Chai Apple Crumb Cake

Made this cake yesterday and I thought it turned out pretty good but could use some tweaks. I might want to make it again some day, so I thought I would record the recipe here with my suggestions. Enjoy!

Chai Apple Crumb Cake

Ingredients:

Chai Apples

• 3 small apples peeled & thinly sliced (I used green Granny Smith)
• 40 g light brown sugar (3 tbsp.)
• 1 tbsp. chai spice (recipe below)

Chai Streusel

• 60 g unsalted butter (¼ c.)
• 90 g light brown sugar (⅓ c. + 1 tbsp.)
• 120 g all purpose flour (1 c.)
• 1 ½ tsp. chai spice

Butter Cake

• 210 g all purpose flour (1 ¾ c.)
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. salt
• 125 g unsalted butter (½ c. + 1 tbsp.) room temperature
• 175 g granulated sugar (¾ c. + 2 tbsp.)
• 2 eggs room temperature
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 135 g whole milk room temperature (½ c. + 2 tbsp.)
• 75 g sour cream room temperature (5 tbsp.)
• 180 g apple butter (⅔ c.) optional

Chai Glaze (optional)

• 90 g powdered sugar
• 1-2 tbsp. macerated chai apple juice

Chai Spice Blend

• 2 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. each of the following: ground allspice, ground cardamom, ground cloves, ground ginger

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. 
• I found that it took too long for the cake to cook at this temperature in my convection oven so the bottom was getting overdone while the middle was still doughy. I would drop the temp to 325 next time and see if I get better results cooking it lower and slower.)
2. Generously butter a 9" cake pan. Crumple up some parchment paper, then un-crumple it and place it into the buttered cake pan, making sure it sticks to the bottom and sides. Set aside.
• Instead of using crumpled parchment, I had a 9" silicone mat that I put in the bottom of my 9" springform pan, and that worked perfectly.

Chai Apples

1. Wash, peel, and thinly slice the apples. 
• I found that "sliced" apples made it difficult to get a cake-tester through the top layer to check and see if the batter was all cooked through beneath, so next time, I would dice my apples instead of slicing.
2. Mix the apples with the brown sugar and chai spice well, making sure the mixture is evenly dispersed throughout each apple slice. Set aside.

Chai Streusel

1. In a medium sized bowl, melt the butter. 
2. To the butter, add the sugar, flour, and chai spice. 
3. Use a fork to mix the ingredients together until you have formed clumps of dough. Set aside.

Butter Cake

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer, in a large bowl) beat together the butter and sugar for 3-4 minutes, until light and fluffy.
3. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add in both eggs and the vanilla. Beat until well combined (~1 min.)
4. Add in half of the flour mixture, and mix by hand just until the flour is incorporated. Add in all of the sour cream and milk and mix until combined. Add in the rest of the flour, and lightly fold the mixture together just until all of the flour is incorporated.
5. Pour half of the cake batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth out the top. Place dollops of the apple butter on top of the cake, then carefully smooth it into an even layer.
• Instead of apple butter, this would also be delicious with a butter, brown sugar, cinnamon mixture, more like a cinnamon roll.
6. Pour the remaining cake batter into the pan and smooth it out into an even layer. 
7. Place the apples on top of the batter, making sure to leave out the juice from the apples. (Be sure to keep the leftover juice for the glaze!)
8. Top the apples with the streusel. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean or with only a few moist crumbs.
• The first time I made this, even at 50 minutes at 350 degrees my cake tester was coming out with raw batter on it, but when I cooked it for more like 60-70 minutes, the cake was finally done but the bottom and sides were a touch overcooked and the streusel topping had gotten really crunchy and hard. Next time, I think I will drop the temperature to cook it lower and slower so the middle has a chance to get done before the outside is over cooked and see how it goes. You can also use "baking strips" that wrap around the outside of your pan to help insulate the sides from the heat to give the middle a better chance to cook evenly.
9. Let the cake cool in the pan until no longer too hot to touch, then use the parchment to lift the cake out of the pan.
• Because I used a springform and my silicone mat instead, and because my cake seemed a touch overdone on the edges, I removed it immediately from the springform to prevent further baking. First, I ran a small spatula around the edge of the pan to make sure the cake wasn't sticking to the sides before removing the collar of the springform. Then I used my biggest oversized pancake turner to get the cake off from the bottom of the pan, then off from the silicone mat.

