“Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.” – Simone Weil
NOTE: I spend my Wednesdays Unplugged from appointments. It’s my day to stay home, enjoy cooking and welcome our kids and grandkids for dinner in the evening. We end our meal with quotes from the Norwegian ‘Quote Cup’ passed on to me from my grandmother. I share a quote and a recipe here each week, along with an update and photos of what has been going on in our lives. I love trying new recipes…and love getting recipes you would like to share!
Our granddaughter got the red plate this week because she auditioned and was accepted into the Chamber Orchestra at her high school… quite an accomplishment for a sophomore! Our grandson was excited because he beat me in a game of Chinese Checkers this week!
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
This week’s recipe is a special one… from a client we worked with about 8 years ago… thank you, Marie! She called after last week’s newsletter went out to tell me she still reads my newsletter every week… she said it feels like she is sitting down for a cup of coffee with me. That is my hope for other readers as well… I started my blog about 17 years ago to make a personal connection with people… current, past, future clients as well as friends and family.
FRENCH APPLE CAKE
by Jenn Segal, onceuponachef.com
- 1 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling over cake
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons dark rum (or cognac)
- 2 baking apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2 inch cubes (3 1/2 – 4 cups)
- Confectioner’s sugar (optional) for topping
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease a 9-inch springform or regular cake pan with butter or nonstick cooking spray. If using a regular cake pan, line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper and grease again.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
Using a handheld mixer with beaters or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and rum. Don’t worry if the batter looks grainy at this point; that’s okay. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until just combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the chopped apples.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and even the top. Sprinkle evenly with 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool on a rack in the.
Once cool, run a blunt knife around the edge of the cake. If using a springform pan, remove the sides. If using a regular cake pan, carefully invert the cake onto the rack, remove the parchment paper, then gently flip the cake over and place right-side-up on a platter. Using a fine sieve, dust with confections’ sugar.
Cake can be served warm or room temperature, plain or with lightly sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. (consensus was that it would be good with whipped cream)
