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Introducing The Christmas Pomegranate Cake. This is what I’ll be making for my family’s Christmas dinner. Honestly, I feel like every new cake I make, my sister Anna tells me it’s her new favorite. Well, guess what? This is Anna’s favorite cake! You should have heard her go on and on about it. In all seriousness, this Pomegranate Cake is fantastic; top to bottom.
I this pomegranate cake for my nieces 5th birthday party (yes, I had to cut it to take a picture of the inside for you all, but I patched it up quite nicely). I told her Mother (my sister), that’s what happens when you ask a food blogger to make the birthday cake. She didn’t seem to mind ;).
The Pomegranate Cake was an absolute hit and not a crumb was left behind. Just 15 minutes after we cut into the cake, there was only a small sliver left; toppled over. It too was destroyed. I hope this Christmas Pomegranate cake makes your holidays more merry and bright.
Ingredients for the Cake Layers:
6 large eggs, room temp (if cold, put them in warm water 15 min)
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour *measured correctly
1/2 tsp vanilla
Ingredients for Pomegranate Topping:
6 ounces (3/4 cup) pomegranate juice (Pom Wonderful)
2 tsp unflavored gelatin powder (I used Knox brand)
1 tsp vanilla
2 Tbsp Sugar
Seeds of one large Pomegranate (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups)
Ingredients for syrup:
1 1/2 cups Pomegranate Juice (POM brand)
2 Tbsp sugar
Ingredients For the Pomegranate Cream Frosting:
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened to room temp
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
16 oz (2 blocks) cream cheese, softened to room temp and cut into 16 pieces
4 Tbsp of Pomegranate juice (POM brand)
How to Make Pomegranate Cake:
If you never made a European Sponge Cake, watch the video before you get started:
1. Preheat Oven to 350˚F. Line the bottoms of two 9″ cake pans with parchment paper.
2. Combine 6 eggs and 1 cup sugar in the bowl of your electric mixer and beat on high speed for 12 minutes or until tripled in volume and fluffy. Whisk together 1 cup flour and 1/2 tsp baking powder then Sift it into the beaten eggs in 2 additions, folding it in with a spatula just until all of the flour is incorporated. Drizzle in 1/2 tsp vanilla and blend together. Remember that you are relying on the fluffy air-infused batter for the cake to rise. DO NOT OVERMIX or your cake won’t rise well.
3. Transfer your batter to your lined cake pans. Set aside.
4. Bake at 350˚F for 25-28 minutes or until the top is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean (poke the side, not the center so your center won’t cave) and don’t open the oven until 25 minutes have past. Let the cakes cool down on wire racks, then remove from the pans.
Making the Syrup for the soaking the cake Layers:
1. Combine 1 1/2 cups Pomegranate Juice (POM brand) with 2 Tbsp sugar and stir to combine. Set aside to and stir occasionally until sugar is all dissolved.
Making the Frosting:
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, mix the 2 sticks of butter with 3 cups powdered sugar and salt on low speed or until combined (1 min) Don’t start on high speed or you will be surrounded in a cloud of powdered sugar (lessons learned). Increase speed to medium-high and beat until the mixture is pale and fluffy (2 min).
2. Add cream cheese 1-piece at a time and mix until combined. (I waited maybe 3 seconds in between each piece; toss them in one after another. Once all of the cream cheese is incorporated, scrape down the sides and continue to beat 1 more minute on med/high speed. The cream should be smooth and lump-free.
3. Add 4 Tbsp POM juice, 1 Tbsp at a time and mix on medium speed until combined (1 min). Refrigerate frosting until ready to use.
Assembling your Cake:
1. Cut the cake layers in half so you end up with 4 layers. Place the first layer, cut-side-up on your serving platter. Brush 1/4 of the POM/sugar syrup over the first layer. Frost the top. Do this with all 4 layers. You only need a very small amount of frosting on the very top of the cake since you are going to have the Pomegranate topping (and you’ll need the extra for the topping).
2. Wipe any excess syrup from the cake platter, then frost the sides. I used My large Wilton 1M star tip. You want a border that will contain a generous layer of pomegranate topping.
Refrigerate your cake for at least 30 minutes before adding the pomegranate topping.
Pomegranate Topping:
(make this after your cake is done and in the fridge):
1. Place 3/4 cup of POM juice in a small sauce pan, add 1 tsp vanilla and sprinkle in 2 tsp gelatin. Let stand 1 minute to soften gelatin before putting it on the heat.
2. Whisk in 2 Tbsp sugar and cook over medium heat, stirring, until sugar dissolves and mixture is steaming.
3. Remove from heat and let it cool down a bit (or transfer into a mixing bowl if you don’t want to wait for the ice bath) then set the saucepan into a larger bowl of ice water, stirring gently until it is cold and slightly thickened but not set. It doesn’t take long so stay with it. Remove from the ice bath.
