Apple Fritter Cake

Let's start with some good news before I segue into a knocked-it-out-of-the-park recipe, shall we?

The good news for me is I am now down 14 pounds!  Yay for hard work!  A little less than 2 weeks until I have my labs redone and that is the main thing I'm working for.  But it sure is nice to see some benefits of work and discipline.

I have been a bit whiny these last few days, really wanting something rich and chocolatey.  In large quantities.  The hubs so kindly reminded me that this new craving crisis may be linked to the calendar.  Sure enough, all should be well in a couple days.  So I will keep on keepin' on and trusting the process.

Today has been an extraordinarily productive day in the kitchen.  I have pre-made four dinners so far, and am mid-process in making 24 breakfast sandwiches for the freezer.  All this means that I not only have a couple meals to give away this week, but my evenings will also be a bit smoother with the heat-n-eat meals.  And ultimately that means I get to the gym after work with less chaos.

SO!  I have been working really hard to not only monitor my own intake, but to also make sure I don't punish the rest of the family.  Yeah, I can't eat nachos during the Super Bowl, but I can still make phenomenal nachos for everyone else to enjoy.  And I still love baking as an activity.  Sometimes my cravings are more to CREATE the sweets than to eat them.

Today I decided to make a cake I found on Pinterest awhile ago.  I knew it was one that would be lovingly embraced by my peeps.  And boy-howdy.  It is a homerun.  It will forever be in the rotation of requested desserts.  Brad, after two bites, requested this for Father's Day.  It's that good.

It is an apple fritter cake.  Yes, an APPLE FRITTER CAKE!!

The link above will take you to the original recipe if you want to take a peek at that.  I tweaked it ever so slightly, feeling like a little more cinnamon would be a bonus.

And, I'm not ashamed to admit that I ate a bite to verify the oohs and ahhs.  And it's truly great.  It would make an outstanding brunch cake, or just a wowzers cake, maybe warm with a little vanilla ice cream?  Yum.  Let's get on with it, shall we?

Apple Fritter Cake

Filling:
1 heaping, spilling over cup of sliced apples.  I used 1 very large fuji apple
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
2 TBSP cornstarch
2 tsp water

Place all ingredients into a small saucepan and heat over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until mixture is thickened and apples are softening. (About 7-9 minutes) Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Filling #2:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Combine well in a small bowl, set aside.

Cake:
1/3 cup softened butter
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup greek yogurt (plain, nonfat)

Blend together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add applesauce, vanilla and eggs and beat well.

Sift together the dry ingredients.  Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, then 1/2 the yogurt.  Repeat, ending with flour mixture.  Blend until just combined.

Spoon half the batter into a greased and floured 9x13 pan. (Batter will be thick, so plop it around evenly and then carefully spread.)  Spoon the apple filling over the batter, carefully spreading in evenly.  Sprinkle with 2/3 of the "Filling #2" brown sugar mix.  Cover with the remaining batter, then top with remaining brown sugar mix.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes, until cake tests done with a toothpick.

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
4 TBSP milk

Whisk together ingredients until smooth.  Add a tiny bit of milk as needed to get to the right consistency.

Remove cake from oven and poke a bunch of holes in it with a fork.  Immediately pour the glaze over the entire cake.

Set aside to drool...I mean cool...slightly and for the glaze to set.

Serve warm.  My peeps ate it with some vanilla ice cream and a tad bit of caramel sauce drizzled on the top.

Mercy.