Sunday, February 09, 2020

The most delicious apple cake



Let me say right at the start that I'm only writing this post because my sister asked me to. I'm not at all sure that this blog is being resurrected for anything else, so if anybody is keeping an eye on this old, old space for any updates, please know that I'm not in the raising-hopes business. 

So this recipe is really simple, a one-bowl affair that resulted in the most delicious cake I've made in a long while. I'm not a fan of fussy, over-filled, over-frosted, over-sweet, overly rich cakes. This cake, however, with its fresh fruit baked in, and its crunchy buttery cinnamon-y crust, is the absolute opposite of all those I've just described. I had an apple and a nectarine, so that's what I used this time. I've made it with just apples previously, and it's just as amazing. 

Now, without more ado, here's the recipe for: Simply delicious apple cake

Ingredients:

2 medium apples, peeled, cored and chopped into 1/2" pieces
240 gms plain flour
150 gms caster sugar
120 ml full fat Greek yogurt (preferably not Greek-style, but the real thing)
120 ml sunflower oil
2 large eggs 
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract 

For the topping:
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp ground cinnamon
50 gms demerara sugar

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180C (350F). Spray a 7" round cake pan with Pam or other non-stick spray. 

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, vanilla extract and oil until  the mixture is smooth. No need to beat it into submission. 

3. Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder and baking soda in a large mixing bowl and add the apples. 

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix lightly with a wooden spoon just until combined. 

5. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Mix together the topping ingredients and dollop evenly over the batter. 

6. Bake the cake for about 30-35 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let it cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes, then carefully run a knife around the tin and turn the cake out onto a wire rack to cool completely. 

In my humble opinion, this cake needs nothing but a mug of tea or a coffee to accompany it.