Marie-Hélène's Apple Cake

I went home last week and, as usual, it a typical bacchanalia of food, food and more food. My mother wanted a "culinary journey" through different cuisines. So we had Thai shrimp curry, Chinese stir-fry, Italian night (pasta with prosciutto, clams in white wine), French night (chicken with a tarragon pan sauce), steak with pesto, Indian night (lamb rogan josh, shrimp curry, spicy potatoes and spinach). It was all amazing. But this apple cake was undoubtedly one of the major stars of a really great week of cooking and trying new recipes.

This cake (credited to my glorious spirit animal, Dorie Greenspan) is part cake, part pie, part bread pudding. It's absurdly easy and I guarantee that almost all of the ingredients are already in your kitchen. The results are deliciously surprising, with a sweet, rum-infused batter that exists just to hold together all the tantalizing chunks of apple. Make this. Now.

Marie-Hélène's Apple Cake 

3/4 cup all-purpose flour 
3/4 teaspoon baking powder 
Pinch of salt 
4 large apples (I used 2 Granny Smith, a Honeycrisp and a Fuji--the variety is important!) 
2 large eggs 
3/4 cup sugar 
3 tablespoons dark rum 
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter an 8-inch springform pan and put it on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper and put the springform on it. 

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in small bowl. Peel the apples, cut them in half and remove the cores. Cut the apples into 1- to 2-inch chunks. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with a whisk until they’re foamy. Pour in the sugar and whisk for a minute or so to blend. Whisk in the rum and vanilla. Whisk in half the flour and when it is incorporated, add half the melted butter, followed by the rest of the flour and the remaining butter, mixing gently after each addition so that you have a smooth, rather thick batter. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold in the apples, turning the fruit so that it's coated with batter. Scrape the mix into the pan and poke it around a little with the spatula so that it's evenish. 

Slide the pan into the oven and bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until the top of the cake is golden brown and a knife inserted deep into the center comes out clean; the cake may pull away from the sides of the pan. Transfer to a cooling rack and let rest for 5 minutes.

Carefully run a blunt knife around the edges of the cake and remove the sides of the springform pan. (Open the springform slowly, and before it’s fully opened, make sure there aren't any apples stuck to it.) Allow the cake to cool until it is just slightly warm or at room temperature. If you want to remove the cake from the bottom of the springform pan, wait until the cake is almost cooled, then run a long spatula between the cake and the pan, cover the top of the cake with a piece of parchment or wax paper, and invert it onto a rack. Carefully remove the bottom of the pan and turn the cake over onto a serving dish. Serve warm (or at room temperature, but warm is best!) with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream or cheddar cheese. OR ALL THREE. Enjoy!