Apple Blondie Snack Cake | Sarah Kieffer

This snack cake started out as a cross between two of my recipes: blondies, and the Apple Brandy Bread from my 100 Morning Treats cookbook. I needed one factor plump filled with apple style, however as well as rich and winter-y. Using the blondie base (minus the espresso and chocolate) made for a moist, rich bar, nonetheless the added liquid from the apples made if actually really feel just about underbaked, although I had steamed them beforehand. I added streusel on the very best to mimic the bread recipe, nonetheless that was an extreme quantity of additional sugar and butter.

I started over, and this time I added one different egg for development and swapped the streusel for a cinnamon-sugar topping. After it baked, I was met with what I choose to call an almost-cake: it was a really perfect cross-between a blondie and a snack cake, with a moist, rich base and loads of style. My family voted that it was nonetheless nearer to cake than a blondie so I’ve named it proper right here accordingly, nonetheless my kids now focus on with this dessert as “Apple Clondies”.

Baking with Apples

Apples take a really very long time to interrupt down all through baking, so usually I like to supply them a head start. Much like in my Apple Morning Bun recipe, I found that steaming the apples in apple cider not solely helped the apples soften, however as well as pumped them filled with further style as a result of the cider soaked into the apples. However, must you don’t have cider out there, water moreover works correctly.

I moreover reduce the apples into skinny, bite-sized gadgets. I would like the apples to bake down into the cake, instead of biting into large chunks. Lowering them skinny along with the steaming helped the apples just about soften into the cake, giving a whole lot of style and good texture.

Apple Jack gives one different kick of style, nonetheless I’ve made this cake by steaming the apples with water and no apple jack, and it nonetheless was delicious!

I’ve always been a fan of using Gala apples in my baking, as they’ve a sweet and tart style profile, and are crisp and juicy, with light floral notes. I like how they break down all through baking, and are normally not overly tart, or overly sweet. However, while you’ve obtained a favorite baking apple, it’s essential to use that proper right here instead.

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• About 2 medium [200 g] Gala apples, peeled and sliced into 1/8 in [3 mm] slices
• 1/3 cup [60 g] apple cider or water
• 12 tablespoons [1 1/2 sticks or 170 g] unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups [300 g] darkish brown sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon optimistic salt
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon apple jack, non-obligatory
• 2 big eggs, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 cup [213 g] all-purpose flour

Cinnamon Sugar Topping

• 1/4 cup [50 g] granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch salt, non-obligatory

For the sugar topping

• In a small bowl, whisk collectively the sugar, cinnamon, and salt if using until combined.

For the cake

• After lowering the apples into 1/8 in slices, run your knife through the gadgets plenty of events, creating bite-sized gadgets. Place the apples and the apple cider in a giant saucepan over medium heat. Cowl the pan and let the apples steam throughout the cider until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. The apples must be mushy, nonetheless nonetheless preserve their type. Stress the apples and let cool to room temperature.

• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, soften the butter, brown sugar, and salt. Take away from the heat and stir throughout the vanilla and apple jack, if using. Let the mixture cool to room temperature.

• Add the eggs and whisk until combined. Add the baking powder and whisk as soon as extra until included, then add the flour and use a spatula to stir until combined. Add the cooled, strained apple gadgets and stir to combine.

• Swap the batter to the prepared pan and use an offset spatula to simple out the very best. Sprinkle the cake evenly with the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

• Bake for 24 to half-hour, until a wooden skewer or toothpick inserted into the batter comes out with the faintest hint of crumb.

• Swap the pan to a wire rack and let cool totally. Use the parchment sling to softly elevate the cake out of the pan. Reduce them into squares and serve. Cake shall be saved in an airtight container at room temperature for as a lot as 2 days.

*I like a hefty sprinkle of sugar on the very best of this cake, nonetheless you’ll put a lot much less on if desired. 
*All by way of my recipes posted on this website, 1 cup of flour equals 142g. Please phrase that 1 cup of flour can fluctuate anyplace from 120g to 142g, counting on the baker or website. I found that after weighting many cups of flour and averaging the entire, mine always ended up spherical this amount. If I am posting a recipe from one different cookbook, I am going to use irrespective of gram measure of flour utilized in that information, which is why you might even see plenty of posts with a novel cup measurement.
Completely totally different producers of flour have numerous ranges of protein, ranging from low to extreme, which may result in very completely totally different outcomes when baking. I’ve found Gold Medal all-purpose unbleached flour to be your best option for lots of of my recipes; I make the most of it in all the baked gadgets that don’t use yeast.