Variation on pound cake: Apple upsidedown pound cake

1 cup butter. soft

1 1/4 cups white sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon almond extract

Beat butter and sugar in mixer until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time.  Mix until sugar is dissolved and all is very fluffy.  Add almond extract and beat some more.  While beating mix flours.

2 1/4 cup total flour to include:

1 cup protein flour like Garbanzo/fava or Oat.  I used Oat.

1/3 cup tapioca flour

1/3  cup corn starch

1/3 cup sorghum  + 1/4 cup

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum or other binder like arrowroot flour (optional)

Sift flours and salt  into a bowl.

once butter mix is very fluffy, with mixer on low, add flour mix alternately with:

1/2 cup milk or milk substitute.  I used coconut milk.  (Sour milk or buttermilk would also work and would add a richness.  If you use sour milk add:

1 teaspoon baking soda)

Prepare pan:

smear a large cake pan with a half stick of sort of soft butter. (10 x 15  approximately. If all you have is 9×13, use fewer apples to allow room for the batter)

Sprinkle that with 1/4 cup brown sugar

Cut up and peel 4-5 medium baking apples. I like braeburn but any baking apple is good. sprinkle them with

1-2 teaspoons good quality cinnamon, and

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Add 1/2 to 3/4 cup brown sugar and toss all together.

Spread the apples in the bottom of the pan over the butter and sugar.

Spread the cake batter over the apples making sure no apples poke up through the batter.

bake at 350 for 1 hour

This could easily be made a spice cake by omitting the almond extract and adding to the flour:

2 teaspoons or more of pumpkin pie spice

or

1/2 teaspoon ground clove

1-2 teaspoons cinnimon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

powdered ginger optional 1-2 teaspoons

1 teaspoon powdered turmeric will add a bright yellow colour, very little flavour and a lot of health benefits

Bake as before over apples or in a greased and flowered 9 x 13 cake pan

Neutral sweet glaze:

2 cups powdered Sugar

1/2 stick butter softened

1-3 tablespoons water or milk or substitute (I used a spicy tea but couldn’t taste it)

with a whisk, whip the butter until smooth. (This assumes you used a microwave to soften the butter)

Add powdered sugar slowly while mixing until it forms a ball around the whisk.  Add 1 scant tablespoon liquid and mix until smooth.  Slowly add more sugar until it is all incorporated, adding small amounts of liquid as needed. Sifting the sugar first will make mixing easier but is not necessary.

Spread on hot cake as soon as it is out of the oven.  Be gentle and patient.  Let the heat of the cake soften the glaze until it spreads easily.

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