Apple Tray Bake

Each year I say I have found the best apple cake of the season.

Well, this is the winner for 2016.

The only problem will be finding this wonderful British golden caster sugar......I had it leftover from this UK recipe, and I think it made this cake even more amazing than it should be.
If you have a friend in the UK, ask then to send you a couple of packages of this sugar, I am addicted to it.

A "tray bake" is a British thing, not sure why, but the BBC has so many lovely recipes for tray bakes with apples......all using a type of apple we do not have here in the US, called a "Bramley" apple. That's ok, I live in NJ, where we have a ton of great locally grown apples to use.
I used Granny Smith and Macoun.

I adapted this recipe from a healthier website than mine.....where the authors only use rice flour to make it gluten free, and honey or maple syrup instead of sugar, and are vegans.
I am neither (gluten free, nor vegan, in case you are just coming on board now).

So, I adapted the recipe to make it for me.
I used sour cream instead of buttermilk or yogurt (because that is what I had)....and I didn't grind my oats, I kept them whole.

I bought almond flour (as the original recipe calls for), instead of my usual almond meal, and I liked it much better. It is lighter than the almond meal and that along with the caster sugar made for a delicious sponge cake.

Green Kitchen Stories served this delightful cake with a ginger spiced lemon yogurt, which would be terrific, I am sure.....but I just liked eating it plain, on its own.

This cake is wonderful. Period.
Pretty too.

Apple Tray Bake: (very loosely adapted from Greek Kitchen Stories)

Dry Ingredients:
1 cup rolled oats (I used Quaker)
1 cup almond flour
1 cup of regular flour (or 3/4 cup of rice flour to make it g.f.)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch of cloves
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Wet Ingredients:
4 oz butter (8 tbsp, or one stick), at room temperature
1 cup of golden caster sugar (or 1/2 cup maple syrup 
or runny honey)
2 apples, rinsed
3/4 cup cultured buttermilk, sour cream or yogurt
3 eggs, separated

Topping:
2 tbsp melted butter
cinnamon sugar

Mix the dry ingredients with the vanilla.

Then mix in the butter and everything else. The batter will be nice and thick and smell like cinnamon oatmeal. :)

I used a 9"x12" metal shallow baking pan, greased and lined with parchment paper.

Pour the batter and spread it into the pan.

I used a Macoun and a Granny Smith apple. I kept the peels on.

Slice the apples nice and thin and arrange them how you like, pressing into the batter.

Lay the cake on a bed of leaves and take a picture because you are a food blogger ;)

Brush w/ the 2 tbsp of melted butter and sprinkle on cinnamon sugar.

Bake in a 350F oven for 42-45 minutes, depending on the thickness of your cake.

Let completely cool in the pan, and then lift out with the paper.

Slice into squares and serve.

It freezes well too.

This is a winner.