Apple Cake with Sultanas

• I have a bumber crop of Bramley apples this year.
• I know I watered the fruit trees early on in the year before we had our hosepipe ban.
• This recipe is my Mama’s best recipe with added sultanas.
• My father did not like this addition so it was a version she did not make.
• It is equaly delicious.
• *
• I will be trying out new apple recipes this year – look out for them soon.

Apple & Sultana Filling – Ingredients

• 5 to 6 Bramley Apples
• Granulated Sugar to taste – keep it slightly tart
• A little water
• 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• 100g of sultanas

Method

• Make the apple filling first, even the day beforehand as it needs to be cold before you use it.
• Peel and core the apples and cut them into thick slices or chunks.
• Stew the apples gently with some sugar and very little water. You can make this in a saucepan on the stove or place the apples and sugar in a dish in the oven.
• Do not add a lot of sugar at the beginning as it does not want to be too sweet, you can adjust the sweetness at the end.
• Do not make it too much of a purée, cook so that you have some soft apples but with some harder less cooked chunks as well.
• Leave the mixture to cool and then add the ground cinnamon. 
• Add the sultanas and leave for at least 30 minutes so the sultanas plump up.

Cake – Ingredients

• 300g plain flour
• 3 teaspoons of baking powder
• 200g butter
• 75g caster sugar
• 1 egg yolk (save the white for the topping)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons of lemon juice and water
• Method

• You need a round tin with a loose base or a spring form tin or you will not be able to get the cake out.  I always use an loose base anodised aluminium tin, 22cm in diameter and 8 cm deep, which does not rust.
• Grease the tin well.
• Rub the butter into the flour to make fine crumbs and add the sugar and baking powder.

• Add the egg yolk and the lemon juice and water as needed and mix together to make a soft “dough” (try not to add more flour),  handle it as little as possible.
• Leave it to chill for about ½ an hour as this makes it easier to handle.
• Pre heat the oven to GM5 – 190^oC.
• Take slightly more than half the dough and press it into the cake tin.
• Spoon the apple & sultana mixture on top of this.
• The rest of the dough will go on top of the apple & sultana mixture.
• I use a rolling pin to make a circle that is smaller than the tin diameter and then place this on top.
• Do not worry if the dough falls apart, just place it on with the breaks nearly touching.

Topping – Ingredients

• 1 egg white and caster sugar
• Slightly beat the egg white with a fork and brush this over the top of the dough.  You will not need it all.

• Liberally sprinkle caster sugar over the egg white.
• Bake for around 45 to 50 minutes until the top is a golden brown.
• I tend to check the cake at 40 minutes and will cover the top with greaseproof if it starts to brown but is not yet cooked through.

• Leave to cool before getting the cake out of the tin.
• Loosen the side with a spatula.
• Use a tin can and put the cake tin on this and slide the side of the cake tin down.

• Do not put the cake in a air-tight covered container as the apples absorb moisture and you loose the crispness of the cake.