Luisa Weiss's "Gedeckter Apfelkuchen (Glazed Apple Cake)" has been on my to-bake list for a while. The cake has top and bottom crust of sweet short pastry surrounding a chunky cinnamon-apple filling with raisins. I didn't make many apple desserts this fall, but I had some perfect Stayman apples from the farmers market that were just waiting for a good baking project.
Even though this is essentially a two-crust pie -- baked in a springform pan -- the bottom crust is blind baked before adding the filling and the top crust. You make the crust by hand by working softened high-fat butter into a mixture of flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; adding an egg; and kneading until smooth. I chilled the dough for a few hours before using it. Then I took two-thirds of the dough and pressed it into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch loose-bottomed pan, lined the pan with foil, filled it with pie weights, and par-baked it. I filled the partially-baked crust with some apples that I had cooked with lemon juice, cinnamon, jumbo golden raisins, and water until the apples were broken down but still maintained some shape. Then I rolled out the remaining crust, laid it over the apples, cut a few vents, and baked the cake until the top was golden and puffed. I let the cake cool for a few minutes before brushing on a glaze made from powdered sugar, lemon juice, and water.
The recipe says that the cake will keep at room temperature for 2-3 days, so I left the cake on the counter overnight to cool. The following morning I was planning to take the cake to the office, so I released it from the pan and began to slice it. The first slice came out intact but quite floppy, with a limp bottom. I decided that the cake was too messy to deal with at work, because I try to avoid taking foods that require a plate and fork (unless it's a special occasion and we're actually having a party). I thought that the the cake might be a total loss -- especially because I've had a recurring problem with two-crust pies that have soggy bottoms -- but I shoved the cake into the fridge and headed off to work.
After dinner that day, I pulled the cake out of the fridge and sampled a piece. The chilled cake was easier to slice and the bottom crust did not sag. The cake was fantastic. The apple filling was soft but not mushy, and the cinnamon and plump raisins added wonderful flavor, as did the lemon glaze. The crust was buttery but not crisp -- true to the recipe headnote which indicates that it stays "soft and cakey" thinks to the apple filling. I enjoyed the cake straight from the fridge over the next few days and it maintained its quality for the better part of a week.
I would absolutely make this cake again, but I would simply plan to keep it in the fridge as soon as it's cooled. Otherwise, I wouldn't change a thing.
Recipe: "Gedeckter Apfelkuchen (Glazed Apple Cake)" from Classic German Baking by Luisa Weiss; recipe available here at Cookstr. Weiss also offers a Christmas variation of this recipe -- with cranberries and Lebkuchen spices -- here at epicurious.com.
Even though this is essentially a two-crust pie -- baked in a springform pan -- the bottom crust is blind baked before adding the filling and the top crust. You make the crust by hand by working softened high-fat butter into a mixture of flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; adding an egg; and kneading until smooth. I chilled the dough for a few hours before using it. Then I took two-thirds of the dough and pressed it into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch loose-bottomed pan, lined the pan with foil, filled it with pie weights, and par-baked it. I filled the partially-baked crust with some apples that I had cooked with lemon juice, cinnamon, jumbo golden raisins, and water until the apples were broken down but still maintained some shape. Then I rolled out the remaining crust, laid it over the apples, cut a few vents, and baked the cake until the top was golden and puffed. I let the cake cool for a few minutes before brushing on a glaze made from powdered sugar, lemon juice, and water.
After dinner that day, I pulled the cake out of the fridge and sampled a piece. The chilled cake was easier to slice and the bottom crust did not sag. The cake was fantastic. The apple filling was soft but not mushy, and the cinnamon and plump raisins added wonderful flavor, as did the lemon glaze. The crust was buttery but not crisp -- true to the recipe headnote which indicates that it stays "soft and cakey" thinks to the apple filling. I enjoyed the cake straight from the fridge over the next few days and it maintained its quality for the better part of a week.
I would absolutely make this cake again, but I would simply plan to keep it in the fridge as soon as it's cooled. Otherwise, I wouldn't change a thing.
Recipe: "Gedeckter Apfelkuchen (Glazed Apple Cake)" from Classic German Baking by Luisa Weiss; recipe available here at Cookstr. Weiss also offers a Christmas variation of this recipe -- with cranberries and Lebkuchen spices -- here at epicurious.com.
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