Fluffy gluten-free cranberry coffee cake made with leftover cranberry sauce is the PERFECT holiday breakfast! This tender cake has delicious notes of fresh orange zest, sweet, tangy cranberry, and a cinnamony crumble topping you’ll LOVE.

A slice of gluten-free cranberry coffee cake made with cranberry sauce

I’m Just Saying, This Coffee Cake Is The Perfect Breakfast For The Holiday Season

When you’ve got a house full of company, or are just soaking in the slower pace of a holiday break, there’s nothing like this orange cranberry coffee cake recipe! There’s SO much to love:

It’s EASY TO MAKE. Simple ingredients & simple techniques are the name of the game, especially if you use leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving! If you can grate, measure & stir, you can make this cranberry coffee cake recipe!
It’s DELICIOUS: It’s got all the fluffy texture and buttery crumb topping you love, flavored with fresh orange zest, bright cranberry sauce, and subtle notes of cinnamon and vanilla. It tastes like the holidays.
It’s GREAT FOR COMPANY: Whether you’re trying to keep Thanksgiving guests full till dinner, or you want something fun to wake up to on Christmas morning, this cranberry orange coffee cake is IT. Serve with a little Christmas fruit salad and some eggs, sausage, or bacon, and you’ve got a full breakfast !

Happy baking! xo, Emily

Gather Your Ingredients

So what makes this cranberry coffee cake such a special holiday breakfast? It’s the cranberry filling, the buttery crumble, and the simple ingredients! Let’s take a look:

Ingredients for gluten-free cranberry coffee cake

A Simple Crumble Topping. Just like our Cinnamon Coffee Cake and Blueberry Coffee Cake, this gluten-free Cranberry Coffee Cake recipe is made with a generous amount of cinnamon crumb topping, made with melted butter, gluten-free flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. It’s easy, delicious, and abundant. Exactly what you want!
Cranberry Sauce. Making this moist coffee cake with a layer of leftover homemade cranberry sauce (or store-bought cranberry sauce!) adds a delicious festive touch. We LOVE our easy homemade recipe, made with fresh cranberries (shared in the recipe card below, if you need it!). Just make sure it’s thick, but spreadable. (I don’t recommend jellied cranberry sauce here!)
Orange Zest. Fresh orange zest is a great addition that adds bright orange flavor that complements the tart cranberries beautifully. Remember you want just the orange peels, NOT the bitter white pith underneath!
Granulated Sugar & Brown Sugar. Rubbing the orange zest into sugar helps distribute that citrus flavor into every delicious bite. Then, we use brown sugar for the buttery cinnamon streusel!
Butter. Melted butter for the delicious cinnamon streusel, and softened butter for the coffee cake!
Eggs. You’ll need 3 large eggs for a moist cake. I haven’t tried this recipe with egg substitutes like flax eggs yet.
Gluten-Free Flour. For best results, I highly recommend King Arthur Measure-For-Measure Gluten-Free Flour blend for this gluten-free cranberry coffee cake. If you use another 1:1 flour blend (like Bob’s Red Mill), make sure it contains xanthan gum. Do not substitute oat flour, almond flour, or coconut flour, or other gluten-free flours into this recipe.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda. This combo gives you a moist, fluffy texture every time.
Vanilla Extract, Ground Cinnamon & Salt. To play up the citrus and cranberry flavors in this yummy cranberry crumb cake.
Sour Cream. A magic ingredient for moisture, a tender crumb, and balanced flavor. You can use plain Greek yogurt in a pinch, but it won’t be as moist as a sour cream coffee cake.
Maybe Some Powdered Sugar. For dusting the cake before serving.

How To Make Gluten-Free Cranberry Coffee Cake, Step By Step

As always, you can find the full recipe, with ingredient amounts, detailed instructions, and tips in the recipe card below.

Making gluten-free cranberry coffee cake batter, step by step

Preheat & Prep. To start, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a metal 8×8 pan with parchment paper and set aside.
Make The Crumb Topping. In a medium bowl, combine cooled melted butter, gluten-free flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Stir with a fork until evenly combined. At first, it may look too wet. Don’t panic! Just let it sit while you make the cake batter, and the flour will absorb liquid from the crumb.
Make Orange Sugar. In the bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl, combine granulated sugar and orange zest. Rub the zest into the sugar with clean fingers until it’s light orange and fragrant.
Combine Wet Ingredients. Add softened butter to the bowl and cream with a paddle attachment (or handheld mixer) on medium speed 2-3 minutes, until smooth and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again.
Add Dry Ingredients. Add gluten-free flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and mix until JUST combined.
Mix in Sour Cream. Scrape down the bowl one more time, then mix in the sour cream until the batter is smooth and even.

