Swedish Apple Cinnamon Cake

I'd been feeling apple and cinnamon for a while now. Not that I'm a huge fan of either, but just the thought of the two paired together gives you a kind of 'Christmas at your doorstep' feel that is so warm and comforting. Not just that, I have been so bombarded with pictures, descriptions and conversations of Apple and Cinnamon in the days leading up to Christmas that making something out of the two seemed mandatory. My blogger friend Anwesha posted this amazing No-roll Apple Pie last month, another friend-cum-blogger Dhrubaa talked about how apple and cinnamon are an inseparable combination to the Americans and yet another friend P narrated stories about how he would devour the Apple Crumb Pie that his cousin used to make for him. The climax came when in her recent series Cake Diaries, I  saw Rachel Allen making this amazingly delightful Swedish Apple Cake. Now Antar Da was coming for a pre-Christmas lunch in a few days. He had lived and worked in both the US and Sweden in the past and obviously is way more conversant about the deadly apple-cinnamon combination. So Allen's dessert seemed to be the perfect sweet end to our Christmas meal. I personally loved the texture of this cake, Antar da couldn't stop raving about it and Didi in a matter of minutes asked me to send pictures of the same on whatsapp as A da had already passed on the praise!

Recipe adapted from Rachel Allen's Cake Diaries (I didn't make the glaze from the original recipe, instead served it with whipped cream)

Serves: 8-10

Ingredients

Apples, peeled and diced: 2

Flour: 250 gm

Baking powder: 1.5 tsp

Baking soda: 0.5 tsp

Cinnamon powder: 1 tsp

Caster sugar: 150 gm

Butter, melted and cooled: 150 gm

Eggs, beaten: 3

Milk: 1/2 cup (or as required)

Method:

1. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon powder into a large bowl. Add sugar and mix together.

2. Add the two diced apples, mix well. Then add the melted butter and the eggs. Mix all the ingredients together until combined. Add the milk to loosen the batter a little bit and combine well. The batter will be thick.

3. Preheat the oven to 180 degree C. Line a springform cake pan with parchment paper and butter the sides.

4. Tip the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 40-45 minutes till golden brown. Ensure that a cake tester inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

5. Cool the cake on wire rack for 20-30 minutes before unmoulding.

5. Serve warm with a butter-cinnamon glaze or whipped cream (as I did).

Kickstarting Christmas: Day 8