Apple Upside-Down Cake

The best part of fall in England is the amazing variety of crisp and fresh apples. Apple pie, apple crumble, apple turnovers, apple cider, applesauce, apple butter, caramel apples, apple cake, and the list goes on. With maybe the exception of the caramel apples, I'm pretty sure I would add a little or a lot of cinnamon to each of these things. Cinnamon is hands down my absolute favorite spice - I sprinkle it on anything I can. As a self-professed cinnamon addict I decided my next apple experience would not include the stuff.

Enter, nutmeg.

My favorite cookbook of the moment - has been since June - didn't let me down. An upside-down apple cake cooked in an iron skillet and made with apple butter and topped with caramel-soaked apples. And no cinnamon.

The recipe even begins, "we decided not to resort to the overused combination of apples and cinnamon and opted instead for nutmeg and vanilla". This recipe, from the Big Sur Bakery, is multi-step, so read through before getting started. Here it goes...

APPLE UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

For the Apple Butter:

• 1 vanilla bean
• 6 apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• juice of 1 lemon wedge
• 1/4 c apple juice
• 2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/4 c sugar

Split vanilla bean and scrape out pulp. Add pulp and pod to medium saucepan. Add apples, lemon juice, apple juice (use fresh pressed if you can), nutmeg, and sugar. Cover and cook over medium heat for 7 to 10 min. Apples should be steamed and soft. Smash apples with a back of a wooden spoon to form a sauce. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook to let moisture evaporate, another 10 to 15 min. The apple butter is ready when it becomes thicker and smoother and has a rich tan color. Let the apple butter cool to room temperature. Remove the vanilla pod. You will probably have enough apple butter leftover for a second cake, and it will keep in the fridge for a few days. 

Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat to 350F.

For the Caramel Apples:

• 1/4 c unsalted butter, room temp
• 1 1/4 c sugar
• 5 apples, peeled, cored, and each cut into 8 wedges

To make the caramel apples, cream the butter and sugar in an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for 1 to 2 min. Transfer the mixture to a 10-inch cast-iron skillet and cook over medium heat until it caramelizes to a deep golden brown, about 5 to 8 min. Carefully add the apple wedges, transfer the skillet to the oven, and bake for about 10 min, until the apples are tender but still retain their shape. Remove from the oven and let them cool completely in the skillet. Leave the oven on.

For the Cake:

• 1/2 c unsalted butter, room temp
• 1 c dark brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 cup of apple butter
• 1 3/4 c all-purpose flour

While the apples are cooling down, prepare the cake batter. Cream the butter, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg in an electric mixer with the paddle attachment. Add the egg and 1 cup of apple butter, and mix to combine. Add flour, taking care not to overmix. Gently pour the cake batter directly over the caramel apples in the iron skillet, and bake 35 to 45 min. Cake is ready when skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool slightly.

Using a pair of kitchen towels or mitts, invert the cake onto a plate that is slightly larger than the skillet. Do this assertively. Slowly lift off the skillet. If any apples stick to the skillet, remove them gently with a spatula and place back on cake. Let cake sit for 20 min before serving.

Hot damn! The girl can cook. Perfect served warm with a bit of unsweetened whipped cream.

 

Comments

[Mardi @eatlivetravelwrite]

That just looks amazing!

[The Duo Dishes]

No cinnamon?! A shame. :) This looks like an apple tatin cake we made recently. It's so good to see warm apples in any dessert.

[gastroanthropologist]

The Duo Dishes - Don't worry. I've got another apple recipe on deck with cinnamon in the batter and a cinnamon-sugar topping. Warm apples in a dessert is only second to biting into a fresh apple right off the tree.

[OysterCulture]

Hot damn is right, that just looks spectacular and is crying out to be eaten right now! What a treat.

[Juliana]

Oh! Apple up-side down cake? Looks fabulous...and of course with ice cream...I am totally in heaven :-)

[Natasha - 5 Star Foodie]

Mmm.. this apple cakes looks perfect, so nice with nutmeg. I like cinnamon, but I like nutmeg even better!

[Tangled Noodle]

Cinnamon? What cinnamon? This looks perfectly perfect. I think I've committed all the apples we picked from our tree but it's a great reason to go out and buy more!

[Maria]

Oooh .... that came about beautifully. I love upside down cakes, made a plum upside down cake last month. With the markets abounding with apples lately, this would be divine.

[mycookinghut]

I love apple and this upside down cake is my kind of cake ;)

[elra]

Beautiful tarte tatin! It's my favorite dessert to have.

[Daily Spud]

Apple desserts, how I love thee, apple upside-down cake most especially, with or without cinnamon.

I must say, though, that much as I adore cinnamon, the first spice I think of when I think of apples is/are cloves. That probably has a lot to do with growing up in a household where we always had an apple tree - apple tarts & crumbles were a regular feature and whole or ground cloves were always added. Things like that have a way of staying with you.

[Sophie]

I love apple desserts!!

Your tarte tatin looks fab!!

MMMMMMMMM,...just lovely!!!

[Darina]

This looks fabulous! I so love apple desserts, especially apple cake. I'm bookmarking this one. Yum.

[Native Food & Wine]

This looks so good. Think I'll have to try this.

On cinnamon... Have you tried the Vietnamese Cinnamon from Penzey's? OMG it's so good - really strong, hot/spicy.

Cheers!