Bubbe’s Apple Cake Recipe
I received an email from Suzanne Scara of New Jersey letting me know that her “Bubbe’s Apple Cake was one of the top 5 finalists in the Spreading Smucker’s Traditions Recipe and Essay contest.”
She wanted me to take a look at her recipe and vote on it.Suzanne’s recipe is called Bubbe’s Apple Cake. I asked Suzanne for a little history on this recipe and how it got its name and here is what she told me,
Although my sister and I never knew our grandmother, our mother baked this cake from her mother’s recipe, preserving memories and tastes from the past. When possible, she used home-grown apples, from our trees, just as her mother had done.
As we all became busy with school and work, there was less time for baking and tending to apple trees. Consequently, our beloved cake was baked on rare occasions.
The recipe was filed away as we made kitchen renovations. And circumstances forced my sister and her family to move out of state (from New Jersey to Pennsylvania). As we got together less, there was a chance we’d be seeing even less of Bubbe’s * special apple cake.
However, the first autumn in her new home, my sister realized she was blessed with a row of apple trees – trees bearing the mellow, golden apples of our childhood (which she happily shares with me). And she and I have become avid home bakers.
Now we each have a copy of Bubbe’s apple cake recipe. So, without missing a generation, this homey, old world apple cake continues to nourish and comfort us, on quiet evenings with tea, and at all sorts of family gatherings.
* Bubbe is the Yiddish term of endearment for Grandmother
Apple Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 1¼ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 medium apples peeled and cut into thin slices
- ½ cup Smucker's Red Plum jam
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 3 large eggs brought to room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 pinch cinnamon
Instructions
- Begin by preheating oven to 350° F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.
- Combine the flour, baking powder and salt together in a mixing bowl. Give dry ingredients a stir and set the bowl aside.
- In another bowl, combine apple slices, Smucker's Red Plum jam and lemon juice. Mix up so that apples are coated in jam and lemon juice. Set aside.
- Beat the eggs well, either with electric beater on medium, or vigorously by hand.
- Gradually add sugar and beat (about 2 min.), or mix by hand, till mixture is almost fluffy.
- Add oil and vanilla and almond extracts, and continue to beat and scrape side of bowl till all is combined.
- Next, mix in the flour mixture (if using electric beater, reduce speed to low). Mix until batter is blended to uniform color and consistency.
- Take just half of the batter and spread evenly in the baking pan.
- Next, cover the layer of batter with the apple and jam mixture. Then spread the remaining half of the batter over the apples. Give a light shake or two of cinnamon over the surface of the cake.
- Bake on the center rack till golden (approximately one hour).
- After removing from oven, let the cake cool. Cut into squares and serve.
Yum! We do not get Smuckers in New Zealand, but amazingly I just bought yesterday, a pot of the best home-made plum jam I’ve had in ages. So I will definitely be making this soon, especially since our spring has all of a sudden sprung back to wintryconditions.
P.S. I just voted for your family’s recipe because it was not only very good, but it eoked memories of the desserts of my own times with my grand-parents.
R.G, I apologise for all these messages, but I forgot that the reason I came to your site originally today was to let you know how much we enjoyed your recipe for squash with shallots. I didn’t have any dry sherry, so used red wine and a touch of maple syrup instead. Wonderful!!
The recipe sounds delicious and much easier than the Jewish Apple Cake recipe I usually make this time of year, but I didn’t see the size of the baking pan mentioned anywhere in the recipe. Did I overlook it or is it missing?
I am in a very good mood for cooking. For a “strange” reason. Since my husband has a stroke last May (he remained with great difficulties in communication and interpretation skils and he may not be able to work again and he is only 54) we decide to try to enjoy life. And cooking heps a lot! I am going to try the Apple Cake Recipe .
Hey, I was just blog hopping and I found your blog, good one!
Have made this at least ten times. Adjusted recipe by adding grated lemon rind to batter, increased apples to five, used various jams such as Bumbleberry, rasberry etc and only use a spring form pan. Deeeelish and one of the best ways to a man’s heart!!
Hi Christine, thanks for your suggestions and substitutions. Sounds deeeelish and not a bad way to a woman’s heart too. – RG