Old-Fashioned Stack Cake with Appalachian Apple Butter Filling

By Hklbrries

It’s our favorite fruit and American as, well, its most popular baked good.

A new apple season is here, offering a crisp, sweet edge to fall meals plus the promise of lots of pie – and pie-inspired dishes.

What makes apples and apple pie so all-American?

“It brings people together,” said Ken Haedrich, author of “Apple Pie: 100 Delicious and Decidedly Different Recipes for America’s Favorite Pie.” “It’s the closest thing we have, food-wise, to a universal symbol of goodness and contentment.

“It manages to do this with unabashed honesty and not an ounce of pretense. It’s an edible reflection of America’s best character traits.”

In honor of 2011 as the “Year of the Pie,” Haedrich’s “Apple Pie” was re-released this month – just in time for the new apple crop.

Haedrich loves all sorts of apple pies, particularly those with a brown sugar crumb topping.

For pies, he prefers Winesap apples.

“It’s hard to find but worth looking for in an area where they’re grown. It’s the perfect blend of sweet, tart and juicy, with wonderfully complex flavor. Among the more common varieties, I like Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Fuji and Jonathan.”

“My best advice: If you find an apple that makes a great pie, stick with it,” he said, “but don’t be afraid to experiment.”

The flavor of apple pie inspires variations such as Apple Pie Cookies, Apple Pie Salad and Apple Pie Soup.

Baked in a pie plate, an apple pie cake looks, smells and tastes like its namesake. An apple stack cake piles up pie-like apple butter filling (using dried apples) between fluffy layers.

Old-Fashioned Stack Cake With Appalachian Apple Butter Filling:

This recipe comes from the September-October issue of “Cooking With Paula Deen.” According to the magazine, stack cakes were traditional in Southern Appalachia when folks gathered for special occasions. Tradition says the number of layers in a cake was a measure of the popularity of the hosting family.

The cooking time of this cake depends on how big you want your stack. This recipe makes one 9-inch cake with six stacks. Three stacks were baked simultaneously for 10 to 12 minutes. The filling takes about an hour. Allow 24 hours for the cake to chill in the refrigerator.

Ingredients

• Cake:
• 1/2 cup all-vegetable shortening
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/3 cup molasses
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch of nutmeg
• Confectioners’ sugar for dusting
• Filling:
• 4 cups roughly chopped dried apples
• 1 1/3 cups firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 6 cups apple cider (not juice)

Details

Servings 8

Preparation

Step 1

Cake:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray 6 (9-inch) cake pans with nonstick cooking spray. Line bottoms of pans with parchment paper, and spray parchment paper with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, beat shortening and sugar at medium speed with a mixer until creamy. Add buttermilk, molasses, egg and vanilla, beating well.

In a large bowl, combine flour, ginger, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Make a well in center of flour mixture. Add shortening mixture, stirring just until combined.

On a lightly floured surface, form dough into a log; cut into six equal portions. Place one portion in each prepared pan, and use fingers to lightly pat dough to edges of pans.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks. Cake will have the consistency of a gingerbread cookie.

Place one cake layer on a serving plate or cake stand; spread with about 3/4 cup warm fruit butter filling (recipe below).

Repeat procedure with remaining layers and fruit butter filling, stacking each on previous layer. Do not spread fruit butter filling on top layer. Cover and refrigerate cake for at least 24 hours. Just before serving, dust with confectioners’ sugar.

Filling:

In large saucepan, combine dried fruit and all dry ingredients. Add enough liquid to cover. Bring to a low boil and cook, stirring often, for 45 minutes.

Remove from heat, and let stand for 10 minutes or until cooled slightly. Transfer to the work bowl of a food processor or container of a blender; process until smooth. Use while still warm.

Nutrition Information:
Per serving
704 calories
13 g fat (4 g saturated)
8 g protein
137 g carbohydrates
24 mg cholesterol
5 g fiber
548 mg sodium