Honey Crumb Apple Cake

This honey crumb cake is another fall staple. Delicious for a crowd this makes a great addition to any event. The alcohol in this recipe gives it a unique flavour and depth.

Ingredients:

For the Honey Caramel:

1 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp. honey
3 tbsp. water
6 tbsp. cold vegan margarine, sliced
¼ cup Nutriwhip
1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
2 tbsp. bourbon/whiskey/honey liqueur

For the Apples:

4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
2 tbsp. vegan margarine
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice/apple pie spice or combination of cinnamon/ginger/nutmeg (equal parts)
1 tbsp. unbleached all-purpose flour

For the Cake Batter:

½ cup vegan margarine
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
¾ cup vanilla almond/soy milk
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
½ tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. baking powder

For the Crumb Topping:

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup demerara brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. salt
½ cup vegan margarine, melted

Directions

Preheat oven to 325F and line a 9-by 13-inch baking pan with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.

To make the honey caramel, in a medium-sized saucepan, bring sugar, water and honey to a boil without stirring.  Let mixture boil until it becomes amber in colour.  Immediately turn off heat, and whisk in margarine (mixture will bubble up).

Add Nutriwhip and salt.  Whisk well until smooth.  Add bourbon last, whisking well.  Pour into a clean bowl and allow to cool and thicken slightly.

To prepare the apples, saute apples, margarine and spices in a large saute pan over medium heat until slightly softened, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat.  Add half of the caramel mixture and 1 tbsp. of flour to the apples.  Toss together and set aside.

For the cake batter, cream margarine and sugar in an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for 3-5 minutes until fluffy.  Add eggs and vanilla, mixing until well incorporated.  Scrape down sides of bowl and add milk on low speed.  In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking powder.  Slowly add the dry ingredients to the mixer and beat on low speed until combined and smooth.

Pour mixture into prepared pan, spreading in a thin layer.

Top with caramel-apple mixture.

For the crumb topping, combine the ingredients in order of list (flour through melted margarine).

Sprinkle evenly over apple layer in pan.

Bake for 50 minutes then cool completely.  Cut into squres and serve drizzled with remaining caramel sauce.

Though this recipe has a long list of ingredients and four major components to it, the results will be worth it.  We enjoyed this cake for Rosh Hashanah but of course it can be made any time of year.

Science Fact of the Week:

Our science fact of the week is actually busting a myth! While it is commonly believed that baking removed all alcohol, some ethanol actually remains in the desserts. It can take up to 3 hours to remove all traces of alcohol (ethanol) in a dessert. In the case of this cake, such a small amount is added so it should not be a concern, but it is important to note when cooking and baking with alcohol.