Goldy's Sorry Cake

Goldy’s Sorry Cake is a three-layer showstopper with a mix of ingredients you wouldn’t expect to see together: cranberries, pecans, shredded wheat cereal, and orange zest folded into a buttermilk batter, all frosted with an orange cream cheese icing.

The shredded wheat cereal is the surprise here. Broken into shreds, it adds a rustic, wheaty texture throughout the crumb that keeps the cake from being just another layer cake. It absorbs moisture from the buttermilk as it bakes and softens into chewy little pockets.

Separating the eggs and folding whipped whites in at the end is what gives this cake its lift. Cream of tartar stabilizes the whites so they hold their volume as you fold them into the heavy batter loaded with fruit, nuts, and cereal.

Kitchen Tips

• Alternate flour and buttermilk additions, starting and ending with flour. This keeps the batter emulsified and prevents a heavy, dense cake.
• Quarter the cranberries before adding. Whole cranberries burst during baking and create wet pockets that make the cake gummy around them.
• Fold the egg whites gently with a rubber spatula. Stirring deflates the air you just whipped in and you’ll lose the cake’s light texture.
• Let layers cool completely before frosting. The cream cheese frosting slides right off warm cake.

Variations

• Use dried cranberries soaked in orange juice for a sweeter, less tart berry throughout.
• Swap pecans for walnuts or toasted hazelnuts.
• Add a tablespoon of Grand Marnier to the frosting for a boozy orange kick.