Older I'm getting, the more I crave old world foods. Foods with the purest of ingredients nestled in flavors that are rich and simple.
Maybe its because I'm looking for the same in people?
I confess I know nothing of Romania except that its food shows significant influences from Bulgaria & Turkey. However, when Braeburn apples were selling in adorable little paper bags at the market I knew I just had to get them.
Now Braeburn apples are awesome for cakes in my opinion because they have a a unique combination of sweet and tart flavors. Originally, from New Zealand these are are are considered a cross between granny smiths & Lady Hamiltons.
So once I got them home I got busy rustling up my recipe folder. Its a fat folder, held together by rubber bands because I stuff scraps of paper in it endlessly without every sorting or filing. Shameful isn't it? Anyway, I settled on the couch with my 'recipe pit' and as I was going through the lot I stumbled upon a recipe for a Romanian Apple Cake by Mona. The original recipe however called for golden delicious apples.
Sad truth? I can't remember a Mona. Gosh, I sound like a fat drunk guy after a one night stand! Anyway back again to the folder, not surprising considering since it has a couple of decades worth of scraps. There was however a note in my own writing that said, "Excellent, moist & rich". Well, there you go! What more do I want?
To get started, gather the ingredients - 5 Braeburn apples, eggs, sugar, vegetable oil, baking soda, ground cinnamon, pure vanilla extract, all-purpose flour, chopped walnuts. I also add buttermilk to cut the sweetness and thin out the thick batter.
Preheat oven to 350 deg F.
Prepare the ingredients -
Apples - Peel the apples. Cut off top & bottoms.
Quarter the apples. Cut away the cores. Cut each quarter into 2-3 wedges, each being a little thinner than 1/2". Set aside.
Chopped walnuts - Add 1 tbs flour into the walnuts. Toss to coat thoroughly. For some darnedest reason, this stops the nuts from settling to the bottom of the cake.
In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs & sugar. With a hand immersion blender (or in your kitchen-aid) blend till thoroughly mixed.
Add the vegetable oil, ground cinnamon & vanilla extract. Once again blend till thoroughly mixed. You will have to make sure that the oil has completely emulsified and should no longer be floating on the surface.
Add the flour and fold by turning the bowl as you turn the batter with a rubber spatula the till completely blended. Stop as soon as the entire mixture is a rich brown through & through. Do not overwork the batter.
To the batter, add the walnuts and 1/2 the quantity of apples. Add the buttermilk & fold again till thoroughly blended.
Spray a 9-10" non-stick spring foam pan with non-stick baking spray. Pour in the batter. Use the remaining wedges and push them cut side down into the batter radially till they are all used up.
No need to fuss too much about the placement. Its going to look fine once baked. You may have to push some of the apples mixed in the batter deeper to make room for the decorative wedges on top.
Bake in a preheated oven for about 55 - 65 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean when pierced into the center of the cake (not through an apple now, through batter!)
Allow it to cool for about 1/2 hour. Then remove the spring foam pan sides. Allow to cool completely before serving.
You can serve warm or at room temperature but not chilled.
For a nice presentation, dust with powdered sugar placed in a sieve and then lightly tapping all over the cake. And what you get is this -
This is such a wonderful tea cake. I love the way it looks with the apple wedges on top. Don't you?
I've decided to carry it this evening for an afternoon get together at my friend Lena's place. I can't wait to meet Lu again. You know the 70 year old lady with the 'Devil wears Nada' joke! If you missed that funny incident, read about it here
I'll let you know the reviews once I get back later tonight.
Alright I'm back & the reviews were these - Blue ribbon award by one, other adjectives - rich, creamy, great texture, incredibly moist, wonderful apple & cinnamon flavor without the cinnamon being overpowering & honestly fabulous.
And in the magical words of my 3 year old, " Dis cake vee vee good"
All in all, a success!
Recipe for
Old World Romanian Apple & Walnut Cake
Preparation time - 20 minutes
Baking time - 55-65 minutes
Shopping list
5 braeburn or golden delicious (yellow) apples
12 oz all-purpose flour
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
3 eggs
13.5 oz sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup buttermilk - a few tbs more if needed to thin out the batter.
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbs pure vanilla extract
Preparation -
Apples - Peel the apples. Cut off top & bottoms.
Quarter the apples. Cut away the cores. Cut each quarter into 2-3 wedges, each being a little thinner than 1/2". Set aside.
Chopped walnuts - Add 1 tbs flour into the walnuts. Toss to coat thoroughly. For some darnedest reason, this stops the nuts from settling to the bottom of the cake.
Flour mixture - In a mixing bowl, add the flour along with the cinnamon and baking soda. Stir to combine.
Cooking method -
In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs & sugar. With a hand immersion blender (or in your kitchen-aid) blend till thoroughly mixed.
Add the vegetable oil, ground cinnamon & vanilla extract. Once again blend till thoroughly mixed. You will have to make sure that the oil has completely emulsified and should no longer be floating on the surface.
Add the flour mixture and fold by turning the bowl as you turn the batter with a rubber spatula the till completely blended. Stop as soon as the entire mixture is a rich brown through & through. Do not overwork the batter.
Spray a 9-10" non-stick spring foam pan with non-stick baking spray. Pour in the batter. Use the remaining wedges and push them cut side down into the batter radially till they are all used up.
No need to fuss too much about the placement. Its going to look fine once baked. You may have to push some of the apples mixed in the batter deeper to make room for the decorative wedges on top.
Bake in a preheated oven for about 55 - 65 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean when pierced into the center of the cake.
Allow it to cool for about 1/2 hour. Then remove the spring foam pan sides. Allow to cool completely before serving.
For a nice presentation, dust with powdered sugar placed in a sieve and then lightly tapping all over the cake.
Serve warm or at room temperature but not chilled.
Enjoy!
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