4. Stir in pomegranate seeds and immediately spoon topping onto the chilled cake. Refrigerate your cake until the topping is set (about 1 hour).
Wouldn’t you like to eat a spoon-full of that goodness?
Credits:
The brilliant idea for the Pomegranate Topping came from Chef Dennis.
Pomegranate Christmas Cake
Ingredients
Ingredients for the Cake:Ingredients for the Cake Layers:
- 6 large eggs, room temp (if cold, put them in warm water 15 min)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Ingredients for Pomegranate Topping:
- 6 oz 3/4 cup pomegranate juice (Pom Wonderful)
- 2 tsp unflavored gelatin powder, I used Knox brand
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp Sugar
- Seeds of one large Pomegranate, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups
Ingredients for syrup:
- 1 1/2 cups Pomegranate Juice, POM brand
- 2 Tbsp sugar
Ingredients For the Pomegranate Cream Frosting:
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened to room temp
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 16 oz cream cheese, (2 blocks) softened at room temp and cut into 16 pieces
- 4 Tbsp of Pomegranate juice, POM brand
Instructions
- Preheat Oven to 350˚F. Line the bottoms of two 9" cake pans with parchment paper.
- Combine 6 eggs and 1 cup sugar in the bowl of your electric mixer and beat on high speed for 12 minutes or until tripled in volume and fluffy. Whisk together 1 cup flour and 1/2 tsp baking powder then sift it into the beaten eggs in 2 additions, folding it in with a spatula just until all of the flour is incorporated. Add 1/2 tsp vanilla and blend together. Remember that you are relying on the fluffy air-infused batter for the cake to rise. DO NOT OVERMIX or your cake won't rise well. Transfer your batter to your lined cake pans. Set aside.
- Bake at 350˚F for 25-28 minutes or until the top is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean (poke the side, not the center so your center won't cave) and don't open the oven until 25 minutes have past. Let the cakes cool down on wire racks, then remove from the pans.
Making the Syrup for the soaking the cake Layers:
- Combine 1 1/2 cups Pomegranate Juice (POM brand) with 2 Tbsp sugar and stir to combine. Set aside to and stir occasionally until sugar is all dissolved.
Making the Frosting:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, mix the 2 sticks of butter with 3 cups powdered sugar and salt on low speed or until combined (1 min). Increase speed to medium-high and beat until the mixture is pale and fluffy (2 min).
- Add cream cheese 1-piece at a time and mix until combined. (I waited maybe 3 seconds in between each piece; it's one after another really. Once all of the cream cheese is incorporated. continue to beat 1 more minute.
- Add 4 Tbsp POM juice, 1 Tbsp at a time and mix until combined (1 min). Refrigerate frosting until ready to use.
Assembling your Cake:
- Cut the cake layers in half so you end up with 4 layers. Place the first layer, cut-side-up on your serving platter. Brush 1/4 of the POM/sugar syrup over the first layer. Frost the top. Do this with all 4 layers. You only need a very small amount of frosting on the very top of the cake since you are going to have the Pomegranate topping.
- Wipe any excess syrup from the cake platter, then frost the sides. I used My large Wilton 1M star tip. You want a border that will contain a generous layer of pomegranate topping. Refrigerate your cake for at least 30 minutes before adding the pomegranate topping.
Pomegranate Topping (make this after your cake is done and in the fridge):
- Place 3/4 cup of POM juice in a small sauce pan, add the 1 tsp vanilla and sprinkle in 2 tsp gelatin, then let stand 1 minute to soften gelatin before putting it on the heat.
- Wisk in 2 Tbsp sugar and cook over medium heat, stirring, until sugar dissolves and mixture is steaming.
- Remove from heat and let it cool down a bit (or transfer into a mixing bowl if you don't want to wait) then set the saucepan into a larger bowl of ice water, stirring gently until it is cold and slightly thickened but not set. It doesn't take long so stay with it. Remove from the ice bath.
- Stir in pomegranate seeds and immediately spoon topping onto the chilled cake. Refrigerate your cake until the topping is set (about 1 hour).
Hi Natasha. How early can I frost this cake? Party is on Sunday.
Hi Angie, I would do it the day before, and max 2 days before for it to be in it’s freshest and prettiest state. 🙂 Refrigerate until ready to enjoy.
I made this cake for a neighbor party this weekend. I was worried that the amount of syrup used would make the cake soggy. Not so. The cake was a HUGE HIT!! The sponge cake was moist, sweet but not overly sweet. The pomegranate gel on top was beautiful. Thank you for such an excellent recipe.
I am so glad you all enjoyed it! Thank you for sharing your review Melanie! 🙂
I followed this recipe exactly. The cake came out too eggy tasting for my liking. It was like an eggy angelfood cake. Not my favorite thing I have ever eaten.
