February 21, 2015
I sheepishly state that I have been nibbling on this snack cake for close to 50 years and have not tired of it yet. I baked my Grandmother Cotton’s apple cake this afternoon for Michael and some friends and have been back for a sliver or two after eating a healthy piece right out of the oven.

Baked and half consumed 15 minutes after removing from the oven!

This recipe is one that people ask for all of the time. It has just the right amount of sweetness (you can reduce sugar if you like by 1/2 cup) with a crispy top and soft middle. I have not yet tried to substitute part of the canola oil with coconut oil, but I think it would work as long as the coconut oil is plenty warm when you mix it with the room temperature eggs and sugar. This is a great use for apples that are not at their peak as you peel and cut them into small pieces.

Oil, sugar and eggs. It is best to mix eggs in one at a time – and mix until mixture is very creamy and bright yellow.

Dry ingredients added with vanilla.

Nuts are optional but I like to either chop them up into larger pieces – or just place pecan or walnut halves on top of the batter before placing in the oven. If you do this and someone doesn’t like nuts, they can be easily removed.

I used three smaller apples that were not at their peak, but were perfect for baking. I also just coarsely chopped the pecans before adding to the batter.

Batter spread into 9 x 13 pan. It is best to have the batter a little thicker at the sides because it takes the center longer to cook.

Apple Cake

Preparation time 15 minutes plus baking time for just over an hour until you can eat it!

Makes 10-12 servings

Ingredients

1 3/4 cup sugar
1 cup oil – canola or corn
3 eggs (at room temp. if possible)
2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts – walnuts or pecans preferred
2 cups apples, peeled and cut into chunks
1 T lemon juice if apples ar not tart

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375′

Place sugar and oil in mixer bowl and incorporate well. Add eggs, one at a time, blending until mixture is creamy and bright yellow.

Sift flour, salt, cinnamon and baking soda together and add to wet mixture about half at a time until mixture is just combined. Add vanilla, nuts and apples to blend in completely.

Spread batter into a greased 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 375′ for 45-55 minutes. Watch for last 10 minutes carefully as edges tend to get brown fast.

 

Notes