Chai Glaze (optional)

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and leftover juice from the apples. If the mixture is too thick, add some more juice, or milk if none is left. If the mixture is too thin, add more powdered sugar.
2. Once the cake has cooled to room temperature, drizzle the glaze over the top. Serve and enjoy! This is also delicious topped with whipped cream or caramel sauce.

Caramel Covered Apples

I watched this video tutorial and really LOVED how my apples turned out. If you don't have time to watch, I'll put the main pointers below.

Tutorial: https://www.facebook.com/TheStayAtHomeChef/videos/280060177305047/

Caramel Covered Apples

Ingredients:

• 4 fresh, firm apples (I used Honeycrisp)
• 1 bag 11 oz. caramel bits
• toppings
• Sticks

Directions:

1. Wash the apples in warm water to remove wax. 
2. Heat caramel bits up in a pan until they are between 160-180 degrees (or follow directions on bag). 
3. Dip apples in warm caramel. 
4. Wipe excess dips from bottom with a spoon or spatula. 
5. Then turn the apple upside-down (holding on by the stick) while caramel continues to cool and set. 
6. Apple is ready to set down on a lined cookie sheet when the coating become matte in color and no longer shiny.

Marsha's Notes:

• If caramel is too hot, it will slide off the apple.
• If caramel is too cold, it will clump up and be too thick.
• You can put caramel in a crock pot to keep it warm on low setting.
• If you are putting toppings on the apples, press the topping into the caramel coating while it's still warm. You can roll the apple in your toppings, or use your hand (possibly gloved) to press the topping in place.
• If you are double-dipping your apples in chocolate, make sure the caramel is completely cool and set before dipping.
• You can make an "apple pie alamode" by double-dipping a caramel apple in white chocolate and then sprinkle the while chocolate with cinnamon sugar while the chocolate is still warm and setting-up.

These are the caramel bits I used. You can also use individually-wrapped caramel squares, but you will need to add 1/8 cup water or milk to the caramel when melting. 

You can also make your own caramel for dipping. Try this recipe from the tutorial:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 can 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup corn syrup
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp. salt

Directions:

1. Melt butter over medium heat. 
2. Then add the rest of the ingredients and stir constantly until it simmers. 
3. Scrape the bottom and sides of the pan to prevent burning. 
4. Stir constantly until it reaches 235 degrees (or softball stage). 
5. Remove from stove and stir until it cools to 160-180 degrees.

Caramel Apple Squares

I found this recipe years ago and am now copying it here from our family cookbook binder. Enjoy!

Caramel Apple Squares

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup butter, softened
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 finely chopped pecans (opt)
• 3 cups chopped apples, 2 medium
• 3/4 cup caramel topping
• 1/4 cup flour
• vanilla or cinnamon ice cream (opt)
• additional caramel topping (opt)

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.  
2. Grease bottom and sides of 13x9 inch pan with shortening.  
3. In large bowl, beat butter and brown sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until well mixed.  
4. Beat in 1 cup flour, the oats, cinnamon, baking soda and pecans until well blended and crumbly.  
5. Press half of the crumbly mixture in bottom of pan to form crust.  
6. Spread apples over crust in pan.  
7. In 1 qt. sauce pan, heat ¾ cup caramel topping and ¼ cup flour to boiling, stirring constantly.  Boil about 1 minute, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened.  Drizzle over apples.  
8. Sprinkle with reserved crumbly mixture.  
9. Bake 35-45 minutes or until top is golden brown. Cool 30 minutes before serving.  Top with ice cream and additional caramel topping.

Caramel Apple-Topped Waffles

I found this recipe years ago and am now copying it here from our family cookbook binder. Enjoy!

