cake helps

i always feel a little sad when our apple season ends..

i also feel so grateful for another wonderful harvest, 

delighted to see so many familiar faces

and to meet so many new guests! thank you. 

our spring, summer and fall are quite busy and intense and 

i welcome a slower pace. 

 we have an extensive to-do list on the farm..

 it will keep us busy for the next month. 

my personal to-do list is also extensive. 

healing a broken heart is the first thing on my list.  

cake helps..

 adapted from a british recipe, 

this is a lovely apple cake with salted caramel apples.

salted caramel sauce is always a good thing,

and the cake is full of cozy autumn spices, applesauce, apples and chestnuts.

pretty comforting. 

apple cake with salted caramel apples

you will need..

for the cake..

6 idared apples peeled, cored and roughly chopped

250g dark brown sugar

225g salted butter, softened

375g self rising flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons pumpkin spice 

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3 eggs, beaten

100g cooked chestnuts (1 bag) chopped 

1 more idared apple, cored and diced

for the buttercream icing..

75g salted butter, softened

75g apple purée  (it’s part of the cake recipe, using the 6 apples)

300g icing sugar

for the salted caramel sauce..

2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup heavy cream 35%

1/2 teaspoon salt 

for the caramel apples.. 

3 or 4 small empire apples, skewered with twigs 

a baking tray lined with parchment paper

the cake

preheat oven to 350°f or 320°f  for a convection oven. 

place the 6 chopped apples in a heavy pot with a lid and gently cook until the apples are soft.

mash the apples to a coarse purée. let this cool. 

measure 300g for the cake and set aside 75g for the icing. you will have some left over.. perfect for tomorrow’s breakfast! overnight oats? yoghurt?

line the bottom of  2 18cm spring form cake pans with parchment. butter the sides. 

sieve the brown sugar into a large mixing bowl.

add the butter, eggs, chestnuts and cooled apple puree, and mix well. 

add the flour, baking powder, and spices. beat together until just mixed. 

fold in the diced apple. 

divide the batter into the 2 cake pans.

bake for 25 ish minutes.. until golden brown.

let the cakes cool for 10 minutes in their pans, then turn them out onto a wire rack to completely cool. 

place in the fridge to chill.. 30 ish  minutes. 

the buttercream icing

beat the butter, 75g of apple purée and icing sugar until creamy.  chill this until it's thick enough to spread. 

cut off the rounded tops of the cakes.

using about 1/3 of the buttercream icing, sandwich the cakes together.

with an offset spatula, spread a thin layer of the buttercream over the sides.. allowing the cake to show through. 

spread a layer on the top.

tuck this in the fridge again while you make the caramel sauce. 

the salted caramel sauce

place 1/2 cup sugar in a heavy saucepan and over medium high heat, and stirring constantly, melt the sugar. once the sugar has melted, add another 1/2 cup. 

continue to caramelize the sugar.. 1/2 cup at a time, and constantly stirring until all the sugar has been added and the caramel is a lovely deep golden colour.

reduce the heat to medium and slowly add the cream.. being careful because it will bubble and steam. 

add the salt and continue to cook until all the sugar bits are dissolved and the caramel sauce is smooth and has come to a boil. 

remove from the heat. 

the caramel apples 

dip the apples into the hot caramel sauce, and place on a parchment lined tray to set.

finishing touches on the cake 

let the caramel cool until it's close to room temperature.  

spoon the cooled caramel sauce on the edge of the cake to allow for drips, then pour the caramel sauce over the top and spread with an offset spatula. 

you may have to play with the temperature a little.

do a couple of test drips on the cake’s edge to see how fast the caramel will drip. on my cake, the drips were very thick, but eventually pooled at the bottom of the platter.

i did take the photos in a misty rain.. which may have contributed to the texture.

set the caramel apples in the centre. 

that’s it.

call a dear friend and put the kettle on. enjoy a cup of tea and a slice of cake together.  

still loving autumn’s colours here.. and cherishing these warm days. 

thank you again for visiting us.

be well,

laura

i  just came across this quote..

