Apple Harvest in Western Washington

Everywhere you look here there are apple trees dropping the sweetest apples. Friends invited us over on Wednesday to “pick” apples at a neighbors tree! Can you imagine that-apples are sooooo abundant here that they are just rotting on the ground! Well, these apples are not the perfect waxed ones you see in the grocery. I’ve had to whittle around worms and soft spots, BUT, are they wonderful. Most here in the city are native. I’ve made the Fresh Apple Cake, an Apple Pie, today is Apples and Pears Poached in Ginger Syrup and an Apple Chutney. The leftover apples will go into applesauce to make some wholewheat/applesauce muffins.

FRESH APPLE CAKE

One of my Mother’s friends at her church gave this recipe. It is so good. Thank you, Florence Duncan! It is my favorite birthday cake.

2 1/2 C flour
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
Sift together twice. Set aside.
Mix together sugar, butter and shortening.
2 C white sugar
1 C butter softened
1/2 C shortening
Then add:
4 eggs at room temperature
1 tsp good vanilla and beat until light.
2 C fresh grated apples (prefer hard and juicy-about 3 medium apples)
1 1/2 or so chopped pecans (I like to roast my pecans in a 350 oven for about 8 minutes and take out of the oven and put on a cool baking sheet to cool) Flour pecans a little.
Alternately add apple, nuts and dry ingredients. Beating by hand between ingredients. Once mixed add:
1/2 C water with 1 tsp baking soda dissolved in it. Mix well.
Grease and flour a tube pan. Pour batter into pan and level.
Bake in a preheated 350 oven for 1 hour or so until done. Let sit on a rack about 10 minutes and then turn out onto a plate.
You can frost with a confectioner’s sugar and chopped pecan frosting or a cream cheese frosting. I like it without any frosting.
ENJOY!