Caramel Apple-Topped Waffles

Ingredient:

• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine 
• 3 medium eating apples, peeled and sliced (3 1/2 cups) 
• 1/4 cup caramel topping
• 2 cups Original Bisquick™ mix
• 1 1/3 cups milk 
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 egg, if desired

Directions:

1. To make caramel apple topping, melt butter in skillet over medium heat. Stir in apples.  Cook about 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender.  
2. Pour caramel topping over apples.  Heat, stirring frequently, until warm.  Keep warm.  
3. Heat waffle iron; spray with non-stick spray.  
4. Stir remaining ingredients until blended.  
5. Pour batter by slightly less than 1 cupful onto center of hot waffle iron.  
6. Bake about 5 minutes or until steaming stops.  Carefully remove waffle.  Serve with caramel apple topping.

Grandma Pack's Apple Crunch

I found this recipe years ago and am now copying it here from our family cookbook binder. Enjoy!

Apple Crunch

Ingredients:

• 6 large apples, sliced thin
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 1 tsp. lemon peel
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup flour

Directions:

1. Sprinkle sliced apples with sugar, lemon juice, lemon peel and cinnamon.  Place in a casserole dish.  
2. Mix sugar and flour and cut in butter to form coarse meal.  Spread over apples and bake 45 minutes to 1 hour in 350 degree oven.

Apple Crisp

I found this recipe years ago and am now copying it here from our family cookbook binder. Enjoy!

Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

• 4 medium, tart cooking apples, sliced 
• ¾ cup brown sugar 
• ½ cup flour 
• ½ cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/3 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2-3/4 tsp nutmeg

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.  
2. Grease bottom and sides of a square baking dish.  
3. Arrange sliced apples in pan (about 4 cups of apples).  
4. Mix remaining ingredients together and sprinkle over apples.  
5. Bake about 30 minutes or until brown and apples are tender.  Drizzle with caramel sauce if desired with serving.  Serve warm.

Marsha's Notes:

I used Fugi apples and it turned out nice.

The Kitchen McCabe's Irish Apple Cake with Custard Sauce

Here is the last recipe I tried for St. Patrick's Day; Irish Apple Cake. Don't her pictures just make it look divine?!

You can find the original recipe here:

http://thekitchenmccabe.com/2014/03/07/irish-apple-cake-with-custard-sauce/

This cake, while yummy, is also not really packed full of flavor. I think I would describe it as delicate. You have to be very careful with the eggs when making the custard sauce, so I recommend a double-boiler. We found that the cake was super yummy topped with caramel sauce, whipped cream, and just a light dusting of cinnamon sugar. I also thought about adding some kind of Irish cream flavor to the whipped cream.

Fresh out of the oven, it had this wonderful crunchy top, which both Scott and I LOVED! But even after an hour or so cooling, the cake hadn't completely cooled off before bedtime when I put the cover over it. The resulting steam completely softened the crust of the cake. While still tasty, was just not as nice as those first slices has been, so be warned!

Also, because the cake was so delicate, I am tempted to use a more sour apple than the golden delicious suggested in the recipe (perhaps the Granny Smith also suggested) and maybe add some more spices like cinnamon. Just ideas for next time that I want to document. I also used decorative sugar crystals instead of just regular sugar on the top and I LOVED that. They are bigger, chunkier and crunchier like what you see on muffin tops sometimes.

Here you go!

Irish Apple Cake with Custard Sauce

Ingredients:

For the Cake:

• 3 C. Flour
• 2 t. Baking Powder
• ⅛ t. Salt
• ¼ t. Cloves, ground
• ¼ t. Nutmeg, ground
• 6 oz. Butter, (cold is fine)
• ¾ C. Sugar
• 4 large Granny Smith apples(I used golden delicious to great effect)
• 2 Eggs
• ¾ C. Milk
• 2 T. Sugar(for sprinkling on top of cake)

For the Custard:

• 6 large Egg Yolks
• 6 T. Sugar
• 1½ C. Whole Milk
• 1½ t. Vanilla

Directions:

For the Cake:

