This recipe is dedicated to my sister Karen on her birthday.
I remember the delicious smell of apples and buttery cake from my childhood, it was a recipe called "Eve's pudding" that my Mom loved to bake for dessert. We had a lot of apple desserts in those days because we had apple trees in our back garden and a Bramley apple tree, which are used just for cooking (they are really sour). We ate it as a "pudding" after dinner with custard and it was great! I won't insult your intelligence by telling you why an apple cake is named after Eve, but it's a cute name.
I found a similar recipe in "Cook's Illustrated" called Blue Ribbon Apple Cake and after reducing the sugar in the topping, adding cinnamon and nutmeg and substituting natural yogurt for sour cream, the result was quite acceptable. The apple layer is cooked in butter and brown sugar, but I think my Mom's version was sweetened with white sugar, so didn't have the caramel flavor.
Serve this apple cake warm for dessert or cold with a cup of tea with friends and I hope you'll love it as much as I do.
Eve's Pudding
(Makes one 9 inch cake)
Ingredients:
Apple layer:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
4 granny smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch slices (about 5 cups)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated
Cake layer:
1/2 cup non-fat plain yogurt or sour cream
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon table salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
Directions:
- Adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter or spray 9-inch cake pan.
- Prepare the apples: Place butter in large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Once butter has stopped foaming, add sugar and stir to combine. Continue to cook until sugar turns dark brown (it should look like dark brown sugar), about 2 minutes, swirling pan occasionally.
- Add apples, cinnamon and nutmeg and cook, stirring often, until apples have softened slightly and juices are thickened and syrupy, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove pan from heat and spoon apples into prepared cake pan. (I used a pyrex pie plate)
- Prepare the cake: In small bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup yogurt or sour cream, whole egg, yolk, and vanilla until well combined.
- Place flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in large bowl. Use electric mixer on low speed for 15 seconds to blend.
- Add butter and remaining 1/4 cup yogurt or sour cream and mix on low speed until dry ingredients are moistened, 1 to 2 minutes. Increase speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes.
- Add sour cream/egg mixture and beat on medium-high, scraping down sides of bowl, until batter is homogeneous and fluffy, about 1 minute.
- Spoon batter over apples and gently spread out to thin layer that covers apples.
- Bake until cake is dark golden brown, feels set, and cake tester comes out clean when inserted in center, 40 to 45 minutes.
- Transfer pan to wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge of the pan to loosen cake.
- Place serving plate over top of pan and invert. Let cake sit inverted for about 1 minute without tapping or shaking pan and the cake will slowly detach itself. Gently remove pan.
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