Apple Tea Cake With Lemon Glaze

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The weather is getting warmer in Colorado, well, most of the days. As I type this, I see snow flakes falling on trees,like floating feathers. But still, it is unusually warm for a January in this ski country. As I have told you before, winter is my favorite excuse to bake something nice. This tea cake is no exception !

This is a nice, flavorful, tangy, sweet buttermilk pound cake that goes well with your afternoon coffee or tea. The layers in the picture made me want to try it, as soon as I opened this beautiful book I received from a giveaway. Isn't that a lovely presentation,with those surprise layers showing up ?

Though the kids didn't like it much, the adults in the house really loved it. My kids are the pickiest eaters ever! Sometimes I think, I'm giving them way more choices than they should really have ! You will understand what I am trying to say ,once you read this whole story. As a kid I used to gobble up anything from a bakery,since I loved anything back then . My little sister and I, used to look for any baked goodies my mom might have brought and kept in her bag ,on the way back from her office. There was a really good bakery near to her office and sometimes when she, along with her friends, would just drop in to have some tea and the bakery owner would tempt her with the new items she could possibly buy for her kids. One of the things I still remember is these small pieces of tea cakes, wrapped like candies, in thin parchment paper. I do not know whether they still sell those cuties, I will definitely find it out during my next trip to Kerala.And if they are there-I'll buy them right away!

Don't misconcieve the story I was trying to tell you. This buying goodies used to happen only once in a blue moon. But still we used to grab her tote and thoroughly search, hoping for a bounty or a little something, everyday she comes back from work. We used to cherish and eat every little treat we used to get, unlike my super duper picky little fellows. Now tell me, didn't I spoil my kids? This cake is nothing like the cake in this story. But the name of this cake reminded me about those cute tea cakes I used to relish ages ago,as a kid.

Have a great weekend all !!


Ingredients:

Unsalted Butter, at room temp- 1/2 cup
Granulated Sugar- 1 cup
All purpose Flour- 1 1/2 cup
Salt- 1/4 tsp
Baking Powder- 1/2 tsp
Baking Soda- 1/4 tsp
Eggs- 2 large +one yolk
Lemon Zest(optional)- 1/4 tsp
Buttermilk- 1/2 cup
Apple- 1 small firm-sweet or half of a big one
Cinnamon- 1/2 tsp,divided

For the glaze:

Confectioner's sugar- 1 cup
Lemon juice- 2 Tbsp

Method:

1.Preheat oven at 350 degree F. Grease a loaf pan preferably a 8.5 inch by 4.5 inch. (I used a bigger one and my cake is more flattened than it is supposed to be !)
2.Whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside.Slice the cored and unpeeled apple using a mandoline, lengthwise
3.Beat the butter and sugar on high speed, till it turns pale, fluffy and almost mousse-like.This takes about 7-8 minutes.
4.Add the eggs and yolk, one at a time and beat well to mix in.
5.Add about a third of the flour mixture into this and mix on low speed.
6.Pour in half of the butter milk and mix well.Repeat till the flour is over.Do not over mix.
7.Spoon in a third of the batter in the pan.Layer with half of the apple slices and top with 1/4 tsp of cinnamon.
8.Pour 1/3 rd of the batter on top and level with a spatula. Arrange the remaining apple slices, topped with rest of the cinnamon.
9.Top with the rest of the batter, level it and bake for about 45 minutes or until a tester inserted comes out clean.
10.remove cake from the oven and cool for about 5 minutes on a wire rack ,in the pan.
11.Meanwhile mix the confectioner's sugar and the lemon juice to make the glaze.
13.Poke the cake with a toothpick inserted all the way.Pour over about half of the glaze on the cake and let it soak.
14.After 10 minutes turn the cake on a wire rack and let cool. Pour the remaining glaze over the cake, let it set and serve with tea/coffee.

Notes:

1.The original recipe didn't call for any lemon zest in the recipe.
2.The author suggests to use a apple that has lemon flavors in it, like Ginger gold or Gravenstein. I used Honey Crisp apples.
3.The cake is sticky, so I would recommend lining the pan with a parchment paper.

Recipe Adapted From:The Apple Lover's Cookbook