French Apple Cake is really a lot of apple with a little bit of batter joining the apples together, baked till tender then a sugary, butter topping finishes off the cake. It’s more of a crustless tart than a cake, and perfect for serving after a hearty meal.
This French Apple Cake recipe is from Patricia Wells, an American cookbook author and teacher, who has lived in Paris for years. The story goes that Wells asked a Parisienne stall holder selling apples from her family orchard for a recipe.
This is her resulting French apple cake recipe. It’s a homely recipe, typical of French provincial home cooking. Delicious served cold with some Quick No Churn Vanilla Bean Ice cream, or hot with a Super Simple Creme Anglaise (custard).
At a Glance This Is What You Need To Make French Apple Cake
We grew up surrounded by apple orchards so consequently apples featured heavily in our dessert repertoire. Although this particular cake recipe wasn’t about in the day, it would have been snaffled up, had it been.
All In One Apple Cake
This French Apple Cake is a little winner. You’re simply making a batter and coating the apple slices with the batter and baking for 30 minutes then pouring a little topping made with egg, sugar and butter that bakes till its golden and a little crunchy on top. Super easy and delish! 😄
What Apples Are Best For Apple Cake
We used Granny Smith apples that are moderately sweet with crisp flesh, fresh from the orchard of our friend Carol. You can use whatever apples you like, but some apples contain more moisture than others, so the cooking time won’t be a constant.
When it comes to baking, the best baking apple varieties maintain their structure. The slices hold their shape and don’t go all mushy.
There are lots of other varieties that you can use such as:
Fuji – sweet and juicy
Pink Lady – balance between tart and sweet
Golden Delicious – firm, with a mild sweet flavour
The batter for French Apple Cake is quite thin and the best way to make sure each slice of apple is coated is to use your hands to rub the apple slices ensuring that each slice is covered in the batter.
The Topping
The topping of melted butter, sugar and an egg mixed together sets to a thin crunchy golden topping that really finishes off the cake beautifully.
How To Store French Apple Cake
French Apple Cake is best stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Before serving remove cake from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature for an hour or so.
Can I Freeze French Apple Cake
French Apple Cake can be frozen. Wrap the cooled cake in plastic film then wrap in alfoil. Freeze for 6-8 weeks. Take cake from freezer and remove alfoil and place on a plate in the refrigerator still covered to thaw overnight. Bring the cake to room temperature for an hour or so, removing plastic wrapping just before serving.
If you’d like to serve it warm unwrap the cake and preheat oven to 160c (320f) and pop the cake on a baking sheet for around twenty minutes. You’re not looking for the cake to be piping hot just simply to warm the cake if you don’t want it cold.
French apple cake is really a lot of apple with a little bit of batter joining the apples together, baked till tender then a sugary, butter topping finishes off the cake. It's more of a crustless tart than a cake, and perfect for serving after a hearty soup or stew.
Ingredients
Cake
lightly butter a 22cm (9 inch) cake tin and line base with baking paper
1/2 cup plain (all purpose) flour
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon fine salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs, beaten lightly
1/3 cup full cream milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 large apples (about 1 kg / 2 pounds) cored, peeled and cut into thin slices - see notes
icing sugar to dust - optional
Topping
1/3 cup caster sugar
1 large egg, beaten lightly
3 tablespoons butter, melted
Instructions
Cake
preheat oven to 200c (400f) bake not fan
in a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt
add the vanilla, eggs, oil and milk and mix till well combined
add the apple slices and using your hands mix the apple with the batter so as to coat each individual slice of apple
pour into the prepared pan and bake on the centre shelf for 30 minutes - pop a timer on
Topping
in a small bowl combine the egg, sugar and butter and stir to blend then set aside
when the 30 minutes for the cake is up, remove cake from oven
pour topping mix over the cake and spread the topping evenly over the apples
return to oven for 20 minutes until some of the apple slices are tinged golden
remove cake from oven onto a wire rack
run a knife around the sides of the pan and allow to cool
turn cake out onto a plate and then turn onto an airing rack so the top of the cake is once again upright
cool
dust with icing sugar
serve at room temperature
enjoy!
Notes
We used Granny Smith apples fresh from the orchard of our friend Carol. You can use whatever apples you like, but some apples contain more moisture than others, so the cooking time won't be a constant.
