Caramel Apple Cake

 As the air turns crisp with the snap of autumn, I begin to think about the flavors of this time of year. I have seen some recipes for apple cakes, and I decided to put my own spin on that idea and make a Caramel Apple Cake. The cake base is a tweak of my Apple Zucchini (Courgette) Bread, with a spicy candy topping. The incognito zucchini adds moisture, and the chai spice blend comes out really nicely. Moist and sweet, this cake goes great with a cup of coffee.

Sweet & spicy

Tip: The spices & amounts are the same for both the cake and the caramel topping, so when measuring the spices for the caramel topping, measure the same amount of each into a separate cup for the cake.

Candy topping:

·      4 Tbsp of butter

·      ¾ cup of raw sugar

·      ½ cup + 1 Tbsp maple syrup

·      2 Tbsp white wine

·      ¼ tsp allspice

·      1/8 tsp cardamom

·      ¼ tsp cinnamon

·      1/8 tsp cloves

·      ¼ tsp coriander seed powder

·      1/8 tsp ginger

·      1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

·      1/8 white pepper

Add all ingredients to a pot and cook until the sugar melts (but don’t allow sugar to scorch). See below in pan preparation.

Cake:

·      ½ cup butter

·     1 cup sugar

·     2 eggs

·      ¼ tsp allspice

·      1/8 tsp cardamom

·      ¼ tsp cinnamon

·      1/8 tsp cloves

·      ¼ tsp coriander seed powder

·      1/8 tsp ginger

·      1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

·      1/8 white pepper

·      2 cups flour (optional: replace 4tsp of flour with 4 tsp of organic corn starch‡)

·      ½ tsp salt

·      ½ tsp baking soda

·      1 tsp baking powder

·      1 zucchini (courgette) finely grated including liquid

·      2 apples (cored, peeled & diced- I poured a small amount of wine over the cut apples)

·      1 Tbsp wine (can substitute apple juice)

·      1 additional apple (cored, peeled & thinly sliced, also dipped in wine)

Preheat oven to 350°F (app. 175°C*)- if using stoneware, check the recommendations of your manufacturer regarding oven temperature.

Prepare a pan (I suggest buttering and completely lining a 9” round/2½- 3” deep pan with parchment). Place apple slices in a simple pattern in the bottom of the pan- keep in mind that the batter is very thick and will probably shift these a little bit when it is added. Place cake pan on a cookie sheet (in case batter spills over during baking) and pour approx. ½ cup of sugar mixture over the apples in the bottom of the pan. Be sure you cover the entire bottom of the pan, and reserve remaining candy for later.

Cream butter, sugar & spices add eggs one at a time.

Whisk remaining dry ingredients together

Alternate adding dry ingredients, grated zucchini & 1 Tbsp of wine, mixing only until all ingredients are incorporated and moist.

Fold in diced apples and carefully spoon the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake for 35-50 minutes (until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean).

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan before inverting the cake onto a plate. Reheat sugar mixture and spoon over the cake slowly to allow the cake to soak it up. Can be served warm, but tastes even better cool.

The caramel soaked in and really made this
already moist cake a sweet treat.

  

‡ This is similar to a substitute for cake flour that calls for 2 Tbsp of cornstarch to replace 2 Tbsp of flour per cup.

*I use an online conversion chart and round up or down, as seems appropriate. Please adjust according to your judgement, and send me a message if you find an error. Thank you.


Showing on this day 2010: Autumn Pumpkin Bread