Apple Lemon Cake

​October. The month of foggy mornings and bluebird afternoons, brilliant yellows and orange, and home baked goods with seasonal fruit. I don't bake as often as I used to. But being German I love apple cakes, much more than apple pie. So I decided to use delicious apples to make an Apple Lemon Cake. I wanted to use oats as part of my recipe instead of just premade gluten free flour mixes. The oats give the cake more moisture, more fiber, and more nutrition. I also LOVE lemon. Therefore, I added plenty of lemon juice and lemon zest. If you want it even zestier, taste test the batter before adding the baking powder and see if you want even more. Sometimes I even add a teaspoon of rum extract, if I am feeling extra groovy.  
 
Although, I typically stick with gold ol’ fashioned butter, you are welcome to replace the butter with olive oil or coconut oil. The flavor profile will change, but it will still be tasty. Keep in mind that my recipe calls for salted butter, so make sure to increase the sea salt by ¼ teaspoon if your opting for the dairy free version. 
 
The big beauty of this cake is how quickly and easily it comes together. Add all the ingredients to a high speed blender, top with apple slices, and put her in the oven! No beaters, multiple bowls, etc needed here. A good microplaner and grater will come in handy however. If you don't have apples on hand, pears work well too. 

So if you want aromas of apple, vanilla, and lemon wafting through your house, then by all means, try this delicious, lighty sweet, German apple cake. And please, top it with HOMEMADE whipped cream. It’s worth the extra effort. 
 
Apple Lemon Cake
Serves 12
 
INGREDIENTS
2 large apples 
¾ cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 stick salted butter, melted
¼ cup milk (any kind)
Zest and juice of 1 ½ lemons
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup Bob’s 1:1 all-purpose gluten free flour
4 teaspoons Rumsford baking powder 
 
DIRECTION
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter the bottom and sides of an 11” springform cake pan. Meanwhile, grab a small bowl and pour the sugar into it. Top it with the lemon zest and rub the zest into the sugar. This helps release the essential oils. Set aside for now. Grate 1 large apple (I used Honeycrisp) leaving peel on (measuring ~ 1 cup of grated apple). It will leave behind a lot of juice, save this. 
 
Now core and slice the second apple into thin slices, and drizzle with a squeeze of lemon to keep from browning. You will be using these slices to evenly fan out on top of the cake. Set aside. 
 
In a high speed blender (like BlendTec or Vitamix), add the grated apple and all its juice, lemon zest infused sugar, eggs, melted butter, milk, juice of 1 ½ lemons, vanilla extract, and salt. Blend until smooth, about 30 seconds. Then add the rolled oats. Blend on low for about 60 seconds. Finally, add the gluten free all-purpose flour, and blend another 15 seconds.  
 
Once the mixture is smooth, sprinkle in 1 teaspoon of baking powder in at a time through a fine mesh sieve (or loose leaf tea strainer), and pulse until incorporated. Repeat until all the baking powder is gone. Evenly pour the mixture into the buttered baking pan, and top with apple slices, fanning in three layers. Place into oven and bake for 60-65 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Serve with homemade whipped cream.
 
Notes: You can easily replace the butter with ½ cup olive oil or melted coconut oil if you want to keep this recipe dairy free. Simply increase the sea salt from ½ to ¾ teaspoons. Apples can be replaced with pears as well. 

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Happy Baking!

Selva