Mary Berry's [Yummy] very best apple dessert cake

"I've been doing this special and remarkably easy recipe for years. The apples can be windfalls or even shrivelled ones left in the fruit bowl. Serve warm with ice cream or crème fraîche as a dessert, or with coffee in the morning as one would a Danish pastry, again warm, dusted with icing sugar."

SERVES 6

TOTAL TIME

1 hour 45 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 225g (8 oz) self-raising flour
• 1 level teaspoon baking powder
• 225g (8 oz) caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• ½ teaspoon almond extract
• 150g (5 oz) butter, melted
• 350g (12 oz) cooking apples, peeled and cored
• 25g (1 oz) flaked almonds

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 160ºC/Fan 140ºC/Gas 3.

Lightly grease a deep 20cm (8in) loose-bottomed cake tin.

Measure the flour, baking powder, sugar, eggs, almond extract and melted butter into a bowl. Mix well until blended, then beat for a minute.

Spread half this mixture into the prepared tin. Thickly slice the apples and lay on top of the mixture in the tin, piling mostly towards the centre. Using 2 dessertspoons, roughly spoon the remaining mixture over the apples.

This is an awkward thing to do, but just make sure that the mixture covers the centre well as it will spread out in the oven. Sprinkle with the flaked almonds.

Bake in the preheated oven for 1¼–1½ hours until golden and coming away from the sides of the tin.

Made this for Carin and Bernie last week and I loved it. So even if you don't, I'll have it here for future reference!! 

Tarte Tatin

Bought some cooking apples to make a pie but then decided to try this Tarte Tatin recipe which I normally use as the base for my "Ginger Plum Square". It was quite a huge success.

Recipe says: serves 8. It is very rich.

Pastry:
115 gr (4oz) butter, chilled
225 gr (8oz) plain flour
salt
1/2 tsp vanilla essence (I don't skimp on vanilla!)
3x15 ml/Tbs fromage frais (my Tbs are generous)

Filling:
5-6 large dessert apples (I used 2 cooking apples + 1 eating apple, because that's what I had) = 900gr
lemon juice
75 gr unsalted butter, softened (I used banking marge)
115 gr (4 oz) caster sugar (the finer one for in your tea!)

• Make the pastry. Now, they have all kinds of instructions but I just throw it all in the Magimix 'til it forms a ball and then wrap it in cling film.
• Refrigerate for an hour (or 30 mins if you're in a hurry!)

• pre-heat the oven to 220ºC/425ºF/ gas mark 7

• for the filling: peel, core and quarter apples, toss with lemon juice.
• Spread your butter over the base of a flame-proof pan and "pack" the sugar on top.
• Put the apples rounded side down into the dish.
• Then place over a moderate heat for about 10 mins, until the sugar and butter begin to caramelise (or not, in my case!)
• Roll out the pastry and place over the apples. I find this pastry collapses when I try to lift it because of the fromage frais but it doesn't matter because it will end up on the bottom anyway, so I patch it together and tuck the ends under.
• Bake for about 20 mins. The apples should be crispy (!) and the tart crisp. Serve hot, with cream if desired.
• Enjoy!!!

Pear, apple and goat's cheese tarte tatin recipe

The new: vegetarian pear, apple and goat's cheese tarte tatin recipe

By Alice Hart

Serves four to six

 

This is also fabulous made with all pears or all apples. Serve with a green salad. You’ll need a sturdy 25cm (10in) tatin dish or ovenproof frying-pan.

For the pastry
100g (3½oz) butter
200g (7oz) plain flour
100g (3½oz) vegetarian parmesan-style cheese, finely grated
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp thyme leaves

For the topping
75g (2¾oz) soft light-brown sugar
50g (1¾oz) butter, cubed
3 tbsp sherry vinegar
2 tbsp chopped walnuts
1 tbsp thyme leaves
3 ripe but firm pears, peeled, quartered and cored
3 dessert apples, such as Braeburn, peeled, quartered and cored
50g (1¾oz) hard goat’s cheese, coarsely grated

Whizz the butter and flour in a food processor until they resemble fine crumbs. Add a pinch of salt and the grated cheese and blend for a few seconds. Follow with the egg and thyme and blitz again until it just comes together into a ball. Knead very briefly, shape into a disc and wrap in clingfilm. Chill for 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.

Gently heat the sugar in the tatin tin or frying-pan until it turns to liquid, swirling occasionally to melt it evenly. When the caramel is golden, turn up the heat slightly and add the butter and vinegar, allowing the mixture to bubble for a minute. Remove from the heat.

Sprinkle the caramel with walnuts and thyme then carefully (it’s hot!) arrange the fruit on top, peeled-side down. Pack it in concentric circles. Top with the goat’s cheese.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry to a circle a bit larger than your pan. Using a rolling-pin to pick it up, cover the fruit with the pastry, tucking in the edges.

Bake for 30 minutes, until the pastry is golden and the caramel bubbling at the sides. Leave to cool for 10 minutes. Using oven gloves, hold a plate (with a lip) tightly over the pan and flip the whole lot over. Remove the pan, pushing any dislodged fruit back into place if necessary. 

I have some pears and goat's cheese which need eating up so I'm going to try this out tonight. I can't imagine it won't be wonderful...