Fresh Apple Cake with Caramel Sauce
Seriously, I have an apple problem…
So I just have to share this apple cake recipe with you…
I remembered its apple goodness when my mom recently made it again for a party over the holidays. It is kind of like a spice cake, but the caramel sauce really sets it apart from other desserts.
This recipe is from the cookbook, Honest to Goodness: Honestly Good Food From Mr. Lincoln’s Hometown. It has been my mom’s favorite cookbook for many years and my sisters have it and use it so much (I should probably take the hint that I need it too).
Being from Springfield, a cookbook with Lincoln on the cover would be a family favorite. Figures.
Keep this recipe on hand. trust me.
Fresh Apple Cake
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 2 cups white sugar
- ½ cup oil (vegetable or canola oil)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour or whole-wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups broken pecans or walnut pieces (I toast them in the oven at 400 before putting them in the batter)
- 4 cups peeled and sliced apples (any cooking/baking apple, I use gala apples)
- Directions:
- Beat together eggs, sugar and oil in a large bowl. Set aside.
- In another bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the sugar and egg mixture. The batter will be thick. Stir in the nuts and apples until combined.
- Spread the batter in a greased and floured 9x13 inch baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.
- Cut the cake into squares. It is best served warm with the Caramel Sauce.
Caramel Sauce
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon flour
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ cup evaporated milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
- Combine the butter, flour, suagr, and evaporated milk in a saucepan. Bring this mixture to a boil for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in the vanilla and let the sauce cool.
- Serve the caramel sauce on the warm apple cake.
-TIP: If you make the sauce ahead of time, store it in the fridge. Then, when you are ready to serve, warm the sauce in the microwave until warm and drizzle over the warm apple cake squares.
BAKING TIP: This is a great cake to make the day before you actually eat it. Which is why my mom always makes it for dinner parties or over the holidays when the house is crazy packed with family. She bakes the cake the day before because it tastes best the second day.