Layering coffee cake batter with cranberry sauce and cinnamon streusel

Layer. Pour 1/2 of the cake batter into the prepared pan and smooth into an even layer. Top with 1 cup cranberry sauce and smooth the cranberry sauce into an even layer, leaving a slight border around the edge. Top cranberry sauce with the second half of the batter and smooth into an even layer, making sure to seal the edges well. Sprinkle the top of the cake with the crumb topping.
Bake. Next, bake the coffee cake in preheated oven for 55-60 min, or until the crumb topping is golden brown and toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs (no wet batter!). The cake should spring back when gently pressed.
Cool, Garnish & Slice. Let the cake cool on a wire rack at least 30-45 min before cutting into slices. Garnish with a sprinkle of powdered sugar, then cut into 9 large squares, 12 medium rectangles, or 16 small squares and enjoy. Store leftover coffee cake in an airtight container or cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and store 1-2 days at room temperature or 3-4 days in the fridge.

A slice of orange cranberry coffee cake with cinnamon streusel, dusted with powdered sugar

FAQ + Tricks For The Best Cranberry Coffee Cake

Try Our Homemade Cranberry Sauce! I’ve included a delicious recipe for my favorite homemade cranberry sauce below. It’s easy, delicious, and has just the right texture for this cranberry sauce coffee cake recipe. Whether you use homemade cranberry sauce or canned cranberry sauce, make sure it’s got a thick, jam-like consistency. Do NOT use jellied cranberry sauce for this recipe, or it’ll just melt into the cake. Look for whole berry cranberry sauce or make homemade cranberry sauce with fresh cranberries for best results.

Your Pan Material Matters! I highly recommend an 8×8 light colored metal baking pan for this recipe. An aluminum pan will conduct heat evenly and gently. If you use a glass pan or ceramic pan, your cranberry-orange coffee cake will take longer to bake.

Can I Use a Different Pan? You can, but your bake time will likely vary slightly. An 8-inch or 9-inch springform pan would work well and have a similar bake time!

Make-Ahead Tips. This is a great recipe for making in advance, which makes it a perfect Christmas brunch or breakfast recipe. The fully-baked and cooled coffee cake will keep well overnight to serve the next morning. Or, you can keep the batter, cranberry sauce, and streusel topping in different containers overnight, then assemble and bake in the morning!

Slices of gluten free cranberry coffee cake on dessert plates

More Gluten-Free Breakfast Recipes To Try

Gluten-Free Blueberry Coffee Cake

gluten-free cinnamon roll on a white plate next to a bottle of milk

Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls

Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Muffins

a pan of homemade gluten-free orange sweet rolls

Gluten-Free Orange Rolls

Recipe Card

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Gluten-Free Cranberry Coffee Cake

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Author: Emily Dixon, Sweets & Thank You

This zesty orange cranberry coffee cake has the most DELICIOUS flavor! Tender cake with notes of orange and vanilla pair with sweet, tart cranberry sauce and a buttery cinnamon crumb topping you'll LOVE.

Prep Time: 25

Cook Time: 55

Cool Time: 30

Total Time: 1 50

Print Pin Rate

Servings: -16 servings

Ingredients

FOR THE HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE (IF MAKING YOUR OWN)

1 (12-ounce) Bag Fresh Cranberries (3 cups)* (340 grams), rinsed
¾ cup Granulated Sugar (200 grams)
¾ cup Water
1 teaspoon Fresh Orange Zest
¼ cup Fresh Orange Juice (from the same orange!)
Pinch Cinnamon (less than 1/8 teaspoon)
Pinch Salt (less than 1/8 teaspoon)

FOR THE CINNAMON STREUSEL TOPPING

½ cup Butter, Melted and Cooled (113 grams/8 TBSP)
1 cup Gluten-Free Measure-For-Measure Flour* (120 grams)
¾ cup Light Brown Sugar (150 grams)
3/4-1 teaspoon Cinnamon
¼ teaspoon Salt

