French Apple Cake and Small Treasures

Most days we head to the beach for our morning walks. Today we went to Strawberry Hill Wayside.The parking area is on top of the hill and there is a nice basalt and sand walkway down to the cove area. Many times we see seals, gulls or shore birds. Among the rocks there are many treasures. Usually it's some type of sea creature, shell or agate.

The picture above is what we found today. Isn't this cute! Someone used their imagination and what resources they had around them to create a miniature sand castle. I started thinking about this and how it relates to my own personal food choices. We are fortunate that the rural community we live in is so supportive of the local farms and gardens. So we have many choices.

It's just days before the labor day week-end, the holiday that reminds us all that summer is quickly coming to a end. Last week I purchased locally grown apples from the farmers market. The flavor and crispness of the apple was fantastic. I knew I had to do something great with this fruit. So I turned to the amazing cookbook, "Around My French Table by "Dorie Greenspan" decided upon this French Apple Cake.

This recipe is in itself a real treasure. The directions are easy to follow and most of the ingredients I had on hand. The cake turned out very moist and was even better the next day. Serve with a dollop of crème fraíche or whip cream. Good in the mornings plain or with a little Greek vanilla yogurt. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
4 large apples (use different varieties)
2 large eggs (room temperature)
3/4 cup of sugar (I used 1/2 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar).
3 tablespoons dark rum (I substituted 2 tablespoons Grand Marnier).
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted and cooled).
Crème fraíche or whip cream

To prepare:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place rack in the center. Butter generously a 8 or 9 inch springform pan and place on baking sheet.

In a small bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt, set aside.

Peel and core apples, then thinly slice into 1 inch pieces, set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs until foamy, then whisk in sugar, rum and vanilla. Whisk in half of the flour mixture, then half of butter mixture. Repeat process one more time with remaining flour and butter.

Fold in the apples until they are well coated, then pour into prepared cake pan, smooth with spatula and bake approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour until knife inserted comes out clean. Let cake cool 5 minutes, then remove from pan by running a knife along the edge and carefully remove sides of pan.