Dorset apple cake

May I start by “saying” that you, my fellow food bloggers and readers, are fantastic? Thank you for all the poppy seed offers and also for the best wishes for my new home! You have put a huge smile on this exhausted girl’s face. :)

I still have things to unpack, but at least now the place looks like a home, and not a warehouse. :)

I haven’t baked in my new kitchen yet and the only cooking I did was a quick spaghetti for lunch yesterday – Joao and I couldn’t stand sandwiches anymore. Luckily, I have a couple of recipes to post while I organize my house.

This cake was a hit – I shared it with a number of people and everyone loved it. It was moist and tender. I was a bit worried when the center of the cake sank, but Joao saw the original recipe and said that it looked like the one on the photo had sunk, too. I decided not to be so hard on myself and believe my husband’s opinion – even though boiling water is the only thing he can do in the kitchen. :)

Dorset apple cake
from Delicious magazine

225g butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
450g Granny Smith apples
finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
225g caster sugar, plus extra for dredging
3 large eggs
225g self-raising flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
25g ground almonds
1 ½ tablespoons light brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 180ºC/355ºF. Grease a deep 25cm springform cake pan – I used one with removable bottom - and line the bottom with baking paper.

Peel, core and cut the apples into 1cm pieces, and toss with the lemon juice.
Using an electric hand whisk or stand in mixer, cream together the butter, caster sugar and lemon zest in a bowl until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, adding a little flour with each addition to keep the mixture smooth.
Sift the remaining flour and the baking powder into the bowl and fold in with the ground almonds. Drain the apple pieces well, then stir into the mixture.
Spoon into the prepared cake pan, lightly level the top and sprinkle with the brown sugar. Bake in the oven for 1 hour or until well-risen, brown and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. If the cake starts to look a little too brown, cover with a sheet of baking paper after about 45 minutes.
Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes. Remove the cake from the tin and place on a serving plate. Dredge heavily with the extra caster sugar. Cut the cake into generous wedges and serve warm with a spoonful of clotted cream, if you like – I served it with thick yogurt.

Serves 8