"I think this is the best one you've made," he said, gently scraping his fork against the white dessert plate. He gathers the crumbs in a pile and presses the fork against them -- the cake is so moist that the last bits stick together. He scoops up the last bite.
"The best cake?" "The best apple cake."
Truth be told, I do make a lot of apple cakes, so this judgement carries a lot of weight. We spent a crisp, sunny October sunday picking apples north of Manhattan in a little town on the Hudson River. Our kitchen is overflowing with apples: they fill up both crisper drawers, and spill from a bulging canvas bag on the counter.
We have one large batch of applesauce already. It's just apples, cinnamon, and water -- cooked down and mashed with the back of a wooden spoon to stay chunky, just as we like it. I sneak spoonfuls every time I open the fridge. He swirls it into yogurt and eats it in the most adorable way possible out of a tiny white ramekin with a spoon far too small for a boy. Tonight I'll cook another batch in our beloved Le Creuset dutch oven. All night the kitchen will smell of cinnamon. I'll make more of this apple cake (and others) because I love the way fruit mixes with cake, in sweet custard-y pockets. Do you know what I mean about the custard? Like an eggy pancake batter snuck into your cake? I like it when the apples keep some bite but soften around their edges.
Cold, this cake is even better. A crunchy cinnamon sugar streak runs through its center. The yogurt and olive oil batter gets denser, strewn with bits of fruit. We'll eat it with our fingers. We'll be happy.
APPLE YOGURT CAKE
Adapted from The Kitchn
1 1/2 cup plain yogurt
2/3 cup olive oil
juice of one lemon
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
5 apples, peeled and diced
2 1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash of nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Topping
2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup walnuts, optional
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add the diced apples and stir until mixed. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon and stir with a spoon until well-mixed and smooth.
Oil a 9x13 inch baking pan and pour half the batter into the pan. In a small bowl, mix together the topping ingredients until they clump. Scatter half of the topping mixture over the batter. Pour the rest of the batter on top and then scatter the remaining topping mixture over it. Bake for 45 minutes (possibly a little longer) until the cake pulls away from the edges of the pan and a tester comes out clean. Let it cool for at least 10 minutes and then serve.