a bowl, combine the cranberries and syrup. Sprinkle with sweetener. Place on top of the cake.
Notes
Total fat: 34.41g
Calories from fat: 309
Cholesterol: 77mg
Carbohydrate: 9.51g
Total dietary fiber: 3.72g
Protein: 8.13g
Erythritol: 31.9g
Jocelyne Slattery says
Wow! This is a lovely cake. I have to make a wedding cake for my daughter in a couple of weeks and this would be a great recipe… I hope. 2 questions, 1. how do I make it so it doesn’t fall apart (I ask because of comments I read)? 2. do you think it could make a good naked cake? Thanks in advance for your tips! I am a desperate mom who used to make amazing cakes but never keto! I hope to get back into the swing of baking.
Carolyn says
I didn’t have an issue but try adding 1/2 tsp xanthan gum to give it more stability.
Holli says
Hi Carolyn 😊
Could I freeze this cake for a couple days? Then thaw it for a couple hours? I thought I saw a comment of yours that said we could add some xanthan gum to the cake batter to make it more stable to handle? Is that true and if it was, how much xanthan? Thank you.
Carolyn says
Try 1/2 tsp xanthan. I think this one should freeze okay.
Cate says
Wow, made the cake and all it’s extra yummy bits and besides the cake disintegrating on me I put it together in small glasses layering the cake and “raspberry coolie” then slathering with the white choc cream. Darling daughter couldn’t get enough.
LIRAZ says
HI CAROLYN!
THANKS FOR YOUR ANSWER.
SO I WOULD CREAM UNMELTED SOFTENED COCONUT OIL WITH THE SWEETNER AND FOLLOW THR RECIPE
AND INSTED OF THR HEAVY CREAM I WOULD USE COCONUT CREAM { NOT CHILLED } INSTED.
THAT WOULD BE OK?
Carolyn says
I am sorry, Liraz, I think you aren’t understanding me. I can’t say for sure if any of this would work, I have not tried this as a dairy free recipe. You will need to go it alone here and experiment.
LIRAZ says
HI CAROLYN!
THANKE FOR THE REPLAY. CAN I
MAKE THE CAKE BATTER DAIRY FREE NOT THE FROSTING?
Carolyn says
Sure.
LIRAZ says
HI CAROLYN!
HOW CAN I MAKE THE CAKE RECIPE DAIRY FREE?
THANK YOU FIR THE REPLAY.
Carolyn says
You can’t, this one takes cream cheese. Sorry.
LIRAZ says
HI CAROLYN!
IF I HAVE A HIGH POWER BLENDER LIKE BLENDTEC OY VITAMIX ON A LOW MEEDIUM SPEED IT WOULD BE OK?
Carolyn says
I honestly cannot say. You can experiment but I have not tried it myself.
LIRAZ says
HI CAROLYN!
IF I DINT HAVE A MIXE ON HAND CAN I MAKE THIS CAKE IN A BLUNDER ON A LOW MEDIUM SPEED FIRST CREEMING THE BUTTER AND SWEETNER AND FOLLOWING THE RESY OF THE RECIPE?
I WAS THINKING MAKONG YOUR PATISSIER CREAM WITH THE REMAINING EGG YOLK.
THAMKS FOE THE REPLAY.ANN WONDERFUL RECIPE.
Carolyn says
I think this batter would be too much for a blender.
Lynn says
Can I use Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides instead of the whey protein powder?
Carolyn says
No, collagen will make it very gummy. Skip it if you have to, or use egg white protein.
TheaMaria says
Hi Carolyn. Do you think I could use this recipe to make cupcakes? If so, about how many would it yield? Also, I have read a few comments about people having trouble getting the cakes out of the pans as it is very fragile. Would adding some xanthan gum help make cake (or cupcakes) more sturdy? (I’m hoping to make birthday cupcakes for my husband’s 40th this weekend!) Thank you!
Carolyn says
It would probably make 12 to 15 cupcakes. Use parchment or silicone liners and you won’t need to add xanthan.
TheaMaria says
Excellent, thanks so much!
Anu says
I’m so looking forward to trying this for a birthday celebration this weekend, thank you SO much for a gorgeous cake 🙂 A quick question – Could I make the sponge and filling a couple of days in advance and then make the buttercream and assemble it after? If yes, how should I store the sponges for the two days? Fridge? Freezer? Wrapped in cling wrap, maybe?
Carolyn says
Yes, as long as you wrap it up tightly and refrigerate, it should be fine.
Anu says
Thank you so much! I really appreciate the quick reply, and will let you know how it goes 🙂
Anu says
So I made this over Thursday-Saturday last week, trying to collect all the advice and tips from the wonderfully written recipe and the others that have tried it, but sadly my baking skills were just not up to the task. One of the cake layers completely disintegrated as I was taking it out of the pan, the second one developed a crack in the middle and only the third one survived unscathed. Not one to give up, however, I crumbled the first layer onto a baking tray and dehydrated it on a low oven overnight, planning on using it as a crumb topping – worked a charm! My fatal mistake, however, was using the good layer at the bottom and the one with the crack on the top. Needless to say once this layer was placed on the cranberry filling, the crack basically broke the layer into two halves and I watched in dismay as the two tectonic plates of my top layer floated gently away from each other. And that’s when the trifle plan was put into place, and what I ended up with was a delicious trifle, but sadly not a birthday cake. Still, the yummy flavours more than made up for it – as suggested by one user I added some orange zest to the cake and it was gorgeous! Thanks again, maybe some day I’ll improve my baking skills enough to attempt this again with more success! 😊
Carolyn says
What kind of pans are you using? Do you line them with parchment? That helps a LOT!
