Apple Spiced Coffee Cake

Before we left for Australia there was a bit more pantry cleaning we needed to do, trying to minimize any produce going to waste. Diane had roasted up the teriyaki glazed brussels sprouts for us to munch on, but there were apples, persimmons, and tons of garden fresh limes which most likely weren’t going to survive the two weeks we’d be gone.

For the persimmons and limes we called in Diane’s parents, as they are always willing to take any of those we have to offer. All of our travels landed smack dab in the middle of when our giant fuyu persimmons ripened this year, and no way were we going to let the squirrels eat them all. Diane’s dad came over and we picked every nearly ripe persimmon which hadn’t already been damaged or snacked on by the resident birds and squirrels. You should have seen his face light up.

fragrant fresh apples make this cake wonderful

And no Vietnamese turns down good limes. Diane’s mom loves our limes. I mean LOVES our limes. As she says,”Da stoe bought ones not da same. Your limes so good.” So our limes found a good home. I can guarantee some will find their way into the best dipping fish sauce a soul can make. Her fish sauce is the best of the best. Ask any of the girls that either do or have worked in her nail salon over the past 20 years.

Now to the apples. We only had a few left from recent shopping forays, but it would suck to let the go to waste. Last month we posted a pumpkin spiced coffeecake with we’ve had to make a couple times since because it was so good. So why not try a riff off of that recipe?

So I axed the pumpkin puree, bumped up the sour cream, tweaked the spices a bit, and added in grated apples. I thought about sautéing slices of apples and layering them in, but this way was quicker and easier, and with so much to do in the four days we were home in-between the NY/Seattle trip and the Australia trip, quick and easy seemed best.

It came out fantastic. I had previously thought the pumpkin spiced coffeecake was on of best I’ve had, however now I can’t decide. This apple one is pretty damn tasty. No need to compete, there is plenty of love for both.

Hope you enjoy!

Todd

If you want to follow along on our Australian adventure, follow us on Twitter and Instagram: Todd’s Instagram and Diane’s Instagram.

Yield: one 9-inch Cake

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

The cake flour will help make this coffeecake a little lighter, but if you only have regular all-purpose flour, use a bit less, just over 1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour for the batter. For the topping it doesn't matter which flour you use. Use whichever your favorite nuts are for the topping. Some of our favorites are pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, and almonds).

1/3 cup (40g) Flour1/2 cup (110g) Brown Sugar1 teaspoon ground CinnamonPinch of kosher or sea Salt6 tablespoons (85g) cold unsalted Butter, cut into small chunks1 cup (@100g) finely chopped Nuts (walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, or almonds)1 3/4 cups (200g) Cake Flour2 teaspoons Baking Powder1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda1 1/2 teaspoons ground Cinnamon1 teaspoon ground Clove1 teaspoons ground Ginger1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea Salt1/2 cup (113g or one stick) unsalted Butter1 cup (220g) Brown Sugar2 eggs1 teaspoon vanilla extract3/4 cup (180ml) Sour Cream2 cups peeled and grated tart Apples, about 3 medium applesPreheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan.Make the topping: In a bowl combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Pinch in the butter, or use a pastry cutter, until it looks like coarse crumbs. Mix in the chopped nuts, and then refrigerate topping until ready to top the coffeecake.Make the batter: In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, clove, ginger, and salt for at least 20 seconds. Set aside.With a mixer beat the butter and brown sugar on medium-high until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Stir in the vanilla extract and sour cream. Mix in the grated apples until combined.Stir in the flour mixture until just combined. Spread the batter in the prepared pan. Sprinkle the topping over the batter and then bake. Bake for about 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake. Allow to cool, then remove from pan. Cut and serve.

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