Apple Cake, Gluten-Free
Sliced apples, barely held together with a rich batter. This recipe was adapted from The Apple Lady's Apple Cake in Patricia Wells' The Paris Cookbook. Most recipes will ask you to slice the apples ahead, but I find that gluten-free batters benefit from resting a bit, to hydrate the dry flour combination. Slicing the apples after the batter has been mixed allows just enough time for that hydration to take place. Since the amount of flour here is small, you can easily substitute almond meal for the GF flour. This recipe works well here at altitude of 5000 feet with no adjustments.
Yield 8 servings
Ingredients
For cake:
1/2 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour (I like King Arthur Measure for Measure)
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons vegetable oil or extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup whole milk
4 large baking apples (about 2 pounds), such as Granny Smiths
Powdered sugar, for dusting (optional) +
For topping:
1/3 cup sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
| 1 | Preheat oven to 400°F. |
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| 2 | Butter a 9-inch springform pan; set aside. |
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| 3 | Peel the apples, then cut into quarters. Using a small knife, remove cores and seeds. Set aside, as you will slice later in step 5. |
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| 4 | In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl, whisk together vanilla, eggs, oil and milk stir until well-blended. Add wet ingredients to dry and stir until blended. Set this aside to hydrate while you slice your apples. |
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| 5 | Thinly slice the apples, adding the slices to the batter as you go. Once you have added all the slices, stir for a few minutes to thoroughly coat each slice. (Stirring with a rubber spatula will be kinder to your fruit than a metal spoon, but use what you have.) |
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| 6 | Pour mixture into prepared cake pan. Even out the apples using a silicon spatula. Place pan in center of oven and bake until fairly firm and golden, about 25 minutes. |
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| 7 | Meanwhile, prepare topping: In small bowl, combine sugar, egg and melted butter; stir to blend. Set aside. |
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| 8 | Remove cake from oven and pour topping mixture over it, spreading it out with a silicone spatula. Return cake to oven and bake 10 minutes, or until top is deep, golden brown and cake feels quite firm when pressed with fingertip. |
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| 9 | Transfer cake pan to rack and let cool 10 minutes. Run table knife around sides of pan; release and remove springform side, leaving cake on pan base. |
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| 10 | When cooled, you may dust with powdered sugar just before serving, if desired. |
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