Skip to main content

Apple Almond Square







Apple season is upon us! Last year my apple trees were barren; this year I have bushels upon bushels ripening on the trees. The variety is native to Maine- a kind of blend between Granny Smith, Macintosh and Cortland, from the way they taste. They are incredibly and wonderfully tart; I vastly prefer a crunchy, tart apple to those mealy, sweet and horrible Red Delicious. That name is a lie!

I digress. This cake/bar/square/cobbler/dessert is just heaven. Easy to make, easier to eat, it’s a fabulous weekend treat or for a holiday. I made it during Labor Day weekend; filling up on deliciousness and baking before the school year begins and I am a professor for the first time ever. 

You know what? I think I need a glass of wine to go along with this….

Ingredients:
8 apples, peeled and diced
2 1/4 cups dark brown sugar, divided
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, plus extra for dusting
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup softened butter
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sliced almonds

Method:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cream together the butter and 2 cups sugar; beat in the eggs one at a time. Stir in the vanilla. Add in the flour, nuts, nutmeg and cinnamon and mix well. 

Tumble the diced apples into a greased 13 by 9 baking dishes; sprinkle over the remaining sugar and dust with cinnamon. 


Dollop the cake batter over. Bake in the oven for 45 to 55 minutes or until the apples are tender. Enjoy drizzled with caramel sauce, with ice cream, or just beautifully bare and warm out of the oven.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Leftover Cranberry Sauce Cookies

Like many of you, I made an entire Thanksgiving Day feast for only my husband and I. As such, I have an inordinate amount of leftovers. Expect my blog to largely star ways to dress up leftovers, because I have freezer meals of Thanksgiving day to last a lifetime. In this recipe, I was looking for a way to use up cranberry sauce and leftover walnuts from my apple crisp. Cranberry sauce drop cookies seemed the perfect thing to make; enjoy it with a cup of hot cocoa. I plan on gifting some to my parents; a way to break bread near the holiday without breaking protocols. Enjoy!  Ingredients: 3 3/4 cup all purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 2 sticks of butter, softened 1 1/2 cups sugar 3 eggs 1 cup cranberry sauce 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 cup chopped nuts Method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Set aside a rimmed baking tray. Whisk together all of the dry ingredients in a medium bowl; set aside. With ...

Samosas with Yogurt Sauce

I love exploring many kinds of cuisine in my kitchen because I can control the spice level, and in the case of this recipe, the use of cilantro. Cilantro lovers out there- sub it info the parsley here. I have the gene that makes cilantro taste like soap, which limits my ability to enjoy some dishes in restaurants, but is easily rectified in my own kitchen. I hope you enjoy! Ingredients:  3 russet potatoes 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped 2 teaspoons curry powder 5 ounces peas Six 8 inch flour tortillas 4 ounces Greek yogurt Oil, salt, pepper, vinegar 4 tablespoons butter Method: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet. Scrub potatoes and cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces. Place in a large saucepan with a generous pinch of salt and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Cover and bring to a boil over high; uncover and cook until tenderDrain potatoes and transfer to a bowl.  Heat 2 tablespoons oil in reserved saucepan over medium. Add chopped garl...

Peek-a-boo Squares

My grandma, Mimi, taught me this recipe. I used to make this with her and my mother as a child. It is my very favorite dessert. It is incredibly easy to make, and even easier to eat. My favorite part of making this as a child was dusting every bar generously with snowy white powdered sugar.  My favorite version of this dessert uses canned blueberry pie filling; I vastly prefer Libby brand over the store brand. You can make blueberry pie filling from scratch with sugar, cornstarch, bleberries, etc. but using the canned stuff is easy in a pinch and is much for nostalgic for me. Plus, I don’t notice a vast improvement over my homemade blueberry pie filling and the Libby brand; it just takes me longer to put this dessert together.  I have been known to whip up a pan of these Friday night and have them disappear by Saturday afternoon. Be warned, these things are addictive! Ingredients: 3 cups of all-purpose flour 2 cups of granulated sugar 4 eggs 2 ...