Every home has a few tired looking fruit that everybody seems to have abandoned. More often than not, that fruit is apples. And this is a good thing because the humble apple is magnificent when baked. Cinnamon and apples are a comforting partnership, especially on a cold winter’s day. When you find yourself with leftover apples, skin and core them, slice them thinly and add to a saucepan with a small amount of water, about 3-4 tablespoons. Squeeze half a lemon into the pan and simmer on medium heat for about 10 minutes. Once the apples are tender, drain, cool and freeze. Take out to make a speedy apple crumble or to make this apple cake.
This is a large cake. A loose-bottom 23 or 25cm round or square pan would be ideal. If you don’t have a loose-bottom pan, any large pan will do.
This is made in 3 steps.
- Prepare apples
- Make streusel topping and freeze.
- Make cake and add apples and streusel topping.
Apples
- 3 large apples, skinned and cored
- 1 TB caster sugar
- 1/4 c water
- juice of half a lemon
Cut apples into slim slices. Add to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add water, sugar and lemon juice and simmer for 10 minutes until tender but not falling apart. Drain well. When the apple goes into the cake, it must be dry because soggy apples will make the cake soggy. It helps to drain the apples on some kitchen paper until time for them to go into the cake.
Streusel Topping
- 1/4 c cake flour
- 3 tsps ground cinnamon
- 60g butter cut into small pieces
- 1/3 c brown sugar
- 3-5 tsps water
- Add flour and cinnamon to a bowl.
- Rub in butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Add sugar.
- Add water, one teaspoon at a time until the mixture comes together to form a ball.
- Wrap in clingfilm and keep in the freezer for half an hour.
Ingredients for cake
- 185g butter softened
- 3/4c caster sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 1/4c self-raising flour
- 3/4c milk
Method to make cake
- Beat butter and sugar until light and creamy.
- Add eggs and beat well well.
- Add self-raising flour to mixture in 2 batches, alternating with the milk.
- Using a spatula, mix all ingredients together.
Assemble cake
- Grease sides and line bottom of a loose-bottom 23cm square or round baking pan.
- Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
- Spread half of the cake batter into the pan and smooth over.
- Add slices of drained apple in a single layer over cake batter.
- Spread the rest of the batter over the apples and smooth evenly.
- Using a grater, grate the cinnamon topping over the cake.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes until the cake is well risen and coming away from the sides of of the pan.
- Leave cake to cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before removing from tin.
- Enjoy warm with some whipped cream or ice-cream.
