In early November when the finecooking.com website was still down courtesy of the magazine's new owner, I was limited to Fine Cooking recipes in the random print issues I happen to have on hand and in several bound compilations I own. My cookbook collection includes Fine Cooking Cakes & Cupcakes, which includes a recipe for Cranberry Streusel Pound Cake.
To make the cake batter, you beat room temperature butter with sugar until light and fluffy; add eggs followed by vanilla; alternately add in the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt, and orange zest) and buttermilk; and stir in dried cranberries. I didn't bother chopping my cranberries before adding them to the batter.
I transferred half of the batter into a parchment-lined loaf pan; sprinkled on a streusel made by mixing walnuts, cinnamon, and brown in a food processor; topped the streusel with the remaining batter; and put the loaf in the oven to bake.
The recipe includes an icing component and I was going to skip it. But after the loaf was cool, my husband and I tried the end piece I sliced off and both of us agreed that a little icing would be an improvement. So I mixed together powdered sugar, cinnamon, and heavy cream, and drizzled it over the top. The glaze set firm and was light tan in color from the cinnamon; the little bit of extra sweetness made a big difference.
This was a very good pound cake. It was dense and rich and actually tasted better on day two. The ripple of streusel was delicious and I liked the big pieces of plump, dried cranberries and the touch of orange flavor from the zest. The cake was a bright pick-me-up for a winter day.
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