Apple Bundt Cake/Dinner Club Potluck

As you can see, I’m really trying to make the most of fall with all these apple recipes! For a Cornell Dinner Club Fall Potluck last week Charlotte (my roommate from last year) and I decided to make one of our smitten kitchen (http://www.smittenkitchen.com) favorites, Mom’s Apple Cake. It is so easy and beautiful and delicious and we thought it would be the perfect potluck addition.

Charlotte prepping

Alternating cinnamon sugar apples and batter

Ready for the oven

Recipe from http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/09/moms-apple-cake/

6 apples, Mom uses McIntosh apples
1 tablespoon cinnamon
5 tablespoons sugar
2 3/4 cups flour, sifted
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a tube pan/bundt pan/loaf pan. Peel, core and chop apples into chunks. Toss with cinnamon and sugar and set aside.

Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, orange juice, sugar and vanilla. Mix wet ingredients into the dry ones, then add eggs, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl to ensure all ingredients are incorporated.

Pour half of batter into prepared pan. Spread half of apples over it. Pour the remaining batter over the apples and arrange the remaining apples on top. Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, or until a tester comes out clean.

YUM

Here are some pictures from the potluck:

Apple Slaw

Homemade buckwheat gnocchi

Homemade Rabbit Pate

Action shot

Delicious corn bread with whipped maple butter

pumpkin pies, bread puddings, oh my

Apple Bread

Hello everyone! My sincerest apologies for the lack of posts during the last few weeks. Midterms, fall break, and general lack of sleep have made updating the blog difficult. But I have been cooking up a storm and have tons of new material for you so get excited!

Fall break is a wonderful 4 day weekend in October right after the first round of midterms when everybody needs a break. I decided to take a trip to Boston to visit all my friends at Northeastern (where I spent my freshman year) and Harvard.

Before the long 6 hour drive, I baked some apple bread to give as a present to my friend Gila who was driving, and to my hosts in Boston.

My lifesaver IKEA apple corer

wet ingredients

Mixing in the dry ingredients

And finally into my favorite disposable gift giving pans

Here is the recipe, adapted from:  http://lepetitpierogi.blogspot.com/2010/09/apple-bread.html#ixzz13OfCoCG1

3 Cups All Purpose Flour (can use half whole wheat flour)
2 Tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp. Allspice
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp. Salt
1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil (or substitute apple sauce to make it low fat)
1 Cup White Sugar (I reduced this to around ½ cup)
1 Cup Brown Sugar, packed
2 Eggs, Beaten
1/2 Tsp. Vanilla
3-4 tbsp apple cider
2 cups apples, peeled, cored and coarsely chopped
1 cup broken walnuts (optional)

In bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, allspice, baking soda, baking powder and salt; set aside. In large mixing bowl, place oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla and apples. Stir into flour mixture. Add walnuts and mix (if using). My batter ended up being pretty dry and sticky so I added in a few tablespoons of apple cider, but if yours isn’t, then it’s totally up to you-I kind of like the additional apple flavor from the apple cider. Divide mixture between two greased 8-in. x 4-in. bread pans ( I used mini loaf pans). I sprinkled brown sugar on top to give them a nice little crunchy crust. Bake at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes (mine were done in 30-35 minutes because I used the mini pans) or until bread test done. Cool for 10 minutes on wire rack before removing from pan.

Baking in the oven

These were easy to make, a great way to use up a few apples, and made pretty food gifts!

Finished product!