I love Autumn. The changing colors, the crisp air-you can almost taste the holidays coming up. Nothing suits me better on an early fall morning, then a hot cup of tea and a slice of something sweet. I propose that the perfect slice for the perfect morning would have to have apples. Apples scream fall. Cinnamon would work, of course. A handful of nuts. And there we are. Now I just need a cup of tea.
Cinnamon Apple Cake with Spiced Maple Glaze
For the Cake:
1/2 Cup canola oil
1/2 Cup maple syrup
1 Cup soymilk
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 1/2 Cups barley flour
1/2 Cup maple sugar of sucanat
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 Teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
4 apples-peeled, cored, and chopped
1/4 Cup of Spiced Maple Glaze(recipe follows)
Lightly oil a 9 inch springform pan and set aside. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, mix the wet ingredients together. Separately, mix the flour, maple sugar, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt. Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until everything is incorporated, but be careful not to overmix. Fold in the apples and the nuts, and pour the batter into your prepared pan.
Bake for 35 minutes, the rotate half way and bake for another 30 minutes-an inserted knife should come out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan, then cool completely. Drizzle with:
Spiced Maple Glaze
For the Glaze:
2 Cups maple sugar, sifted
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
A pinch of grated or ground nutmeg
1/4 Cup soymilk
2 teaspoons Vanilla
In a small bowl, combine the sugar, salt, and spices. In a separate bowl, combine the soymilk and vanilla.
Drizzle the soymilk mixture into the sugar, stirring as you do. It should get smooth and syrupy, and coat the back of a spoon.
