Apple Morris Cake

This was going to be "harvest apple cake", but I thought, how often does morris dancing get a dish named after it? Not often, I'd wager.

I made this cake to take around to some (morris-dancing) friends' house. The day before we all danced out at a harvest cider festival, and received some apple juice and scrumpy. In celebration, I crammed apples into this cake recipe any way I could, until it was bursting at the seams with appley goodness.

This cake is based on a mud cake recipe, but since it has almost no chocolate in it, it can't really be termed a mud cake. It did have the denseness and moistness of mud cake, though. It is a very appley, spicy cake. Note that if you don't have access to scrumpy (or apple cider), apple juice will do just as well. Similarly, if you don't have apple concentrate, you can either cook down apple juice until it thickens to a syrup, or you can use a liquid sweetener of your choice, like maple syrup or agave.

I'm afraid I forgot to take a photo before I came home again with the empty cake tin. Sorry.

Apple morris cake

Icing

1 cup almond meal
1/3 cup apple juice
1 tB apple concentrate
1 tsp peanut oil, other nut oil, or neutral-tasting oil (peanut is what I have on hand)
1/2 cup raw sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup cornflour (optional: chill icing for 15 minutes or so, and add if it still needs thickening)

Cake

1 apple (for apple sauce)
40g dark chocolate
1/2 cup oat milk (or other non-dairy milk)
1/2 cup apple juice
2/3 cup caster sugar
1 tB apple concentrate
1 tsp vanilla essence (or 1/4 tsp vanilla bean paste)
Egg replacer equiv. to 2 eggs (I used 2[1tB flaxseed + 3 tB water])
1/4 cup self-raising flour*
1 cup plain flour
1 tB cocoa
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
100g tahini


First, prepare the apple sauce. Chop the apple, peeling it if you're fancy (and don't want bits of apple peel in the cake; I think it adds texture). Put in a small saucepan, filling the saucepan about half-full with water, and place on the stove. Cook for about 15 mins, or until the apple is tender. When apple is done, puree it in your food processor, or mortar and pestle.

Meanwhile, prepare the icing. Combine all ingredients in a bowl or food processor, and combine thoroughly. The mixture will be sloppy, but don't be disheartened. It thickens upon standing (and refrigeration). Chill.

Place chocolate, milk, apple juice, concentrate and sugar together in a double boiler. Stir together, and when smooth, remove from heat. Prepare egg replacer with vanilla, and add to liquid ingredients.

Combine flours, cocoa and spices in a medium bowel. Add liquid mixture a little bit at a time and stir until smooth. Add tahini, and stir to combine, then add apple sauce.

Pour mixture into a greased 7-inch circular cake tin and bake for 1 1/4 hours. Allow cake to cool in tin, then turn out and ice. If icing is too thick to spread easily, let it stand at room temperature for 15 minutes or so, then try again.


* 1 cup of self-raising flour is roughly equivalent to 1 cup of plain flour and 2 tsp baking powder.