I am currently waiting for a basic vanilla cake to cool to use the rest of the recipe with.
Hi Katie, I’m sorry to hear that! Did you beat your eggs and sugar long enough and did your cake rise properly as shown in the photos? It isn’t supposed to taste eggy after being whipped sufficiently. I hope you love the cake even with a vanilla cake base! 🙂
Hey Natasha!
Do you think we could use this recipe for making cupcakes?
If yes how many would you guess it would make?
Thanks a lot ☺️
Hi Anushka, I’ve never tried making this sponge cake in cupcake liners because I didn’t think it would work. If you experiment though I would love to know how you like this recipe!
I really want to make this for my birthday which is on Thanksgiving(!) but my kids dont like crunchy things. I though that the pomegrante seed would be a crunch. Is there a way to not put the seeds in?
Hi Annie, you may just have to omit the topping. I’m afraid there isn’t enough substance in the topping without the pomegranate seeds.
I was thinking of maybe a jam and to my surprise I found a small jar at a store. My sister and me had a baking contest and she made your version and I added the jam on top. It really tasted the same. It is quite expensive though.
Ooh that is so smart to use jam!! I love that idea. 🙂 thank you so much for sharing that with me!
I just made this cake today. For the pomagranate topping you just don’t put the pomegranates. Just make the topping the way it says and pour it over and it will be just as delicious😊
Thanks for sharing!! 🙂
I was looking at the ingredients to make the recipe and I noticed that the baking powder was left out of the ingredients.
Hi Rosalia, I used to not include baking powder because this cake primarily relies on the eggs for leavening. Lately I’ve been adding it since it seems to help the layers rise slightly more evenly. The cake works well either way :). I’ll go ahead and add it to reduce confusion 🙂
I’m looking forward to making this cake for my husbands 50th b’day party for 70 people – do you know if this genoise sponge freezes well? Baking it ahead of time and freezing will make it a bit easier, that way i can just frost & fill the day before the party. Also what size pan do you think would i need? i will be serving two other desserts along with the cake.
Hi Hetal, the genoise freezes really well. Place a sheet of parchment (I use the same one from the baking pan) between layers of un-cut sponge cake and loosely wrap in plastic wrap, just making sure it is covered completely but not squished by the plastic wrap). 70 people is a very large crowd! Wow!! I would probably make either 2 cakes or double everything and put it into (2) 9×13 baking pans, although you will have to mix and bake each cake layer separately (6 eggs per pan) since it will overwhelm a stand mixer and won’t whip properly to put 12 eggs into a mixer.
Great! Will make two 9′ cakes. Thank You.
Is the frosting good with other cake fillings? for example with the biskvit, but with strawberries for the inside?I need a good frosting for our gender reveal cake;)
Hi Nelly, yes it is good but the frosting needs a little juice which tints the frosting slightly. If you’re looking for a white frosting, I would recommend going with the cupcake frosting.
Now I tried to make this AMAZING cake! I got very nice cake layers. Frosting was super yummy, but next time I will do double portion of frosting, because I didn’t have enough for decoration, so this is my the biggest problem. I put more cool whip cream for my frosting and when I put pomegranates topping it started leaking(((( so sad, plus next time I will take less pomegranate seeds or more pomegranate home made jello and I will not put in it vanilla, I don’t like vanilla taste in topping at all. So at the end my cake didn’t look good, but it was delicious!!!!! Next time I know how I will make it right. Thank you for a GREAT recipe!!!! I am very happy that I described you! Thank you every time for nice yummy ideas 🙂 sorry for mistakes, my English wants to be better ))))).
Kateryna, thank you for sharing nice review and taking the time to write in. Have a great weekend. 😀.
A hit with everyone at a Christmas Family Dinner! I subbed in lactose-free cream cheese, milk and used rice flour so everyone could enjoy it. Also subbed a berry glaze for the gelatin and it turns out more like a berry pie filling than a jam topping. Excited to make it again soon!
Thank you for the nice review and nice job improvising 😁.
Loving the pomegranate cake! Thanks for the awesome recipe 😉 I’ve been wanting to make it since the day you posted the recipe… however one mistake I made~ I print all my fave recipes to keep my gadgets clean when cooking and now learning a lesson… note to self: always check the original recipe!!! I had a feeling 1 TBSP of vanilla for the topping was too much…….. should have double checked your updated recipe online… anyways, made myself a note to only use half a tsp (yes half a tsp, no more tbsp’s) next time I decide to make it!! Overall, its still a delicious tangy cake~ Hubby LOVED it :)))
Hi Lana! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake. Yes, I do go and update recipes and improve them if I re-make them and feel something could be improved. I thought that much vanilla was bit strong and overpowering to the pom seeds. I mean it works, but I thought less was better 🙂
I made this cake for this Christmas. It was loved by everyone! I was hoping to take half of it home but all the guests split it amongst themselves. I asked for just one piece to give to my neighbor whom I borrowed a blender from! I will make this again very soon.
