Jewish Apple Cake

We had this cake at our Healthy Hearts Gourmet Dinner Club, and it was the hit recipe of the night. It will taste better the day after it's made, as it gets really moist from the apples. Add more apples to the layers than you think you'll need. The batter rises and separates the apple layers if you don't. You will think you have too many apples compared to the batter, but trust me, you won't. This cake is very dense, and is great for breakfast as well.

10-12 apples of various types, peeled, cored, and sliced thinly

1/4 cup sugar

3 Tbs cinnamon

3 cups flour

4 eggs

2-1/2 cups sugar

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup orange juice

2-1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°.

After peeling, coring, and slicing the apples, combine them in a bowl with sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.

Combine remaining ingredients and with handheld mixer, blend well until batter is smooth.

In a greased tube pan (or bundt pan), spread a thin layer of batter on the bottom. Use as little as possible, but make sure the bottom of pan is completely covered with about 1/4 inch of batter.

Cover batter with 1/3 of the apples. Repeat until you have 3 layers of batter and 3 layers of apples, ending with apples on the top. The layering is time consuming, but is well worth it. When layering batter on top of apples add small dabs around the pan and carefully spread out. Use more apples than you think you'll need. You SHOULD NOT have any apples left over when you finish.

Bake for 90 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow pan to cool on rack. Serve with ice cream, Cool Whip, or the Apple Cider Caramel Drizzle below.

Apple Cider Caramel Drizzle

1 cup apple cider

1 cup packed brown sugar

4 tablespoons butter or margarine

1/4 cup cool water

2 tablespoons of cornstarch

Combine the first three ingredients together in a sauce pan. Cook over low heat to dissolve and reduce slightly, and remove from the heat. It will still be thin in consistency. Set aside until ready to use.

Return the mixture to the heat and warm it up before using. When the cider drizzle is warmed through, add a slurry made with the cool water and cornstarch, whisking until thickened. It will now be a thicker caramel consistency. Drizzle over the individual slices.