Sharlotka: The first apple recipe that most Russian kids learn
This simple dessert is known to everyone in Russia, but it actually originated in Britain in the 18th century and was known as “Charlotte”. This apple bread pudding was first invented by peasants, but the Russian version of “Charlotte” was invented in London at the beginning of the 19th century by French chef Marie-Antoine Carême, who was in the service of Russian Czar Alexander I. Later, this recipe became so popular that it was simplified from having Bavarian cream and savoiardi cookies to being an easy-to-prepare pie with biscuit and apples. Even the name was modified to “Sharlotka”.
Ever since I was little, my mom used to make sharlotka on special occasions. When my grandma would visit us, which was rare, because she lived in another city, mom would always bake it for us. As a child I associated sharlotka with those visits, as well as with big family dinners.
Later, when I was about 8, I decided that I needed to know how to make sharlotka myself. This was the first recipe I ever tried to do by myself. At that time, it seemed like a very complicated task with a lot of work, but it was always worth the effort. Since then, it has become my “go to” recipe.
This was also one of the first dishes I made for my Mexican husband. He loved it so much that, in time, he showed this recipe to his mother. So, now my mother-in-law makes sharlotka as an exotic Russian apple cake for her friends and family in Mexico, and it makes me happy to see how such a simple thing unites my family. But most importantly, I think, sharlotka influenced my choice of profession as a pastry chef.
Ingredients:
- 4-5 acidic apples (like Granny Smith)
- 1 cup of flour
- 1 cup of sugar
- 3 eggs
- Salt, cinnamon, cardamom
Cooking:
1. Heat the oven to 180°C. Prepare your cake mold by greasing the surface; butter is your best choice for this purpose.
2. Peel and core your apples, and cut them so you get 8 pieces. Lay out the mold with your apple slices as tight as possible.
3. If you have leftover slices that didn’t fit, then cut them into even smaller pieces and fill the empty places with those. The bottom of your mold should be completely covered with apples.
4. Sprinkle a little bit of cinnamon and cardamom powder on top.
5. Prepare your batter by mixing the dry ingredients in a bowl and adding eggs to them.
6. At first the batter will seem pretty stiff, but keep mixing until it is homogenous and thick.
7. At this point you are ready to pour your batter over the apples; make sure it covers all of them.
8. Place the mold into the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes.
9. It is ready if the toothpick test comes out clean; if not, then give it a little more time. Once it is ready cool it down a little before removing it from the mold. Priyatnogo appetita!
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Preparation
Preheat oven to 180° C. Line a 20 cm diameter cake pan with baking paper.
Sift the flours, cream of tartar and baking powder into a large bowl. Add a pinch of salt and stir together using a whisk. Set the bowl to one side.
Wash, peel and cut the apple (or apples) in half. Cut half of the apple into very thin slices of about 1-2 mm thick (a vegetable slicer makes this easy). By using very thinly cut apple slices you avoid any uneven distribution of moisture within the batter. If you like, you can further chop the thin apple slices into tiny cubes. If a whole apple is used for this step, the cake will be moister, yet it will still be light and retain its fresh and airy consistency. If the apple slices are cut too thick, the batter will have a less smooth consistency, and the individual slices of cake will be more likely to crumble during cutting.
Cut the other half of the apple into medium-thick slices of about 3-4 mm and place these slices in a bowl. Spoon over just a little of the orange juice and rice syrup, mix together well using a spatula, and leave to rest (these will be used for decoration).
In another bowl, combine the remaining syrup and orange juice with the peanut oil and the water. Add the grated orange peel, vanilla pod seeds and the thinly cut apple slices; mix together well.
Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and carefully stir together.
Mix until the batter has a smooth, even consistency and is free of any lumps.
Pour the batter into the cake tin, spreading evenly with a spatula. Decoratively arrange the more thickly sliced apple on top of the batter and lightly press in.
Bake the cake in a preheated oven for 50 minutes or until it is golden and cooked through – use a wooden cocktail stick to check that the cake is done. Allow the cake to cool in the oven with the oven door slightly ajar so that the cake doesn’t sink in the middle. Moist apple cakes that are baked without eggs have a tendency to collapse, but this apple cake is not overly moist so there should be little danger of this happening. That being said, some apples can be particularly juicy so you should still keep an eye on this.
It’s best to serve the cake either slightly warm or at room temperature.
If you have a sweet tooth, you can pour over a couple of spoons of syrup or dust the top with icing sugar (preferably the whole cane variety) before serving.
Источник
Preparation
Preheat oven to 180° C. Line a 20 cm diameter cake pan with baking paper.
Sift the flours, cream of tartar and baking powder into a large bowl. Add a pinch of salt and stir together using a whisk. Set the bowl to one side.