FOR THE ORANGE CRANBERRY COFFEE CAKE

½ cup Butter, Softened (113 grams/8 TBSP)
Zest of 1 Orange (about 2 tsp. zest)
1 cup Granulated Sugar (200 grams)
3 Large Eggs
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
2 cups Gluten-Free Measure-For-Measure Flour* (240 grams)
1 ½ teaspoons Baking Powder
½ teaspoon Baking Soda
½ teaspoon Salt
1 cup Sour Cream (227 grams/8 oz.)
1 cup Cranberry Sauce (see notes)

Instructions

FIRST, MAKE CRANBERRY SAUCE. If you're making cranberry sauce just for this, make the cranberry sauce in advance, so you can cool it before adding it to the cake. In a large saucepan, combine cranberries, 3/4 cup sugar, 3/4 water, 1 tsp. orange zest, 1/4 cup orange juice, pinch cinnamon, and pinch salt. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to break up the cranberries. Cook 8-10 min, or until thickened and reduced so you have about 2 cups of sauce. Cool sauce to room temperature or chill before using for the cake. (Cranberry sauce will keep fresh 3-4 days in the fridge, or can be frozen up to 2 months)
PREHEAT & PREP. To start, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a metal 8×8 pan with parchment paper and set aside.
MAKE THE CRUMB TOPPING. In a medium bowl, combine cooled melted butter, gluten-free flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Stir with a fork until evenly combined. At first, it may look too wet. Don't panic! Just let it sit while you make the cake batter, and the flour will absorb liquid from the crumb.
MAKE ORANGE SUGAR. In the bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl, combine granulated sugar and orange zest. Rub the zest into the sugar with clean fingers until it's light orange and fragrant.
COMBINE WET INGREDIENTS. Add softened butter to the bowl and cream with a paddle attachment (or handheld mixer) on medium speed 2-3 minutes, until smooth and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again.
ADD DRY INGREDIENTS. Add gluten-free flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and mix until JUST combined.
MIX IN SOUR CREAM. Scrape down the bowl one more time, then mix in the sour cream until the batter is smooth and even.
LAYER. Pour 1/2 of the cake batter into the prepared pan and smooth into an even layer. Top with 1 cup cranberry sauce and smooth the cranberry sauce into an even layer, leaving a slight border around the edge. Top cranberry sauce with the second half of the batter and smooth into an even layer, making sure to seal the edges well. Sprinkle the top of the cake with the crumb topping.
BAKE. Next, bake the coffee cake in preheated oven for 55-60 min, or until the crumb topping is golden brown and toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs (no wet batter!). The cake should spring back when gently pressed.
COOL, GARNISH & SLICE. Let the cake cool on a wire rack at least 30-45 min before cutting into slices. Garnish with a sprinkle of powdered sugar, then cut into 9 large squares, 12 medium rectangles, or 16 small squares and enjoy. Store leftover coffee cake in an airtight container or cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and store 1-2 days at room temperature or 3-4 days in the fridge.

Notes

Use The Right Cranberry Sauce! Whether you use homemade cranberry sauce or canned cranberry sauce, make sure it’s got a thick, jam-like consistency. Do NOT use jellied cranberry sauce for this recipe, or it’ll just melt into the cake. Look for whole berry cranberry sauce or make the homemade cranberry sauce we shared above, for best results.
Gluten-Free Flour. I highly recommend King Arthur Measure-For-Measure Gluten-Free Flour blend for this gluten-free cranberry coffee cake. If you use another 1:1 flour blend (like Bob’s Red Mill), make sure it contains xanthan gum. Do not substitute oat flour, almond flour, or coconut flour, or other gluten-free flours into this recipe.
Your Pan Material Matters! I highly recommend an 8×8 light colored metal baking pan for this recipe. An aluminum pan will conduct heat evenly and gently. If you use a glass pan or ceramic pan, your cranberry-orange coffee cake will take longer to bake.
Make-Ahead Tips. This is a great recipe for making in advance, which makes it a perfect Christmas brunch or breakfast recipe. The fully-baked and cooled coffee cake will keep well overnight to serve the next morning. Or, you can keep the batter, cranberry sauce, and streusel topping in different containers overnight, then assemble and bake in the morning!