Friday, October 2, 2015

The Piano Has Been Drinking. (And so Have My Apples)

Oh darn. Where did September go? It usually sticks around for a while, doesn't it? At least it feels that way. We get our "Indian Summer" in NH right about the time when September is ready to slip out the door. It gets warm but breezy; you may find a few pine needles caught in between your toes and a few crisp, wind blown brown leaves in your hair while strolling around in your t-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops, and a long sleeve sweat shirt tied around your waist--just in case the weather turns really NH-ery. The rest of the year's a consistent crap shoot, the epitome of the saying: "You don't like the weather in NH? Well give it a minute!"  But this year September's last days came with rain, and a quick and impolite shot of the muggies that made me wish for Fall and Summer simultaneously.

As I type this, I'm wrapped in two layers and woolen socks, afraid to put the furnace on...uhm, you know...just in case we should all of a sudden find ourselves in the midst of an Indian Summer. I'm also yearning for a salad, and maybe a nice slab of watermelon or honey dew. Yes, I'm confused. 

Apparently, I've been confused for a while. In August (when it really did feel like summer, heat waves and all), I baked cakes, ignoring my cardinal rule of cookery: Never turn the oven on during a heat wave. But I was also downing Almond Joys like they were actually good for me, against my better judgement. See, I have never met a coconut and chocolate combination that I didn't fall head over heels in love with. In fact, my perfect man might be the one just good humored (or crazy) enough to dip himself in chocolate before rolling around on a blanket of flaked coconut. I'd marry that man, oh yes, without hesitation. But I've already admitted to being a tad bit confused. 

So, the recipe I'm going to share today came about after my personal Almond Joy meltdown. Feeling icky and really unhappy with my lack of willpower, I knew that in order to feel somewhat "healthy," like I was doing something good for my body, I must actually eat something that is at least a little bit healthy. But a few days of being mostly good with food choices led to one night of unintended abandon. I could afford to be the tiniest bit...naughty, right? At first, I bought apples, choosing to make baked apples; a good, healthier choice, right?! Oh, but then I noticed how much rum I had left over from a vacation a few years ago. I mean, I have a LOT of the stuff. See, I've never been one for mixed drinks, so in my house the hard liquor usually evaporates before it gets consumed. Sad, but true. Oh, I know: some of you are cringing reading this. I just feel it. Maybe you're even repeating the words "Oh the horror, the HORROR!" But I've been on this kick about cleaning out, and simplifying, in an effort to get myself organized. So I decided to make an apple cake with the rum I want so desperately to be rid of (but without just pouring it down the kitchen sink and outright wasting it. Oh no, my frugal nature wouldn't allow that!), and almond extract, yet another thing that's been hanging around unused in my cupboards for way too long. The result was this lovely French Apple Cake, and it was scrumptious.



Of course, I realize I could have just as easily made drunken baked apples, but I...oh well, I suppose I have no excuse: I like my apples best in cake! I stuck all but a quarter of the baked cake into the freezer, after wrapping it well in three layers of plastic wrap, then a layer of foil, another couple layers of plastic wrap, and then a freezer bag. (My freezer kills most everything that isn't wrapped well enough to survive a five year lunar orbit.) 

Here's the recipe:

French Apple Cake

1 1/2 cups + 2 tablespoons flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 firm, tart apples (you can vary the variety, depending on taste; in fact, I advise going for variety)
3 extra large eggs
1 1/4 cups sugar
6 tablespoons dark rum (less if you want lighter rum flavor)
1/2 teaspoon almond extract (or 1 tsp vanilla extract, if preferred)
1-1/2 sticks butter at room temperature

Preheat the oven to 350ยบ. Place rack in center of oven.
Heavily butter an 9-inch spring form pan. If you don't have a spring form pan, you can use any large cake pan with high sides.
Whisk dry ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
Peel and core the apples and slice into slightly smaller than 1/2" sections.
Beat the eggs until foamy then slowly add in the sugar, rum and almond extract.
Add only half the flour mixture, a little at a time, stirring and scraping lighlty with each addition.
Stir in half of the butter (6 tablespoons), then add the second half of the flour mixture in the same manner as the first.
Drizzle in the remaining 6 tablespoons of butter, then fold in the apple slices until just coated with the mix.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and shake the pan back in forth to flatten and remove any air bubbles.
Bake the cake for between 30 and 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean.