Lazy Bakers: Smitten Kitchen's Mom's Apple Cake
My Mom doesn't have an apple cake recipe that she got from her grandmother, or a magazine from the 60's. She's Philippino, and as far as I know, they don't really do apples so much. Before you start feeling all sad for me, don't worry. She has a KILLER lumpia recipe and the best pancit EVER. I mean, who cares about apple cake when mom's frying her famous lumpia? Nobody, including myself.
But I digress. This month's Lazy Baker's project is a wonderful, fallish, apple cake entitled Mom's Apple Cake. Deb of Smitten Kitchen hoped her mother's apple cake was an old recipe passed down from the Old Country, but alas, it was an old pecipe passed down from her neighbor who got it from a magazine. Oh well.
October 14, 2008
Name of Cake: Somebody Else's Mom's Apple Cake
Occasion: Lazy Baker's October Project, and a Doula Meeting
Constituents: Cake, with apples!
When I put on my favorite jeans last week I noticed I had to use considerable effort to button them. All this baking has been getting to me, and not how I would like. So when I looked at my calendar and saw "doula meeting" coming up, I knew it was my chance to bake this cake and not eat it all by myself. Hooray for potlucks!
When I went to the store to buy the six apples, I was a little overwhelmed. So many apples! So many varieties I've never heard of before! So I went with my personal favorite, the Honeycrisp. Sweet, slightly tart, juicy, and firm; this is the perfect apple.
This cake came together pretty easily and without mishap. I used whole wheat pastry flour instead of all-purpose, because I thought with all the moisture the apples were going to put out whole wheat pastry flour would be pretty innocuous. I was little concerned about how little batter there was for what was supposed to look like a big ol' coffee cake, but I forged ahead anyway.
After baking for about 45 minutes, I pulled this baby out of the oven. Despite my batter concerns, the cake rose well and looked pretty good. It was really, really hard not to not pick all the baked, cinnamony apples off the top. Later, when I turned the cake out, a few chunky apples fell off--and you know, you can't put them back on the cake--so I ate them. And they were delicious. Juicy, baked, cinnamony, sweet, soft apples! I couldn't wait to try this cake, but I had to wait until the next day.
When we doulas broke into the cake the next day, we found a moist, homey cake studded with chunks of cinnamony apples. It must have hit the spot because there was only a small piece left that I brought home for my roommate (phew!). To be honest, this cake wasn't outrageously amazing, but it was satisfying, good comfort food. This cake belongs with mugs of hot coffee in front of a roaring wood fire on a lazy rainy Sunday with no better place to be.
Not a bad thing, not at all.
But I digress. This month's Lazy Baker's project is a wonderful, fallish, apple cake entitled Mom's Apple Cake. Deb of Smitten Kitchen hoped her mother's apple cake was an old recipe passed down from the Old Country, but alas, it was an old pecipe passed down from her neighbor who got it from a magazine. Oh well.
October 14, 2008
Name of Cake: Somebody Else's Mom's Apple Cake
Occasion: Lazy Baker's October Project, and a Doula Meeting
Constituents: Cake, with apples!
When I put on my favorite jeans last week I noticed I had to use considerable effort to button them. All this baking has been getting to me, and not how I would like. So when I looked at my calendar and saw "doula meeting" coming up, I knew it was my chance to bake this cake and not eat it all by myself. Hooray for potlucks!
When I went to the store to buy the six apples, I was a little overwhelmed. So many apples! So many varieties I've never heard of before! So I went with my personal favorite, the Honeycrisp. Sweet, slightly tart, juicy, and firm; this is the perfect apple.
This cake came together pretty easily and without mishap. I used whole wheat pastry flour instead of all-purpose, because I thought with all the moisture the apples were going to put out whole wheat pastry flour would be pretty innocuous. I was little concerned about how little batter there was for what was supposed to look like a big ol' coffee cake, but I forged ahead anyway.
After baking for about 45 minutes, I pulled this baby out of the oven. Despite my batter concerns, the cake rose well and looked pretty good. It was really, really hard not to not pick all the baked, cinnamony apples off the top. Later, when I turned the cake out, a few chunky apples fell off--and you know, you can't put them back on the cake--so I ate them. And they were delicious. Juicy, baked, cinnamony, sweet, soft apples! I couldn't wait to try this cake, but I had to wait until the next day.
When we doulas broke into the cake the next day, we found a moist, homey cake studded with chunks of cinnamony apples. It must have hit the spot because there was only a small piece left that I brought home for my roommate (phew!). To be honest, this cake wasn't outrageously amazing, but it was satisfying, good comfort food. This cake belongs with mugs of hot coffee in front of a roaring wood fire on a lazy rainy Sunday with no better place to be.
Not a bad thing, not at all.
- the recipe is posted at Smitten Kitchen, here.
- Check out Pinknest's Apple Cake!
- Melinda served her beautiful apple cake with a yummy caramel sauce (and she posted the recipe!)
- BBC made her apple cake for election day, and what a glorious cakey election it was!!
It does look yummy comforting cake. I wish I could have a cuppa and a piece of your apple cake with you!
ReplyDeleteI thought I might add a caramel sauce to go with it.
I have my apples bought and it has turned cooler here a lot, so I just may bake it. Although, I am truly committed to the lazy part of our club!
ECL,
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! Yours looks as good as Smitten Kitchen's, which is saying something because her photography is terrific.
I'm with you on too-tight jeans and the potluck-to-the-rescue themes. I'm planning to bake mine for an election eve party, which I hope will be more celebratory than the last two. If not--well, we'll always have apple cake.
Melinda, we will share a cuppa and cake one day! A caramel sauce, eh? I can't wait to see! But, you go ahead and be as lazy as you wish :)
ReplyDeleteBBC, wow, thanks!! I'm with you on the election. Hopefully the apple cake won't be the only good thing that night!
Your apple cake looks very tasty and season-appropriate! I made one today (different recipe), but the results were kind of "eh". And I can commiserate with the jeans situation: I finally broke down and went pants-shopping this week. And it was not because I needed a smaller size! Oh well...we get more happiness out of a tasty homemade dessert than from slender thighs, right???
ReplyDeleteAmanda, you're my kind of girl! What's the point of life if we can't enjoy it...with lots of tasty homemade desserts?
ReplyDeleteDeliciouso!!! very nice posting your a that fabulous article. Thank you for sharing..
ReplyDelete