Pillsbury Recommends:

Cranberry-Caramel Cake

Prep 35 min
Total 2 hr 30 min
Ingredients 11
Servings 16

Combine a cornucopia of holiday flavors--eggnog, pumpkin pie spice, and cranberries--to dress up yellow cake mix, then top with easy homemade caramel.

By Betty Crocker Kitchens

Updated August 30, 2011

Ingredients

Cake

1

box yellow cake mix
2

teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1

cup light eggnog or milk
1/2

cup vegetable oil
3

eggs
1 1/2

cups fresh or frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped
1/2

cup chopped walnuts

Caramel Sauce

1/2

cup butter
1 1/4

cups firmly packed brown sugar
2

tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2

cup whipping cream

Steps

1

Heat oven to 325°F. Grease and lightly flour 12-cup fluted tube cake pan, or spray with baking spray with flour. In large bowl, beat cake mix, pumpkin pie spice, eggnog, oil and eggs with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes. Stir in cranberries and walnuts. Pour into pan.
2

Bake 45 to 55 minutes or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Turn cake upside down onto cooling rack; remove pan. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
3

Melt butter in 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in brown sugar and corn syrup. Heat to boiling. Cook about 1 minute, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves. Stir in whipping cream. Return to boiling, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Serve warm sauce over cake.

Bake this cake up to two months in advance and let it cool; seal it in two layers of plastic wrap and freeze it. Thaw the wrapped cake at room temperature for two hours.
To make sauce in microwave, place butter in 4-cup microwavable measuring cup. Microwave uncovered on High about 1 minute or until melted. Stir in brown sugar and corn syrup. Microwave uncovered on High 2 to 3 minutes or until sugar dissolves, stirring once halfway through cook time. Stir in whipping cream. Microwave uncovered on High 45 to 60 seconds or until mixture boils, stirring once halfway through cook time.