According to the Larousse Gastronomique, it was created by the sisters Tatin and democratized in their restaurant "Lamotte-Beuvron" in the 19th century. This apple pie is actually a derivative of an old Solognese speciality with apples or pears.
Why Did My Apple Cake Fall Apart? There are two main reasons why an apple cake would fall apart: (1) it was simply too warm when you were trying to cut and serve it or (2) you used too many/the wrong kind of apple.
A Jewish Apple Cake is a dense cake made with apples. Suspected to have originated in Poland, this delicious cake was well known in the tri-state area of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. The Cake is made with vegetable oil, unlike many American cakes, which are usually made with butter.
You could also make applesauce, apple butter or apple jelly. You could put them in muffins, crumbles and cakes. You could layer them in sandwiches. You could roast them with sausages or toss them into kale salad.
Linzer Torte is the world's oldest known cake and is named after the Austrian city of Linz. It has been documented as early as 1696. Its oldest recipe is listed in a 300-year-old cookbook!
The Roman fruitcake was a mash of barley, honey, wine and dried fruit, often pomegranate seeds. What you might recognize as a modern-style fruitcake – a moist, leavened dessert studded with fruits and nuts – was probably first baked in the early Middle Ages in Europe.
Cakes crumble because they've dried out too much. From years of baking, I know that dry cakes happen for one of two reasons; using too much of your dry ingredients or over-baking your cake.
Yes, you can add water to make a dry cake moist. One way to do this is to brush the cake with a simple syrup made of equal parts sugar and water. Another way is to poke holes in the cake and pour a mixture of sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk over it.
The Princess cake has been one of the most popular cakes in Sweden since the 1920s. It's made of cake layers, whipped cream, vanilla cream and green marzipan with icing sugar on top.
Probably obvious, but the type of apple you bake with will affect the flavor and texture of your cake! Most recipes recommended Granny Smith or Honeycrisp apples for a heartier texture that will hold up for a longer bake time. (MacIntosh are notoriously soft if you prefer that texture!)
Butter and Applesauce: This moist apple cake recipe uses a blend of butter and applesauce. Eggs: Three eggs lend moisture and help bind the batter together. Sugar: One cup of brown sugar add sweetness. Flour: All-purpose flour gives the apple cake structure.
The crumb in this cake is light, flaky and moist. It is NOT a sweet cake, which is why I think it has been so popular. The cake really gets most of its sweetness from the apples.
These delicious treats go by this name because of their size, which is small enough for a fairy to eat. However, a version of “butterfly cakes” is a design that has wings on top of the cupcakes. Similar to a butterfly or a fairy's wings!
Apples that end up on the ground are not wasted. Many times farmers come to collect the apple drops to feed to livestock. If apples are not picked up, they are mowed at the end of the season and help to fertilize next year's crop.
Adding apples to your diet can reduce your risk of heart disease or cancer, the top two leading causes of death in the United States. In a study of nearly 40,000 people, those who ate apples were 13% to 22% less likely to develop heart disease than those who skipped the fruit. Apples may also help prevent cancer.
Yes, you can freeze fresh raw apple, however because of the high water content, you'll find that the apple will be soft when defrosted (the water inside the fruit expands when it freezes into ice and the crystals breaks the delicate cell structure). Therefore, it's best to use frozen apple for cooking or smoothies.
Originally named "mille-feuille", the Napoleon cake was supposedly brought to Russia by the French in the early 19th century. This cake commemorated the anniversary of the Russian victory against Napoléon Bonaparte in 1812.
According to this version, Gavillon invented the cake in 1955, inspired to create a dessert whose every bite would encompass all its flavors. The chef's wife is said to have suggested the name "Opera" due to its resemblance to the stage at the Palais Garnier, the Paris Opera House.
According to Mark Kurlansky, author of The Basque History of the World, gâteau Basque appears to date from the eighteenth century, may have originally been made with bread, and called bistochak. Of the two fillings, cherry is the oldest, suggesting that the first gâteau Basque was a form of cherry bread.
The King Cake is believed to have originated in France around the 12th century. These early Europeans celebrated the coming of the three wise men bearing gifts twelve days after Christmas calling it the Feast of the epiphany, Twelfth Night, or King's Day.
Introduction: My name is Neely Ledner, I am a bright, determined, beautiful, adventurous, adventurous, spotless, calm person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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