Rustic Cinnamon Apple Cake
Ingredients
- 3 Granny Smith apples 2 for the cake and 1 for decoration
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 2 tbsp fresh orange juice
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt divided
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter plus a couple tablespoons for brushing the apple slices
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar plus extra for dusting the apple slices
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 2/3 cup buttermilk at room temperature
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon plus extra for dusting the apple slices
Instructions
Make the reduced apple puree
- Peel and dice two of the apples and add them to a medium saucepan with the brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, orange zest and juice and lemon juice. Turn the heat to medium. Mix well until the sugar dissolves. Place the lid on the pot, reduce the heat to medium low and cook for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, though it could take longer. Keep an eye on it. If the sauce seems to be reducing too fast or the apples seem to be browning, turn the heat down. It's better to have it at a lower heat and cook more slowly than cook too fast and over caramelize before the apples are soft.At about 40 minutes, use a fork to check if the apples are tender. You should be able to smash them with the back of the fork. Continue to smash all of the apples this way. The purée will be ready when there is no liquid pooling at the bottom of the pan. If you prefer, you could purée the apples in a food processor.
Make the cake.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.Spray a 9 inch springform pan with cooking spray and line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and powder, remaining salt and cinnamon and set aside.Cream the butter and granulated sugar for 3 minutes in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl with a hand mixer. Add the cooled apple purée and beat until well combined. Add the eggs one at a time to the mix.Add the vanilla to the buttermilk. Alternate between adding the buttermilk mixture and the dry ingredients to the batter. Add a couple big spoonfuls of the dry ingredients first, then a drizzle of buttermilk. Repeat the process until everything is in and beat for about 30 seconds more until the batter comes together. Use a rubber spatula at any point if you need to scrape down the bowl. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and use a rubber spatula to spread it evenly. Peel the remaining apple and slice it, vertically, into about 1/8 of an inch slices. Slices that are too thick will prevent the cake from rising as it bakes. Fan the slices out around the outer edge of the cake, overlapping them just slightly. Brush the slices with melted butter. Mix together about a tablespoon or so of sugar and about an eighth of a teaspoon of cinnamon (you can really just eyeball it.) Use a small spoon to sprinkle the cinnamon sugar all over the apples. Try very hard not to get any of the melted butter or cinnamon sugar on the actual cake. Place the cake into the oven and bake for 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes. Unbuckle and remove the the cake from the pan. Use a bench scraper or spatula to assist with lifting it from the bottom section of the pan. Serve with whipped cream and salted caramel sauce.