1. Grease and flour an 8" or 9" round springform pan. Using an 8" pan will give you a taller cake.
2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
3. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, cloves and nutmeg into a large mixing bowl. Make sure the bowl is very large to allow room for the apples to be folded in. No joke here!
4. Cut the butter into the flour using your fingers or a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.
5. Add the ¾ C. sugar to the flour mixture and mix in.
6. Peel the apples and slice them into uniform pieces. This cake works best and gets that 'chunky apple look' if the slices are about ¼" wide and then cut into 3 pieces.
7. Toss the apples into the flour mixture and combine them thoroughly.
8. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and milk together. Add to the apples and flour and mix in with a large spatula until just combined. Batter will be thick and dough-like.
9. Transfer the dough into the prepared cake pan and flatten the top surface using the back of your spatula.
10. Sprinkle the sugar over the top of the cake.
11. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Test the center for doneness. The top of the cake should be golden brown. Serve slices with custard sauce.

For the Custard Sauce:

*note that this sauce is not a thick, pudding like sauce. It should have a pour-able, just thickened consistency when done.

1. Place the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and whisk until pale yellow, 2-3 minutes. Place the milk in a medium saucepan and bring just to a boil. Slowly whisk the hot milk into the egg/sugar mixture. Transfer the mixture back to the saucepan and stir over medium heat until custard thickens, about 4 minutes. Custard should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Mix in the vanilla. Transfer to bowl or serving saucer.
2. Serve warm or cold over apple cake.

Simple Nourished Living's Crock Pot Apple Oatmeal

*When I went to a nutrition class for being pre-diabetic, I was told that oatmeal is a "healthy carb" and the one exception I was allowed when pursuing a low-carb diet. So, that is why I have marked these as "low-carb."

I just couldn't wait to try another Crock Pot recipe from Simple Nourished Living, and I was happy with today's result. This time, I tried a breakfast item that is pretty common in our house; oatmeal.

http://simple-nourished-living.com/2013/10/crock-pot-apple-oatmeal/

I am usually a boring, straight-up maple brown sugar kind of oatmeal girl. I don't usually have chunks of fruit in my oatmeal, but this was actually pretty good. I did put a sprinkle of brown sugar on mine to sweeten it up a bit, but otherwise, I stuck to the recipe.

I used vanilla almond milk, but if you aren't sure what kind of low fat milk to use, here is a handy chart that could help you make an informed decision:

http://www.fitsugar.com/Calories-Different-Types-Milk-9221413

Crock Pot Apple Oatmeal

Ingredients:

• 2 cups fat free milk (dairy, almond, coconut, soy, rice, etc.)
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
• 1-1/2 teaspoons butter
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup dry old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup chopped apples (peeled or not, whichever you prefer)
• ½ cup dried cranberries
• ¼ cup walnuts, chopped
• ½ cup fat free milk (dairy, almond, coconut, soy, rice, etc.)

Directions:

1. Spray the inside of the slow cooker with nonfat cooking spray. I used my 2-quart. (If you only have a 4-quart I would double the recipe and freeze some of the leftovers if necessary.)
2. Combine the 2 cups of milk, maple syrup, butter, salt, cinnamon, oats, apples, cranberries and walnuts in the slow cooker.
3. Cover and cook on WARM overnight, about 6 to 8 hours.
4. Stir in the ½ cup milk just before serving.
5. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for several days. They can be rewarmed in the microwave.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (generous ¾ cup): 240 calories, 6 g fat, 37 g carbs, 4 g fiber, 10 g protein and *6 PointsPlus

Marsha's Spiced Apple Cider (Crock Pot)

I love warm spiced cider, especially around Halloween time and served with fresh glazed doughnuts.  I tried a couple of recipes for our Crock Pot, and I ended up combining a few to make the perfect one.  I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Marsha's Spiced Apple Cider (Crock Pot)

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks cinnamon
• 2 cups orange juice
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• ½ cup lemon juice
• 5 whole cloves
• ½ gallon apple cider
• ¼ gallon water (or so)
• 2 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1 cup sugar

Directions:

Mix all together in slow cooker and simmer on low for 4-6 hours.  (Place cloves in a tea ball for easy removal.)