Cranberry Cake with Warm Vanilla Butter Sauce

Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Dump all the cranberries in a colander, rinse them, and set them aside to dry. (If you really love cranberry, you can add up to 5 cups of cranberries. I used 4 and thought it was perfect.)

2. Add the softened butter and 2 cups of sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until smooth and fluffy. Add the evaporated milk and combine.

3. In another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the mixer and beat until just barely combined, scraping the sides and bottom as necessary. Fold in the cranberries using a wooden spoon.

4. Spray a standard-size (10-12 cup) bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. Over the sink, sprinkle a couple teaspoons of flour all over the inside of the pan, and shake it so that it completely covers the interior. Dump any remaining flour. You just want a thin layer so that your cake inverts nice and easy.

5. Spoon the batter into the pan, smoothing the top with a spoon. Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes. The cake is done when it is a deep golden color and a toothpick stuck in the center comes out dry. It was closer to 50 minutes in my oven.

6. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Set a timer so you don't forget.

7. Invert the cake onto a plate or cake stand.

8. In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in sugar and cream, and heat until sugar is melted and sauce is hot. Don't let it boil! Remove from heat, let it sit for a minute, then stir in vanilla.

9. Serve warm sauce over cake. I like it best served over each individual slice, but you can drizzle it over the whole cake if you want. Don't do all of it, just enough to make it pretty. The cake can be served warm or at room temperature.