Anu says
I used 8-inch metal pans, greased generously with butter and lined with this wonderful reusable baking parchment I found here in the UK (Lakeland). The problem wasn’t that anything stuck to the sides or bottom, the crumbling/disintegration was when I flipped them onto a cooling rack from the pan, the layers are sooooo delicate. I got one right, though, so I must have some technique, I guess I just wasn’t consistent with it. Oh well, you live and learn 😊
Carolyn says
Okay, so the best way to flip out a cake is to put the wire rack right on top of the pan and hold them together, and then turn the whole thing upside down. Make sure you’ve loosened the sides of the cake already, if it’s sticking to the sides. Mine usually don’t stick but I use very good non stick cake pans.
Anu says
Thank you, Carolyn, you are so kind to reply so quickly, and always with very useful information. I will give this a go next time (with a little more patience and care than before!!) and let you know how it turns out.
Rebekkah Davies says
Excellent recipe! I make it often, comes out beautiful. I love everything Carolyn does!
Kristine Cavanagh says
Is there an alternative to isomalt fiber syrup?
Carolyn says
Not really, no. Nothing that will get the sweetener to adhere to the cranberries.
Barbara says
This is a delicious cake but as others have said very fragile. All three layers broke apart as I took them out of the pan. I had to put them together like a puzzle on the cake plate. It really didn’t matter since I covered one layer up with lemon curd and the other layer with raspberry sauce. After I covered the whole cake with whipped cream and coconut, no one knew the difference. Family loved it. Winner!
Carolyn, is this just typical of this cake? Did I do something wrong? I use honeyville and swerve so not that. I’d really like to rely on this cake to be a regular.
Thanks so much for all your recipes. They are great as I’ve said many times.
Michele says
The cake layers did not hold together for me, but that turned out to be a happy accident! I shifted to Plan B and made a trifle, and it was the most beautiful trifle in its clear glass bowl with those alternating red and white layers. Fortunately I made extra cranberry sauce, so I layered cake pieces, frosting, and cranberry sauce three times. It was a hit with my family. Thank you, Carolyn, for creating recipes that work even when everything doesn’t turn out as planned.
Carolyn says
Glad you found a way to make it work! That’s so creative.
Carol Verge says
I am so making this! Thanks again Carolyn. You are so awesome. One question: do I have to use the isomalt fiber syrup in the frosting? I will buy it, but it is kind of expensive for 2 tsp. Thanks again.
Leonor says
I was wondering the same exact thing. What would be a good substitute for the syrup?
Carol Verge says
I wonder if we could use vegetable glycerin instead if the syrup?
Carolyn says
Sure.
Tess says
I live in Central Queensland Australia and I cannot get fresh cranberries or cocoa butter, however I can get dried cranberries and copha. Could I soak the dried berries over night and what replacement would work for cocoa butter please.
Carolyn says
I have no idea what “copha” is? Yes, you can soak some berries. For the frosting, I suggest more cream cheese and just leaving out the cocoa butter.
Lucinda says
Could i sub the cranberries for something else like raspberries, also do you put the filling on warm or do you let it cool first?
Carolyn says
Sure, any berry will be fine. Let the filling cool a bit because it thickens up.
Cheryl says
Tried another of your cakes..another winner! Thank you for all your recipes!
Diane Downing says
I made the fatal error of using strawberries and it was so soupy. Did put a little glucomanan in it but not enough. Question about the frosting. Had cream at room temp. Melted cocoa butter in micro and let it cool. Butter and cream cheese soft at room temp. Used my kitchenaid with whisk but it turned out soupy and not stiff. What do you think I did wrong. Was cocoa butter suppose to be warm? It was very delish even though it did not turn out pretty! Almost like strawberry shortcake cake!
Carolyn says
What sweetener did you use for the frosting?
Diane Downing says
This sugar blend. I pretty much exclusively use this now because it doesn’t have a funky aftertaste.
Sugar Blend & Baking blend
(Trim Healthy mama gentle sweet sweetener substitute)
http://joyfilledeats.com/sweetener/
Cup measurements:
• 1 1/2 cups plus 2 T. erythritol
• 2 cups plus 2 T. xylitol
• 2 tsp. Better Stevia
Carolyn says
Well, that would be why your frosting was soupy. Because the frosting relies on a certain amount of powdered erythritol to hold its shape. When you use a sweetener that’s more concentrated, you don’t use as much. Additionally, xylitol doesn’t give frosting as much structure.
Diane Downing says
I forgot to mention that I put all of the sugars in my vitamix and make it into a powder. So would the xylitol still be an issue? I really like the blend than straight up erythritol.
Carolyn says
Probably.
Amanda Kitson says
I thought it was just me!! I made two batches of the frosting to no avail. Just gloupy.
Carolyn says
What sweetener are you using?
Kelly says
Is there anyway I could use blackberries instead of cranberries ? Not a cranberry lover ? Lol
Carolyn says
Yes but blackberries are much juicier so you will want to drain some of that extra liquid. Or thicken it with xanthan gum or ground chia seed.