My idea of a perfect cake, with softly whipped cream flavored with rum, This Dutch Apple Cake is my favorite Apple treat.

Without fail, with twitching tails and perked up little noses and quivering whiskers, my two cats will unabashedly inform me if the wafting aromas in the kitchen are particularly appealing to them, or if they feel that the crunches in their bowl have dipped down below an acceptable level. My smaller cat, Brie, tends to keep me company when I putter around in the kitchen, but my bigger cat, Parmie (short for Parmesan…yes both cats were named after cheeses), will only deign it appropriate to grace me with her presence in the kitchen if something is extraordinarily enticing to her nose. Overall, Brie was more of a fan of the apple adventuresThere were two instances when they both came to investigate the apple expeditions, one being this dish with the turkey sausage, and the other was this Dutch Apple Cake. They were both extremely intrigued by the brown paper bags the apples resided in when I let them play with them.

Speaking of apples, I feel there has been a small, personal triumph in the fact that we are now down to only 8 medium apples left from our haul at the Orchards. I have that fridge space back from where one of the brown bags of apples were patiently waiting to be chopped, sautéed, baked, or roasted. I now have ben venturing into food that does not sneakily incorporate apples in there somehow. And nothing beats a sweetly tart, crisp apple eaten with peanut butter. That combination is one of my absolute favorite lunches. Sometimes simple things fill our hearts and stomachs, but at other times a little bit of frivolous, fanciful attention to detail can render glorious moments and creations.

The first attempt at this Dutch Apple Cake. It was good, but I wanted to tweak spice ratios and see if I could fluff it up a bit more.

I am unafraid to offer a simply stunning Dutch Apple Cake. While I adore the complexity and nuances of this cake I made earlier this apple season, I originally was longing for a simple, straightforward apple cake that would stun you with the first mouthful. I contemplated Dorie Greenspan’s Apple Cake, but I was afraid that there was not going to be quite enough actual cake in it, and that there would be mostly apples. I loved the idea of Rum used to flavor the batter as well as Pure Vanilla Extract. I tucked that recipe away and kept searching. Then, I found something that looked and sounded closer to what I was envisioning. Amanda Federickson came out with her version of a Dutch Apple Cake she was inspired to recreate while traveling, and it looked like the base of that recipe for the cake part was closer to what I was looking for

Perfectly spiced, the Rum sings through without being overwhelming, this Dutch Apple Cake is a keeper.

I ended up with a fusion of the two different cakes, and the result is completely spectacular. The cake itself is light and delicate, so full of air from the creaming of the sugar and butter. I love nutmeg with apples, so I added a hint of it to both the cake portion and the apples themselves. I incorporated a bit of Rum into the batter, which theVanilla accents and pulls out the nuances of the Rum in the cake so beautifully. The apples used are innately sweet and tart at the same time, but the acidic qualities are highlighted with the juice of half a lemon and the sweetness is drawn out from the sugars. Since you let the apples macerate with the sugar for an hour before baking, this completely wonderful beginnings of an apple caramel sauce is created which infuses itself into the cake. The top of the cake is dappled with apple chunks and the Turbinado Sugar you sprinkle on before baking becomes this delightful little crunchy cap to the cake. The ratio of cake to apples is perfect, and to top off this little masterpiece is a cool, silken dollop of whipped cream. The Rum is lurking in the whipped cream, and the notes from the cake and the whipped cream meld together so daintily. Truly, this is my idea of a perfect cake, because it has all of your senses humming and working at once when you first take a bite.

Edited to update: I am baking some Parmesan and Herb No Knead Bread for dinner and both cats just appeared

Delicious with a cup of tea, This Dutch Apple Cake can also make a tasty breakfast.

Dutch Apple Cake

Author: Iris Anna Gohn

Servings: 8-10

Another everyday cake, this Dutch Apple Cake is really my ideal of cake. The edges get slightly crisp which is a wonderful textural contrast to the softened apples, crunch and grit of the Turbinado sugar, and the soft delicate crumb of the cake itself. It is gently perfumed with the Rum but not overwhelmingly so, and this cake is absolute perfection with the Rum gently echoed in the silky whipped cream.

This cake keeps well on the counter for a few days, though I do think the texture is best on the first day you bake it (all baked goods are this way). The next day, the juices of the apples help keep the cake wonderfully moist and tender, and the flavors have deepened a bit from sitting overnight. This cake is so moist that I recommend covering it loosely with Aluminum Foil, as storing in an airtight container may make the cake just a touch soggy.

