Easy Apple Cake

This easy apple cake will make a baker out of anyone. If you have read my posts any length of time, you know I am not a baking queen by any stretch of the imagination. My cooking skills are better served when you need a hearty meal, leftovers repurposed or snacky snacks to savor at gatherings.

Some time ago, I canned a little over a half dozen pint jars of apples which were left over from making apple butter. At some point, Mr. Grisham brought a few pint jars in from "the cottage pantry" and they hung out in the pantry in the house. Every time I opened the door, there they were. I started seeing a lot of posts for apple cake recipes and found several that had the same basic ingredient lineup. Well there you go. I had everything in the pantry, and a purpose for at least two pints of the apples. 

Let me just tell you. This cake, warm out of the oven and ice cream, are beyond divine. It's not super sweet and is very moist. The recipes I read through all called for anywhere from two to six medium fresh apples. I substituted with two pint jars, drained. I can attribute the moistness to using canned apples.(Around two cups of fruit or so.)

I have since baked this cake three times. The second time I added chopped pecans which were in the freezer looking like they needed to be a part of this. The third time I didn't add any and Andy said he liked the cake better with. He has advised me we have enough jars of apples in the pantry to bake two more cakes!

We finished up the last of the cake last night. Today, I will be doing my annual baking of a Pina Colada cake for Mr. Grisham's 67th birthday this week! Which reminds me. I need to post the exact directions for the version I make in a 9x13 pan as it is slightly different from the bundt cake version. Bundt cake pans are one of the reasons I hate to bake. It's always a roll of the dice as to whether or not that pan is a pain to clean. Ughh.

INGREDIENTS:

1-3/4 cups sugar

1/2 cup oil

2 teaspoons of cinnamon

2 eggs 

2 jars canned apples, drained (or 6 medium sweet apples, peeled and chopped)

2 cups AP flour

2 teaspoons baking soda 

Chopped pecans (Around 1 cup or more)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray--coat bottoms and sides.

Mix the oil, eggs, sugar, cinnamon and apples in a large bowl.

Carefully stir until blended well. Try to not break down the apples when stirring.

Add the flour and baking soda to the wet ingredients and blend well. Pour into baking dish.

Everyone's oven is different so the first time you make this, bake for 30 minutes and check the progress. The center wasn't set so I baked for an additional 15 minutes. When I inserted a toothpick at 45 minutes, it came out clean.

 

OPTION 2: (Which is our preferred mixture) 

Simply add chopped pecans to the batter and bake.

We let this dish cool on a rack for about 15 minutes and did a taste test.
Oh, yes! It's a Keeper!