Margaret, thank you for such a nice review on the cake. Have a great 2016! 😁.
Thank you for the recipe! I made this cake gluten free, twice already! Family loved it! The only other change I made the second time around, I did not add sugar to the juice, not for layers, not for the syrup on top. We liked it better!
Thank you for the awesome review!! What brand of gluten free flour did you use? I’m so curious and I’m sure others will want to know. Thank you so much for sharing that with me!! 🙂
I made this cake twice and I’m going to make it again for our new years family get together. Love this cake! The only change I’m doing is I’m making chocolate lace border and im going to use fresh pomegranate on top. I hope it works out 😲
I’m sure it will be gorgeous! If you post a picture online somewhere, I’d love to see it! 🙂
Well… I made the cake! It turned out really nice 😀 I’ve pinned my picture on pinterest. If you want to see it I’m plk 987 on pinterest.
I absolutely love your gorgeous cake! The chocolate lace around the borders is awesome! Thanks for sharing that with me 🙂
I only have two 8-inch cake pans. How high should I fill them? How long should I bake them? And what do you suggest I do with the excess batter? Bake a mini -loaf pan, or cupcakes, or? Thank you for any advice, and thank you for this recipe! I read it a year ago, and it took me this long to work up my courage.
How tall are the walls on your 8″ cake pans? I want to say that it would fit in an 8″ pan, but you might bake 28-30 min. Everything else should be ok to keep the same.
The pan walls are two inches. In the end, my egg/sugar mix did not increase in volume. Even after 15 minutes of whipping with a hand-held electric beater, it was frothy but thin. I very carefully folded in the flour, but the batter was skimpy and did not even fill the two 8-in pans halfway, and it did not rise at all. My baked cakes were less than an inch high. Very sad! My eggs were room temperarure but small (about 58 grams each), maybe I should have added an extra egg? I am curious why you don’t separate the eggs for this recipe, and beat the yolk/sugar, and then beat the egg whites to fold in?
Also – for me, the tablespoon of vanilla in the topping overwhelmed the delicate pomegranate taste. Next time I will use less, like a teaspoon. Thank you for this interesting recipe!
Did you have your hand mixer on high speed using whisk-type attachments? It shouldn’t have taken that long and the mixture should have been thick and fluffy, not frothy and thin. Was your bowl clean and dry (no grease or water in the bowl). If you don’t get your egg/sugar mixture to that thick/fluffy state, no amount of careful folding will help since the cake relies on the egg volume to rise. I hope that helps for he future. Also, you beat the eggs with the sugar, correct?
I made this cake last Christmas and it was loved by everyone, so naturally I had to make it again. A little time consuming but worth it! I like to make the cake a day earlier then everything else. Thank you for another wonderful recipe!
Thank you so much for sharing your awesome review! I shared your comment on Facebook. Thanks again and Merry Christmas! 🙂
What attachment did you use on the electric mixer to beat eggs and sugar? Using the whisk, is that ok? Making this beautiful cake today!
Definitely the whisk attachment. You need it to incorporate as much air as possible into the egg mixture since you are relying on the volume of the egg for the cake to rise.
I made this cake for Christmas last year and it was delicious! I didn’t change anything in the recipe. It is a little time consuming, but it is a showstopper. I served it the day after I made it, so very nice to have a delectable dessert you can just pull from the fridge.
I’m so happy you loved it. I wish I could see your masterpiece! 🙂
I’m excited to try this for Christmas, but I’m driving out on the 24th. Should I make the cake, frosting, and topping at home and then assemble it on Christmas day?
It depends on how far your drive is. If it’s just a couple of hours, you would probably be ok to make it the day before or even 2 days before Christmas, refrigerate it and put it directly from your fridge to your car so it stays cool as long as possible and refrigerate again when you get wherever you’re going. It’s probably going to be easiest to transport it in a cake carrier or a cake box if you have one. Safe and blessed travels and Merry Christmas! 🙂
I made this cake just half of the recipe and the taste is wow its very nice cake.This coming Christmas i’m going to make the whole recipe.Thank you very much for sharing this recipe.
Thank you so much for sharing your awesome review! I’m so happy you like it 🙂
i really want to try this recipe ..just wanted to ask if i can substitute the butter for butter flavored crisco and does the flour have to be unbleached.
The Crisco would not work in this recipe. You can use bleached flour if you like 🙂
My cake was very dense…duno what i did wrong :/
At what point did your dough start looking different than what was in the photos? Did you change anything in the recipe? The most likely culprit when a European sponge cake ends up dense is underbeating the eggs (the cake relies on the volume of whipped eggs to rise) or overmixing after adding flour (which can deflate your batter). I sure hope that helps!