Apple dessert cake

The apples can be windfalls or even shrivelled ones left in the fruit bowl. Serve warm with ice-cream or crème fraîche as a dessert, or with coffee in the morning as one would a Danish pastry, again warm, dusted with icing sugar.

Ingredients

225g (8oz) self-raising flour
1 level teaspoon baking powder
225g (8oz) caster sugar
2 eggs
¹/₂ teaspoon almond extract
150g (5oz) butter, melted
250g (9oz) cooking apples, peeled and cored
25g (1oz) flaked almonds

Details

Achieving the perfect results

1. Preheat the oven to 160ºC/140ºC Fan/Gas 3. Lightly grease a deep 20cm (8in) loose-bottomed cake tin.
2. Measure the flour, baking powder, sugar, eggs, almond extract and melted butter into a bowl, mix well until blended, then beat for a minute.
3. Spread half this mixture into the prepared tin. Thickly slice the apples and lay on top of the mixture in the tin, piling mostly towards the centre. Using two dessertspoons, roughly spoon the remaining mixture over the apples.
4. This is an awkward thing to do, but just make sure that the mixture covers the centre well as it will spread out in the oven. Sprinkle with the flaked almonds.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for about 1¹/₄  - 1¹/₂  hours until golden and coming away from the sides of the tin.

Preparing ahead

Best made to serve warm, but can be made the day before. And, once cooked and cold, you can wrap and freeze it for a maximum of three months.