Just in time for Fall {Fresh Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze}

When I think of Fall, I think of the weekends I spent camping with my grandparents in scenic Oak Glen.  The quaint picturesque community of Oak Glen is famous for it's apples.  September marked the beginning of apple season.  SoCal tourists lined the streets to pick baskets of red, yellow, pink and green apples and to enjoy all of the delicious apple goodies made with the local varieties of apples.  Some of my favorites included Apple Butter, Apple Turnovers, Apple Wine, a slice of Apple Pie á la Mode and a tart caramel apple on a stick.

All of these wonderful memories came flooding back after one bite of this month's Cake Slice Bakers cake: Fresh Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze.  A moist apple cake studded with chopped pecans and topped with a buttery brown sugar glaze.  It was like biting into the sweet caramel apples I grew up eating.

As I was putting the cake together, I was worried that there would be too little cake with the amount of apples and pecans I added.  I got a little carried away and added a whole kilo of chopped apples.  But the cake turned out to be a perfect balance of cake, apples and pecans.  The only change I would make is to reduce the amount of oil.  I used the entire cup and a half called for in the recipe, but I think it would turn out even better with just one cup.

Be sure to visit the rest of the Cake Slice Bakers to see what they thought of this delicious cake. 

Fresh Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze
(from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott)

Fresh Apple Cake:

• 3 cups flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs
• 1-1/2 cups vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups finely chopped apples
• 1 cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts

Brown Sugar Glaze:

• 1 cup lightly packed light brown sugar (azucar mascabado) 
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons evaporated milk, half-and-half or cream (I used evaporated milk)

Directions:
To make the cake, heat the oven to 350F.  Grease and flour a 9x13-inch pan.  In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt; stir with a fork to mix everything together well.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs with a wooden spoon or wire whisk at low speed until pale yellow and foamy.

Add the oil and vanilla; beat well.

Stir in the flour mixture just until the flour disappears.

Add the apples and pecans.

This is where you should switch to using a wooden spoon, because the batter is very thick.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan.  Bake at 350F for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the cake turns golden brown, springs back when touched lightly in the center and begins to pull away from the edges of the pan. 

Once the cake is done, let it cool slightly in the pan on a wire rack.  Make the glaze while the cake is hot.  Combine all the ingredients in a medium saucepan.  Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the mixture comes to a gentle boil and cook for 3 to 5 minutes.

Pour the glaze over the hot-from-the-oven cake.  Let the glazed cake cool completely. 

Serve in squares right from the pan.  Enjoy!!!

Printable Recipe

(P.S.) If you would like to join me and the rest of The Cake Slice Bakers, we are now accepting new members.  Send Katie an e-mail with your name, blog name and blog URL to appleandspice(at)hotmail.co.uk with "Cake Slice Member" as the subject.  You have until October 20th to sign up.