Aunt Evvy's Apple Dessert
Aunt Evvy’s Apple Dessert
I remember this cake when I was growing up when my Aunt would make this yummy dessert! Fresh and light with slice apples and a thin layer of cake. Sort of like pie on a cake crust! Super easy and ready in under an hour too! Gotta try it.... and love it!
Aunt Evvy’s Apple Dessert
Yield: 10 – 12 slices
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1 egg
3 tablespoons water
4 – 5 sliced apples, Cortland, Honey Crisp or Granny Smith
1/2 cup orange marmalade
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Extra butter for pan
Equipment needed:
Sifter or larger strainer
Apple corer/slicer or paring knife
Dry measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Stand up mixer or Medium mixing bowl and hand mixer
1/2 sheet baking pan or small jelly roll pan
Parchment paper
Rubber spatula
Pastry brush
2 small bowls
Teaspoon
Ingredient pic
This recipe has been handed down in my family from my grandfather and probably came with him from Czechoslovakia many moons ago. It was always one of my favorite desserts growing up. My Aunt Evvy gave the recipe to me a few years back and I had a craving for it recently. Often my grandfather made it with apples and in the summer peaches or plums. It also uses super simple ingredients that are found in most kitchens... no? If you look at the ingredients, it almost looks like your making apple pie... except for the egg. Just as yummy as apple pie too... Maybe better! I found this the perfect dessert when company came over the other night. I didn’t even have to go to the store! I usually have a drawer full of tart apples. The only ingredients some of you may not have on hand would be marmalade. Marmalade is one of my favorite go-to jellies! Peach or apricot preserves are a great substitute as well.
Always a light, sweet dessert that we would garnish with a bit of whipped cream or vanilla icecream. The pan never lasted very long, as you will soon find out! Grab your apple slicer and let’sbake!
Preheat oven to 375 F.
To start the recipe, make the crust first. Begin by sifting the dry ingredients. Place the first four dry ingredients, flour through salt, in a large strainer or sifter, over your bowl or stand up mixer. Sift these and then add the butter, egg and water. Blend these ingredients on medium low speed until they pull together into a soft dough. Scrap down the sides of the bowl. To prepare the pan, cut a piece of parchment paper to fit your baking sheet pan. My grandfather never used parchment paper, but I find it helps remove the slices easier from the pan... less mess to wash too! Butter the edges of the pan and lay the paper on as shown above. Place the dough ball in the middle and gently spread using your fingers to the edges of the pan. Be sure to make the dough as evenly thick as you can for even baking! If the dough seems to stick to your fingers, wet them a bit and this will ease the spreading process. Set the pan aside while you prep the apples.
Next step is to prep the apples! Using apples meant for baking is important. I prefer a tart apple for this dish and my grandfather used tart red apples. Leave the skins on for color... the skin helps keep the apples together as well. I grab my apple slicer as it makes the process easy by slicing and coring at the same time. If you would rather slice and core with a paring knife, that works too! My apple slicer makes eight even slices which I cut in half one more time for quick baking. Arrange apple slices evenly in vertical rows. The size of the apples will determine whether you use 4 or 5 apples.
After the apples are arranged on the dough, make the cinnamon sugar and heat the marmalade in two small bowls. Microwave the marmalade for 20 – 30 seconds to melt a bit. Heating will allow you to brush the marmalade over the apples easily.
Using a pastry brush, coat each apple slice with the heated marmalade. Make sure each apple slice has a layer of glaze for the cinnamon to stick. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly over the glazed slices... I use a regular teaspoon to make it easier and less messy.
You’re ready to bake! Place the pan of apples into the center of a preheated 375 F oven and bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until the crust is golden and the apples are cooked. Use a fork to test the apples. A fork should insert into an apple slice with little to no effort!
Your house smells amazing I’m sure! Cinnamon and apple aroma gets everyone anxiously waiting... and salivating! Wasn’t this recipe simple? The recipe can be doubled and fill a large full sheet pan too... depends on how many you’re feeding. Place a dollop of ice cream or a squirt of whipped topping on the side... I added a drizzle of caramel topping too! Enjoy!!