Ingredients

For the Cake:

4 Cups small diced Apple (4 large firm, tart apples, such as Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, or Braeburn)
1 + 1/4 Cups Granulated White Sugar, divided
1/2 Lemon, juiced
2 Tbsp Cornstarch
2Tsp Ground Cinnamon, divided
1/4 Tsp Ground Nutmeg, divided
1/4 Tsp Sea Salt, divided
2 1/2 Cups All Purpose Flour
1 Tsp Baking Soda
1 Tsp Baking Powder
1 Cup (2 sticks) Butter, softened
1 Tbsp Rum
1 Tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
2 Eggs
2 1/2 Tbsp Turbinado Sugar (Sugar in the Raw)

For the Rum Whipped Cream:

1 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1 1/2 Tsp Rum
1 Tsp Granulated White Sugar

Directions

For the Cake:

Take out the eggs and the butter from the fridge to soften and become room temperature. It takes roughly an hour for both sticks to be soft enough to cream together with the sugar easily.
Peel and dice the apples into 1/2 inch chunks. In a large bowl, toss the diced apples with 1/4 Cup of the Sugar, 1/8 Tsp Salt, 1 Tsp Cinnamon, 1/8 Tsp Nutmeg, Cornstarch, and the juice from half a lemon. Take care to ensure all the apples are evenly coated, then set aside and let the apples macerate and release their juices during the hour it takes to soften the butter.
During the hour it takes for the apples to macerate and the eggs and butter to come to room temperature, I prep my dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the Flour, remaining Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Salt, Baking Powder and Baking Soda.
When the Butter has reached room temperature after the hour waiting period, preheat the oven to 350 F. Spray a 9 inch Springform Baking Pan and rub a paper towel along the insides to ensure the oil coating is evenly distributed and does not have too much cooking spray to make the resulting cake too oily on the edges.
In a stand mixer fixed with the paddle attachment, cream together the room temperature Butter and remaining Sugar on medium high speed. This should take 5-7 minutes, and you are looking to incorporate lots of air into the butter. It should lighten up and look like marshmallow fluff at this point. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed with a spatula.
Add the Rum and Vanilla to the creamed eggs and sugar mixture and beat on medium high speed for about 1 minute to thoroughly incorporate into the batter. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Lower the mixer speed and add each egg to the mixture, one at a time. It should take about 1 minute per egg to thoroughly incorporate into the batter.
Again lower the mixer speed to medium low and slowly incorporate the dry ingredients. I add half and get that mostly incorporated - it takes about a minute to two minutes, and then I add the second half and let the mixer go until it is just incorporated. You do not want to over mix the batter, which is very stiff, as you have incorporated so much air into it from the creaming of the Butter and Sugar, because the goal is to get a very fluffy, delicate crumb held together with the apples.
When the batter is stiff and all flour incorporated, turn the mixer off and use the spatula to get as much of the batter off the paddle attachment. Spread half of the very stiff batter into the Springform Pan evenly. I put the batter in one big ball in the center of the pan and gently push it out towards the edges with a spatula.
Take the bowl with the Apples and give it a good mix before spooning half of the apples on top of the batter int he Springform Pan. There should be some juice that has accumulated at the bottom of the bowl, and spoon 2/3 of that into the Springform Pan as well. Gently press the Apples down into the batter.
Gently press the remaining batter on top of the apples, and try to evenly spread it out. If there are little spots where it’s a little thinner that is okay, it will bake up around it.
Pour the remaining Apples and juices on top of the batter and evenly spread them out, then gently press into the batter so they are secured there during the baking process.
Evenly sprinkle the Turbinado Sugar over the top of the Apples and batter.
Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
Cool in the springform pan for 10 minutes, then gently release the cake from the sides and cool completely on a wire rack. After the cake is cooled completely you can slide the cake onto a serving plate or cake stand.

For the Rum Whipped Cream:

In a large bowl or the bowl of a Stand Mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, gently whisk the cream, sugar, and rum together till it forms softly whipped cream.
If using a Stand Mixer, use a medium low speed. Turning cream into whipped cream will happen quickly. Softly whipped cream is when very soft peaks are formed if you spoon up the cream, it kind of folds over on itself.
If whisking by hand, it takes 7-10 minutes (It did for me, anyways, but I am also not a very fast or aggressive whisker.)