Sunken Apple Cake
Sunken Apple Cake is a lightly sweetened cake made with lots of fresh, peeled and quartered apples. The cake batter rises up in the tin around the apples, giving the appearance of apples sinking into the cake- hence the name.
Ingredients
- 3 apples Choose apples that are firm and crisp
- 1 lemon
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 9 tbsp butter, softened
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp coarse sugar such as Turbinado or Demerara
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F / 177C / gas mark 4. Prepare a baking pan by spraying with cooking spray. You may use a 9-inch cake pan, springform pan, or tart pan.
- Wash, peel, and core the apples. Quarter them and then place the quarters cut-side down on the cutting board. With a sharp knife, make thin slices, being sure not to go all the way through. You want the apple slices still attached.
- Zest the lemon and set the lemon zest aside. Roll the lemon on the counter to break up the pulp. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice of half of the lemon over the apple quarters to prevent them browning. Reserve the other lemon half.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy- about 3-5 minutes.Stop halfway through to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add in the vanilla extract and the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides between each addition.
- In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Add to the mixer bowl and beat on low speed until just combined. Squeeze the lemon juice from the reserved lemon half into the batter and stir on low until just combined. Scrape down the bowl and give it one more stir.
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and level the top. Lay the apple quarters into the batter evenly, cut side down, and gently press into the batter. Depending on how large the apples are, feel free to break off pieces and rearrange them into a lovely pattern.Sprinkle the top with the coarse sugar.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the top of the cake is golden and a toothpick comes out clean. (Moist crumbs clinging to the toothpick are ok, but not wet batter.) Cool the pan on a wire rack for 5-10 minutes before gently removing from the pan. You may need to run a knife around the edges before releasing.
- Serve the cake warm or at room temperature. May be served as is or with a dollop of whipped cream, jam, or custard.
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