The best way to describe the texture of this cake is puddingy – and by that I mean it’s not light and fluffy like a sandwich cake rather it’s dense and gooey, almost like a brownie. The use of a whole 180g packet of ground almonds mean that the sponge is really moist with a strong almond flavour and goes perfect with some double cream poured over the warm sponge.
The cake has 2 layers of thinly sliced apple and this is just a standard Pink Lady apple; you most certainly cannot use a Bramley here or it would turn to mush. For better flavour, ideally you should brown sugar however white sugar would suffice. For the apple lovers out there, you can overlap the apples more however I like the rustic feel of this sponge.
3 Pink Lady apples
175g margarine
180g soft light brown sugar
3 eggs
180g ground almonds
60g self raising flour
½ tsp ground cinnamon
Demerara sugar, to sprinkle
Double cream, to serve
Preheat the oven to 160°C. Grease and line a 20cm square tin with parchment and set aside.
Prepare the apples. Core the apples or cut around the core and slice the apples thinly. Place into a bowl filled with water and lemon juice to prevent browning.
Make the cake batter by whisking together the margarine and brown sugar until combined. Add in the eggs all at once and beat further until incorporated. Scrape down the bowl and then add in the ground almonds, flour and cinnamon and fold through until the mixture is even.
Pour the mixture into the cake tin and level it out. Drain the apples well and then arrange them in a double layer over the cake, pushing the apples down slightly.
Sprinkle over some Demerara sugar and then bake for around 20 – 25 minutes until the apples are soft and cooked and the sponge springs back when touched.
Serve this pudding cake warm straight from the oven with some cold double cream or ice cream.
Andrew in the Kitchen 