Wash, peel and cut the apple (or apples) in half. Cut half of the apple into very thin slices of about 1-2 mm thick (a vegetable slicer makes this easy). By using very thinly cut apple slices you avoid any uneven distribution of moisture within the batter. If you like, you can further chop the thin apple slices into tiny cubes. If a whole apple is used for this step, the cake will be moister, yet it will still be light and retain its fresh and airy consistency. If the apple slices are cut too thick, the batter will have a less smooth consistency, and the individual slices of cake will be more likely to crumble during cutting.
Cut the other half of the apple into medium-thick slices of about 3-4 mm and place these slices in a bowl. Spoon over just a little of the orange juice and rice syrup, mix together well using a spatula, and leave to rest (these will be used for decoration).
In another bowl, combine the remaining syrup and orange juice with the peanut oil and the water. Add the grated orange peel, vanilla pod seeds and the thinly cut apple slices; mix together well.
Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and carefully stir together.
Mix until the batter has a smooth, even consistency and is free of any lumps.
Pour the batter into the cake tin, spreading evenly with a spatula. Decoratively arrange the more thickly sliced apple on top of the batter and lightly press in.
Bake the cake in a preheated oven for 50 minutes or until it is golden and cooked through – use a wooden cocktail stick to check that the cake is done. Allow the cake to cool in the oven with the oven door slightly ajar so that the cake doesn’t sink in the middle. Moist apple cakes that are baked without eggs have a tendency to collapse, but this apple cake is not overly moist so there should be little danger of this happening. That being said, some apples can be particularly juicy so you should still keep an eye on this.
It’s best to serve the cake either slightly warm or at room temperature.
If you have a sweet tooth, you can pour over a couple of spoons of syrup or dust the top with icing sugar (preferably the whole cane variety) before serving.
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Vegan Apple Butter Cake with Buttered Caramel Frosting
Home » Recipes » Vegan Apple Butter Cake with Buttered Caramel Frosting
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Apple butter is one of my favorite baking ingredients, so I just knew it would add incredible flavor to make a gluten free and vegan apple butter cake.
Have you ever have a recipe inspiration based upon a single ingredient — something you just know in your taste buds will be incredible … you just have to figure out how to pull it off? Well that’s what happened for me with this vegan apple butter cake with buttered caramel frosting.
Apple butter (or pumpkin butter!) would make an ordinary cake exceptional, but buttered caramel frosting takes it to the next level.
The base for this apple-butter-inspired cake is something called a “War Cake”, “Depression Cake” or “Wacky Cake.” During the Great Depression and times of war, eggs, milk and butter were scarce, so crafty cooks baked cakes without. I used olive oil in my version — I love its yummy health benefits, and that it subtle-ly imparts a warm, savory flavor in baked goods. I’m sure you could use your favorite vegetable oil instead, if you prefer.
It seems odd to be thinking about making war-time or Depression-Era cakes in modern times, but we’re dealing with a lot of really strange things right now that most (ok probably all) of us never thought we would. One of them is food shortages in the grocery store. Whether due to panic hoarding or supply chain inconsistencies from the quarantine, having a sweet treat recipe that doesn’t require a lot of ingredients is a nice thing to have right about now.
You might be thinking that it’s great to have a gluten free cake recipe with no eggs, dairy or butter, but you don’t have any apple butter on hand. No problem! If you can get your hands on some apples, it’s super easy to make your own! We’re all finding some new things to get good at right now, aren’t we?
Start with a mixture of fresh apples, peel, cook & mash. No magic there!
Check out my easy homemade apple butter recipe and video, and add apple butter making to your quiver of new skills to impress your friends with. “What did you learn how to do today?” “Um, play cards?” “Well I made apple butter!” (They don’t have to know it’s super simple to do.) Oh, and if you’re making this recipe later in the year, try making homemade pumpkin butter with my easy recipe for that! Here’s my homemade pumpkin butter recipe and video!
Click to see my recipe and video showing how to make apple butter in a crock pot (one method).
Once you’ve mastered making homemade apple butter, the sky ‘s the limit on the recipes you can make with it! Here are some of our favorites so far: Gluten Free Apple Bread; Gluten Free Poptarts; Apple Butter-Sriracha Marinade; Gluten Free Apple Butter Granola; Apple Butter-Butternut Squash Casserole; and even the yummy filling to Gluten Free Doughnut Holes!
Now back to this luscious cake! What it lacks in traditional cake ingredients (butter, milk and eggs), it most certainly does not lack in taste or texture. I did use vegan butter in the “buttered” caramel frosting, but if you’re low on that ingredient, use shortening or pick another frosting you prefer (I have several recipes on my site — just use the search bar) or even dust with confectioner’s sugar. Or here’s an idea: serve with a dollop of homemade apple butter on top!
However you share it, your family will love this gluten free, vegan gem at your next gathering (or at-home quarantine party) and no one will miss a thing!
Vegan Apple Butter Cake with Buttered Caramel Frosting
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