The grandma’s apple cake with yogurt is tall, soft and fragrant, a simple dessert that is prepared in a short time using genuine and easy-to-find ingredients. The apple cake is a classic that brings back many memories — a special comfort food that fills the house with a “homey” scent and I can’t wait for it to come out of the oven so I can try a slice.
Apple cakes are made in many different ways, but in my memories the ingredients were always the same: eggs, sugar, flour, butter or oil, apples and flavorings; among the flavorings vanilla and lemon zest always prevailed — cinnamon was almost never used in my home.
Spices were purchased only at Christmas, already pre-measured for the dessert to be prepared, and we used to spend whole afternoons making panoni, pinze and certosini.
The cake I suggest today is special: extremely soft, full of apples with a hint of amaretti. Try it and let me know what you think; in the meantime, here are other apple-based recipes to try:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Budget-friendly
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Cooking time: 45 Minutes
- Portions: 10 servings
- Cooking methods: Electric oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter and Spring
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups 00 flour (all-purpose)
- 2/3 cup potato starch
- 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp cup granulated sugar (about 170 g)
- 1/2 cup plain natural yogurt (1 single-serving container (~125 g))
- 6 tbsp peanut oil (or about 7 tbsp softened butter (if preferred))
- 3 eggs (medium)
- 1 packet baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (my grandmother used vanillin but I avoid it)
- lemon zest (grated, from half a fresh lemon)
- 6 pieces amaretti cookies (crumbled; omit if you don't like them)
- 3 large apples (about 1.3 lb (600 g) net after trimming)
- 2 tsp butter (for greasing the pan (about 10 g))
- 1 tbsp 00 flour (for dusting the pan)
- 2 tbsp vanilla powdered sugar (confectioners') (for dusting, about 20 g)
Tools
- 1 Bowl large
- 1 Electric mixer
- 1 Scale
- 1 Spatula
- 1 Springform pan removable, 9.5 in diameter
Procedure
For optimal results, eggs and yogurt should be at room temperature.
Wash the apples, peel them, then slice two of them into thin slices and cut one into small cubes.
Sift the flour with the potato starch and the baking powder, then set aside.In a large bowl whip the eggs with the sugar until the mixture is pale and foamy. Use room temperature eggs — this is essential for the recipe to turn out well.
Add the yogurt, lemon zest and vanilla (or vanillin) to the mixture, briefly incorporate them with the beaters, then add half of the sifted flours.
Add the oil and the crumbled amaretti, then incorporate and add the remaining sifted flours; you should obtain a soft and airy batter that will become very tender when baked.
Fold the diced apple into the batter.
Pour the batter into the greased and floured pan.
Arrange the apple slices over the surface and bake in a preheated static (conventional) oven at 356°F for about 45 minutes.
Always perform the toothpick test to check for doneness; if needed, extend the baking time by a few minutes. If the surface tends to brown too much, cover it with a sheet of aluminum foil.
The grandma’s apple cake with yogurt is ready — let it cool, dust with powdered sugar and serve.
Tips
Storage
The grandma’s apple cake with yogurt keeps for three days at room temperature in a cake container. When it’s very hot, the fruit sours quickly, so I recommend storing the cake in the refrigerator during the summer months and leaving it at room temperature for 1 hour before serving.
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