Toffee Apple Cake

Tue, 26 November 2019

Chef Edward Hayden was in showing us how to bake a Toffee apple cake, perfect for any occasion served with or without the icing and lashings of butterscotch sauce

(Serves 12)

Ingredients:
12oz/350g butter
12oz/350g demerara sugar
12oz/350g self raising flour
6 large eggs
1 tablespoon golden syrup
1 medium sized cooking apple-grated

Icing:
6oz/175g butter
3oz/75g tinned carnation caramel
1lb/450g icing sugar

Garnish:
5oz/150g tinned carnation caramel
3 apples
Wooden twigs (I have used dried beach)

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4

Grease and line three 8inch/20cm sandwich tins
In a large mixing bowl cream the butter with the sugar and golden syrup until very light and fluffy.
Gradually add the eggs, grated apple and mix in the flour.

Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin and bake for approximately 20 minutes or until the cake is well set-A skewer inserted into the centre of the cake should come away spotlessly clean and dry. When the cakes are cooked take it out of the oven and allow it to cool in the tin as it will still be quite soft at this stage. Ideally you should have the cake made the day before you require it.

Allow to cool in the tin and then invert onto a wire tray and allow to cool.

Meanwhile begin by making the butter icing.

Cream the icing sugar, caramel and butter together in a large mixing bowl for at least 4-5 minutes.
The addition of a teaspoon of boiling water will make the icing really soft if required


Assembly:
Place one of the sponges onto a cake stand. Spread with ½ of the caramel and then pipe 1/3 of the butter icing on top. Top with another of the apple flavoured sponges and repeat the process on this layer using the remaining caramel and another 1/3 of the butter icing. Finally place the remaining sponge on top of this and spread with the remaining butter icing. For special effect garnish the cake with three apples threaded with some dried beach twigs giving the cake great height and drama!

Top Tip:
I sometimes use the sponge part of this recipe to make some lovely flavoured cupcakes and then hollow out the centre, injecting with a little of the caramel and then icing with the toffee icing. (I would normally half both recipes because if not you will just have too many cupcakes in the cupboard and that as we all know is very dangerous!!)