apple cake
As a child, I loved cooking shows. I remember watching The Frugal Gourmet with awe. The best part was having all the ingredients premeasured and on display in small glass bowls. I used to ask my mom to let me play cooking show—it meant I made a lot of extra dishes from all those small bowls and that I talked to an imaginary audience on the other side of our peninsula.
In the past 7 years, only one place I have lived had a dishwasher. So while I currently own a cute set of nesting glass bowls that would be perfect for all the ingredients in a recipe, I have no desire to play cooking show. In fact, I haven’t watched a cooking show in ages. Some rant and rave about The Food Network, but I am largely unaware of celebrity chefs. The following recipe is the first recipe I’ve ever made from Emeril Lagasse. I would have never found this recipe except that a friend made the cake this past weekend; it was so wonderfully moist and tasty that I had to have the recipe. While it is officially a “coffee cake,” it does double duty as an evening dessert.
APPLE CAKE
from Emeril Lagasse
¾ cup butter, softened and divided
2 ½ cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2 ½ cups flour, divided
1 tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon, divided
½ tsp salt
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups peeled, cored and chopped apples
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp water
CREAM ½ cup butter and 1 ½ cups brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating after the addition of each. In a separate bowl, sift together 2 cups flour, baking soda, 1 tsp cinnamon, and salt. Add to the wet ingredients, alternating with the sour cream and vanilla. Fold in the apples. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 pan, spreading out to the edges.
COMBINE ½ cup brown sugar, ½ cup flour, ½ tsp cinnamon, and ¼ cup butter in a small bowl, mixing until it resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the topping over the cake and bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown and set.
DRIZZLE slightly cooled cake with glaze made from ½ cup brown sugar, ½ tsp vanilla, and 2 Tbsp water. Let harden slightly. Serve warm.
