Ta daaa! Today we have knocked up a quick Æblekage, or apple cake, a fabulous Danish pudding which is the best way I know for using up all those autumnal cooking apples. Layers of stewed apple are alternated with the happy crunch of spiced, buttery cinnamon crumbs and topped off with a cloud of whipped cream. Serve in either a large trifle dish or in individual serving glasses; I have to make a special one for my mum as she loves it with a blob of jam or redcurrant jelly on top.
Before we crack on with , there are a couple of things you should know.
A). Yes, I know it doesn’t look like a cake, it’s more of a layered trifle but the longer you leave it the cakier it gets. Definitely one of those puddings that is more than a sum of its parts.
B). The amounts given in the recipe below are more of a suggestion than a definitive recommendation; my Danish grandmother cooked everything by eye, with a little shake of this and a dash of that, and I appear to have inherited the tradition, so keep tasting and add more sugar and spice as you fancy it.
C). The stewed apple shouldn’t be too sweet, so it provides a pleasing contrast to the brown sugary breadcrumbs.
D). I should have put a layer of the crumbs at the bottom of the glass, but as I was trying to prevent my son eating all the whipped cream I wasn’t concentrating fully; the more layers you can get in the better 🙂
E). In Denmark you can actually buy Æblekage rasp (breadcrumbs) ready to use, but I prefer the home-made version as you can adjust the amount of cinnamon. They will keep very well in an airtight jar for up to a week.
Serves 6-8
Ingredients
For the apple sauce
1kg cooking apples
3tbsp demerera sugar
1sp mixed spice
For the crumbs
10 slices of decent bread, made into breadcrumbs
1 tsp cinnamon
3 tbsp demerera sugar
25g butter
For the topping
300ml whipping cream
Method
Peel and core the apples, and place in a large saucepan with enough to cover the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle over the the sugar and mixed spice. Simmer for 10-15 minutes until the apples have broken down, stirring constantly and adding a little more water if necessary. Set aside to cool.
Whip the cream and put on a high shelf so your son can’t find it.
Next take your largest frying pan and set over a moderate heat. Add the butter, and when it has melted scatter over the sugar and cinammon; give it a quick stir, then tip in the breadcrumbs. The idea here is to crisp them up so they turn a lovely golden brown colour, but you need to keep moving them constantly so they don’t burn. Keep stirring for 5-10 minutes until they have change colour, then remove from the heat; at this point it is a good idea to eat a large spoonful of them while nobody is looking, and add more sugar and cinnamon if you fancy it sweeter.
To assemble the cake, you simply spoon a few mixture of the crumbs into the bottom of your serving dish, then alternate with layers of stewed apple, finishing with a layer of cream and a final decorative sprinkle of crumbs.
