HARVEST APPLE CAKE
24 september 2006

so we're in the midst of the days of awe (aka the high holy days (aka the ten days between rosh hashanah & yom kippur, inclusive)), & tradition dictates that, at this time of year -- rosh hashanah, anyway, as yk is a fasting holiday -- we consume apples & honey (tapuach v'dever) for a sweet new year.

my mom used to make this apple cake all the time when i was in grade school & junior high; we'd eat the leftovers for breakfast. (it's fruit, of course it's healthy!) she got the recipe from my sister's 2nd grade class -- each of them brought an apple-related recipe in, & they made little laminated apple-shaped cookbooks. this particular recipe was from my sister's best friend's family.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups finely chopped cooking apples
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup chopped walnuts

METHOD
preheat oven to 350 F.

combine flour, soda, salt, & cinnamon. set aside. combine sugar, oil, egg, & vanilla. add apples. add dry ingredients. add walnuts. bake for 40 to 45 minutes in a greased 8x8 pan.

DEVIATIONS & OBSERVATIONS
cooking apples, according to my mom, are jonathan or granny smith. jonathan happened to be on sale at the grocery store, so although they were tiny (baseball-sized!), i bought a bag & peeled & chopped my little heart out. (yes, i peeled the apples. even though the recipe didn't call for it, i seemed to remember my mom peeling them when i was a kid.)

i think maybe it was a little undercooked -- or maybe i should've cooled it on a rack instead of in the pan -- b/c it was a tad bit mushy, but it tasted great (especially warmed up with some ice cream!) so there were no complaints. daniel even said -- as he ate his third piece -- that he'd let the nut infraction slide.

"Harvest Apple Cake" from my sister's 2nd grade class' apple cookbook