Spiced Prune Snack Cake
Whether you call it snack cake, coffee cake or simply a good idea, this easy cake recipe is simple to pull together and a real crowd-pleaser. Meg from This Mess is Ours pairs candied ginger, warm spices, orange zest and walnuts with the sweetness of California Prunes for a fabulous treat that works as well in the morning as it does with a 2PM cup of coffee; after school or as dessert. Plus, you can make this snack cake with gluten-free or conventional flour. Cheers to that!
What do you need to make this Snack Cake recipe?
- prune puree (made easily from prunes + water!)
- butter
- brown sugar
- egg yolks
- Navel orange
- vanilla extract
- gluten-free or conventional all-purpose flour
- ground ginger
- ground allspice
- kosher salt
- baking powder
- walnuts
- candied ginger pieces
One-bowl cakes = your new favorite dessert.
This snack cake recipe calls for basic pantry ingredients, only needs one bowl to mix, and uses less sugar than traditional snack cakes thanks to the help of healthy and delicious prune puree. Plus, it also bakes in about half the time of other popular snack cake recipes because it’s made in a loaf pan. Who doesn’t love that?!
Spiced Prune Snack Cake
Ingredients
Prune Puree
- 1/4 cup small-diced prunes about 7
- 1 cup boiling water
- 6 tablespoons salted butter melted
- 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 2 egg yolks
- zest of 1 Navel orange plus more for garnishing if desired
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup gluten-free or conventional all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
- 1 tablespoon candied ginger pieces
Instructions
- To make the prune puree, pour the boiling water over the prunes and soak for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 9" bread/loaf pan with parchment then lightly spray with cooking spray and set aside.
- After the prunes have soaked, reserve one tablespoon of the soaking liquid and drain the rest. Use a fork to mash the prunes and the 1 tablespoon of soaking liquid into a paste with no big chunks remaining.
- In a mixing bowl combine the prune puree, melted butter, dark brown sugar, yolks, orange zest, and vanilla extract. Whisk until combined.
- Sprinkle the flour, ginger, allspice, salt, and baking powder over the mixture then stir to combine.
- Spread the batter into the prepared loaf pan, sprinkle the walnuts and candied ginger over the top.
- Bake for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes then remove the cake from the pan and slice to serve.
Nutrition
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While your Snack Cake is baking, here’s a couple more to try:
Meg’s Ultimate Crumble-Topped Coffee Cake Recipe:
Transport your taste buds to your favorite coffee shop with this incredible gluten free Coffee Cake Crumble recipe. It’s the perfect size for a snuggly weekend coffee date! Swirling flavors of vanilla beans, cinnamon, ginger and prunes make this cake a memorable treat. It is great warm from the oven, but just gets better with time and stays tender and moist for days.
Mascarpone Cake with Red Wine Prunes from Claire Saffitz
This tangy-light mascarpone cake is studded with sweet, flavorful prunes simmered in red wine. It’s the kind of recipe that will make a dessert person out of anyone, which is a skill Claire Saffitz; recipe developer, video personality & former Senior Food Editor at Bon Appétit, has mastered. Originally inspired by a dessert at Frankies Sputino in Brooklyn, this mascarpone cake pairs a light texture with softened prunes and rich, warm spiced red wine syrup–it’s equally as great for a weeknight dessert as it is for a holiday spread.
Prune-Cinnamon Swirl Loaf Cake from Bake from Scratch
With all the sweet cinnamon-sugar flavors of a snickerdoodle, plus a striking jammy ribbon of cinnamon brown sugar and chopped prunes and pecans, this Prune-Cinnamon Swirl Loaf Cake is the answer to all your warmly spiced cake cravings. Incorporated into both the batter and filling, California Prunes are the naturally sweet jewels of rich, fruity flavor that take this loaf cake to new heights. Not only do they add incredible moisture and natural sweetness to the cake in the form of prune purée, but the chopped prunes in the filling also add a satisfying chew that’s perfectly balanced by the crunch of chopped pecans.
Did you try this recipe? Maybe you’ve got a favorite recipe using California Prunes that you’d like to share with us? Snap a pic and share it on social using #caprunes.
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