‘A responsible and intelligent daughter is the most important contribution you can make to this world. I am so glad I was one of the lucky few to be able to do it.’

It’s my daughter Rhea’s birthday today and I’d like to say Thank you. Nikhil and Rhea- my children, have been pressurizing me to start a food blog for the last couple of months or so – a space where I could share my recipes with you. Finally, at the end of February this year, I started my food blog and I have both of you to thank. Rhea sat on my case till I posted my first blog and then slowly eased off when she realised I was determined to document recipes close to my heart.

Rhea, is a very contented soul, at peace with herself and her greatest company is her vast collection of books ranging from history to biographies to romance to fiction – she loves reading. There are such wonderful memories of her growing up – from the age of seven she took center stage in all the English plays – be it Wizard of Oz to My Fair Lady. We have let her just do what she wants to do and she’s done a pretty good job so far. Taken all the right decisions, put in a lot of effort, done her research and chalked out her plans for the future. She’s not in a hurry to prove anything to anybody. We love you for that rhea.  You are one in a million!

The mother- daughter relationship is considered to be one of the most complex relationships in the world. It is considered to be one of the most powerful connections in nature that only mothers and daughters can understand and share among themselves. It’s true!

At the end of the day we know in our heart of hearts we have each other – come what may! My beautiful Rhea, you’ve grown up so fine, you make me so proud to know you’re mine.                      

Enjoy the recipe,

Ingredients

For the Cake Batter:

• Flour -11/2 cups
• Demerara Sugar 1/2 cup
• Baking powder-1 1/2 tsp
• Cinnamon powder -2 tsp
• Salt- 1 tsp
• Baking soda -1 tsp
• Milk -1/2 cup +4 tbsp milk
• Oil-1/2 cup + 4 tbsp oil
• Vanilla extract -2 tsp
• Eggs-2

For the Apples:

• Apples -4-5
• Demerara Sugar-3 tbsp
• Cinnamon powder – 2 tsp
• Apple cider vinegar -2 tbsp

For the Topping:

• Brown sugar -3/4 cup
• Cinnamon powder- 11/2 tsp
• Salt-1/2tsp
• Butter -1/3cup melted
• Flour -1 cup

For the Salted Caramel Sauce:

• Sugar -1 cup
• Water-2 tbsp
• Corn syrup- 2 tbsp (clear)
• Vanilla essence -1 tsp
• Butter-1/4 cup+ 1 tbsp
• Sea-salt – a pinch

Method

For the Cake:

• Take all the dry ingredients together – (flour, sugar, cinnamon powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt)
• Take all the wet ingredients – (milk, oil, beaten eggs and vanilla essence)
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well.
• Pour the cake batter into a greased and dusted cake tin and keep aside.

For the Apples:

• Skin apples and cut into thin slices.
• Add sugar, cinnamon powder and Apple cider vinegar. Keep aside for 10-15 minutes.
• Pile on top of cake batter and level the apple slices.

For the Topping:

• To the flour add cinnamon powder, salt and brown sugar.
• Add melted butter and with your fingertips rub through the flour to a crumble consistency.
• Pile on top of the sliced apples and bake in a preheated oven 180 deg.c for 35-40 minutes or until the crumble is golden brown.
• Let it cool in the pan.
• Transfer to a plate or cake stand.

For the Caramel Sauce:

• Combine sugar, water and corn syrup in a pan and bring to a boil.  Let it simmer till the mixture turns bubbly and begins to caramelise.
• When the mixture turns LIGHT brown or AMBER, remove and keep stirring, as the sugar mixture will continue to caramelise.
• After 2-3 minutes add the cream a little at a time, be careful as the mixture could foam up. Continue adding the cream, stirring all the time.
• Add vanilla essence and butter and stir till smooth.
• For a salted caramel flavour add sea- salt before removing.
• Drizzle the cake with caramel sauce and Keep aside some.
• Serve the cake warm.

Chefs Tips

• I bought Simla apples for this cake.
• For the crumble I melted the butter and ran through the flour till I got a crumbly mixture.
• After the first day, this cake should be refrigerated.
• Always warm the cake before enjoying it, it tastes better.
• The caramel syrup should be stored in the fridge and should be warmed before using.
• Serves 6-8.

“A party without cake is just a meeting.”  –  Julia child

Till my next post

Cheers,

Rose