Another recipe found at Allrecipes.com. I had some apple pie filling in my cupboard, bought specifically for a cake like this, and today I finally got round to it. Mmmm… fruity cake….
The Recipe
- 1 (21 ounce) can apple pie filling
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 teaspoons hot water
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9×13 pan.
- Mix pie filling and cinnamon, set aside.
- Beat flour, white sugar, milk, 1/2 cup softened butter, baking powder, salt and eggs in mixing bowl on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.
- Pour half of the batter into prepared pan. Spoon half of the pie filling over the batter. Spread remaining cake batter over pie filling, and top with the remaining half of the pie filling.
- Mix brown sugar and nuts together and sprinkle over top of cake. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons melted butter.
- Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 to 55 minutes. Allow cake to cool 20 minutes.
- Combine confectioners sugar, 1 tablespoon butter, 3/4 teaspoon vanilla, 2 to 3 teaspoons hot water. Beat until smooth. Drizzle over cake.
My Alterations
I have to say, I’ve learned a thing or two from cake baking these past couple of weeks. When I saw the directions for mixing the batter, I decided to disregard them and make it the prescribed way. I combined the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, creamed the butter and sugar together, added the eggs one at a time to the butter/sugar mixture, and alternated adding the flour and milk. I also added 2 teaspoons of vanilla to the recipe, because I think a cake like this needs it. No electric mixer required.
I also used two cans of apple pie filling, but this was because (to my surprise) the UK tins were smaller than what the recipe stated. I think — translating solid grams to liquid ounces isn’t my forte. I didn’t mind if there was too much apple pie filling though!
I used twice as many nuts for the topping. This is mostly because I wanted to get them out of my cupboard.
I also skipped the confectioner’s sugar glaze bit. Didn’t see the point, really.
Quick tip: use a spatula to spread the pie filling onto the cake batter. Do it a little at a time, so the filling doesn’t sink to the bottom.
The Result
My biggest mistake with this cake was using the wrong cake pan. I used my tube pan, and when I tried to turn the cake out, it fell apart:
I really shouldn’t have been surprised; the cake wasn’t exactly solid in the middle, with that layer of pie filling in there.
It also took a bit longer to bake than stated in the recipe, but that is probably down to my cake pan choice. If I had used a large rectangular pan, it would have baked faster.
The Verdict
In spite of half the cake falling apart, I am very happy with this recipe. It was almost like eating an apple danish in cake form, and how can that NOT be good?
Next time, I will make this in a square pan. They may also work well as chunky muffins, but with less filling in the middle. Oh, they would be a great gift!
The Rating
5/5
Delicious! Very easy recipe with fantastic results. The brown sugar melted into a lovely caramelized glaze during baking, and if the cake hadn’t fallen apart, it would have been very pretty to look at. Better to eat, though.
Bonus: fruit in the cake makes it seem like a breakfast food!
