Spicy Apple Cake with Crumble Topping

After toying with ideas, I came up with this recipe of a moist spicy apple crunchy-topped cake. What a combination, apples, cinnamon, mixed spice and a hint of Calvados. You can either play down the spices by adding less or use the maximum quota aiming for that little kick the choice is all yours. I used one sugar in my recipe this time but I am considering using half quantities of, muscovado plus dark soft brown sugar.

I always try to make sure my ingredients are at room temperature before starting baking. If I forget to take out the butter to soften, a few seconds in the microwave on medium heat will do the trick. I don’t want oily butter but just soft enough to achieve a good creaming consistency.

Here’s my recipe for the cake:

Spicy Apple Cake with Crumble Topping

Ingredients
For the cake
2 large cooking apples, peeled, cored and grated (you could use 3 granny smiths apples here too)
225g (8 oz) plain flour
175g (6 oz) dark brown sugar
110g (4 oz) butter, softened at room temperature
2 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons Calvados (apple brandy)
1 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon Ground mixed spice
2 teaspoons baking powder
For The Crumble topping
75g (3 oz) Self-raising flour
25g (1 oz) butter, softened at room temperature
50g (2 oz) Demerara sugar
Pinch of Cinnamon

You will also need a 20cm (8 in) round cake tin with a loose bottom – greased and lined with baking paper.

Method

Preheat the oven 170°C/fan oven 150°C/325°F/Gas mark 3.

Make the crumble topping firstly, add the flour, butter, sugar, Cinnamon and with fingertips rub in the butter until it resembles breadcrumbs. Leave this to one side for sprinkling on top of the cake before it goes into the oven.

Cream the butter and sugar together in another bowl or stand mixer until light and fluffy. Add the beaten eggs a little at a time until all incorporated. Sift the flour, spices and baking powder together and then add to the mixture, carefully folding in until no traces of flour left. Fold in the apples, Calvados and the milk for a soft dropping texture. Spoon the mixture into the lined cake tin and make sure the top is smooth.

Sprinkle over the crumble topping that was put aside earlier over the top of the cake in an even layer.

Place in the oven on the middle shelf and bake for 1 - 1½ hours until risen and cooked. To check if cooked; insert a skewer into the middle of the cake and when cooked it will come out clean with no uncooked mixture attached.

Leave in tin to cool out of the oven for 10 minutes before turning out on a wire rack to finish cooling. Remove the baking paper and enjoy.

Note: If the crumble is browning to quickly, cover the top with a circle of baking paper.