Toka is a fruit-decorated cake with a buttery crumb topping; A great breakfast treat, a perfect midday dessert with tea or coffee, or a comfortable, not too heavy dessert after dinner.

In this recipe from our “Milk Street Bakes” cookbook, we add holiday flair with sweet-sour cranberries, finely chopped crystallized ginger and ground cinnamon.

Instead of making a completely separate crumb topping, we simplify the process by making the coarse flour-sugar-butter base using a food processor and then pulsing the divided almonds, brown sugar, and a little more butter into a single serving to make the streusel. Hill. The rest of the base is slowly combined with the wet ingredients by hand. Sour cream adds moisture and tang without making the dough too wet. We also add candied ginger to complement the cranberries, which adds peppery-spicy notes.

Don’t forget to thaw the cranberries if you’re using frozen. Having the fruit in freezing temperatures will cause the dough to harden, making it difficult to mix.

Bake until the top is golden brown, then let cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes to help the crumbs harden and ensure they slice cleanly. The finished buckle is decadent, but surprisingly lightweight. If desired, sprinkle with powdered sugar. When tightly covered, leftovers will keep at room temperature for up to three days.

Cranberry and Candied Ginger Buckle

Start to finish: 1 hour 10 minutes (30 minutes active), plus cooling

Servings: 12

Contents:

390 grams (3 cups) all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan

214 grams (1 cup) white sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon table salt

170 grams (12 tablespoons) plus 2 tablespoons cold salted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes, reserved separately

42 grams (3 tablespoons) packed brown sugar

31 grams (1/3 cup) sliced ​​almonds

3 large eggs

240 grams (1 cup) sour cream

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

12-ounce bag fresh or thawed frozen cranberries (3 cups)

68 grams (½ cup) finely chopped crystallized ginger

Powdered sugar to serve (optional)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375°F with the rack in the middle position. Moisten a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray, dust evenly with flour, then tap off excess.

In a food processor, combine flour, white sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Pulse until well combined, 6 to 8 pulses. Scatter 12 tablespoons butter over dry ingredients and pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, about 20 pulses. Transfer to a large bowl, then measure out 165 grams (1 cup) of the mixture and return it to the food processor. Add brown sugar, almonds, and remaining 2 tablespoons butter to food processor, then pulse until mixture begins to clump and resembles wet sand, about 20 pulses; transfer to a medium bowl and set aside.

In another medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla. Pour the flour-butter mixture into the large bowl and fold the dough with a silicone spatula until only a few grains of flour remain. Add cranberries and crystallized ginger, then fold until evenly distributed; the dough will be thick. Transfer to the prepared pan and spread into an even layer.

Using your hands, squeeze the almond flour mixture into rough half-inch pieces, then distribute evenly over the batter in the pan. Bake until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool the pan on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before slicing. If desired, sprinkle powdered sugar on top just before serving.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: For more recipes, go to Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street at 177milkstreet.com/ap.