Spiced Apple Cake

This particular recipe was taken from English Patis who tweaked a Delia recipe. I used golden caster and left out the pecan nuts to please all members of the family.

Ingredients:
350g peeled and chopped apples - I used Braeburns
275g plain flour
110g butter - melted
2 eggs - slightly beaten
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves (optional)
1/2 whole nutmeg - finely grated (about 1 tsp)
170 g golden caster sugar
175 ml milk


Topping:
75g  Demerara sugar
75g  self-raising flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
25g  butter - softened
50g  pecans or walnuts - roughly chopped - optional
1 Tbsp cold water

Method:

Preheat oven to 165C fan. Grease the bottom of a 3 lb loaf tin and line with a strip of greaseproof to aid removal once cooked.

Mix the topping - combine the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and flour in a small bowl. Cut in the soft butter with two butter knives into the mixture. Then proceed to rub in it with your fingertips. Add in the nuts - mix well. Sprinkle the cold water and toss. Set aside.

Combine the flour, cinnamon, cloves, baking powder, and salt in another bowl.
Put the eggs in a large bowl. Add in the milk, sugar, and melted butter.
Add the flour mixture into the egg mixture with a wooden spoon and mix well stirring in the chopped apples.

Pour into the greased cake tin

Sprinkle the topping on the surface of the batter.

Bake in oven for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool for about 5 minutes, turn out from the pan then cool completely.

Serves 10-12 portions and at the time of writing this recipe the cost of producing this cake was £2.75.