‘the only thing more important than your to-do list is your to-be list.

the only thing more important than your to-be list is to be.’

alan hosen

lets be.. and eat cake. 

carl laidlaw orchards

firsts and lasts

our october is full of firsts and lasts..

this is our last weekend to invite you to pick apples and pumpkins. 

it’s so nice to be able to offer you a lovely selection..

we will be picking our empire (or vampire), idared and ambrosia apples.

there are a handful of other varieties too.

you just have to walk to the ends of the rows for them. 

there were first visits for many families.

we had our first harvest from our baby orchards.

we’ve had our first frost.  

our last batch of cider is here for you to enjoy..

pressed this week, from fresh apples. 

“late harvest”

it’s autumn in a glass.. fabulous! 

did you know it freezes beautifully? 

 i use it to make apple cider caramels in the winter..

a wonderful gift. 

"fall has always been my favorite season. 

the time when everything bursts with its last beauty, 

as if nature had been saving up all year for the grand finale.” lauren destefano 

“autumn carries more gold in its pocket than all the other seasons” jim bishop 

“and all the lives we ever lived and all the lives to be

are full of trees and changing leaves..” virginia woolf 

it’s dreamy!

 

it’s just so beautiful here in our valley..

come for a wander.. pick apples to fill your fridge,

 enjoy the colours, listen to the birds and riversong, 

sip our last cider of the season. 

come and chat.. and say goodbye. until next year. 

warm autumn hugs,

laura

carl laidlaw orchards

pumpkins and cider and apples oh my!

do you have your pumpkins yet?

our gorgeous fairy tale pumpkins would love your home! they’re magic. 

so many varieties of apples are still available to pick! 

our granny smith apples are now ripe!

you will find our empire, ambrosia, cortland, idared, red delicious, golden delicious, 

smoothie, russet, jonagold, and mutsu apples too. 

our idared apples are particularly wonderful baked…  

baked apples in pastry 

warm spiced apples wrapped in a delicate pastry, 

with a surprise of few toasted walnuts inside.. 

a special dessert to love.

you will need.. 

4 medium sized idared apples

2 cups of of our cider 

3 whole cloves 

a sprinkle of cardamom

1 star anise

3 slices of fresh ginger

you could also include a cinnamon stick or two.

(i am not a cinnamon fan..but lots of you are!)

4 ish tablespoons apple butter 

1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped into small pieces 

1/2 tablespoon soft butter 

for the pastry..

440 grams flour

220 grams cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1-4 tablespoons ice water

extras

1 beaten egg

demerara sugar for sprinkling

or maple sugar.. i used both

2 baking trays, lined with parchment paper. 

  

the apples..

peel and cut the apples in half.

core the apples with a melon baller.

place 2 cups of cider with the spices in a heavy pot.

place the apples, cut side down, in a steamer. 

steam over simmering cider, covered for 6 minutes. 

you don’t want the apples to be too soft.

remove the apples and let them cool completely.

covered in a fridge is perfect.

smother the cooled apples in a layer of apple butter. 

this will keep them from drying out and also adds a lovely intense flavour.

 

for the pastry..

mix the flour, sugar and salt together. rub the cold butter into the flour until it becomes a crumbly mixture.

add the eggs and mix in.

add the water, a bit at a time until it makes a soft dough. 

i needed almost the entire 4 tablespoons. 

press the dough into a large flat disc, cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.. overnight is ideal. 

to assemble..

combine the walnuts and butter. 

fill the core cavity of the apples with this mixture. 

cut the dough into four, and roll one portion of the dough out on a lightly floured surface. 

place one of the apples on top, cut side down.

cut the pastry a little larger than the apple.

cut another piece of pastry and gently drape it over the top.. and press in around the apple.

turn over and press the pastry to the bottom piece of pastry. dab a little water on the edges to help it stick.

i used scissors to cut the excess pastry off. 

place on a parchment lined baking tray.

make some stems and leaves with the extra pastry.. with a cookie cutter, or freehand. 

attach with a dab of water.

you can prop the leaves with a ball of dough, or a little ball of aluminum foil. 

continue until all the apples have been wrapped in pastry. 

chill, covered in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

(i left them overnight.)

preheat the oven to 350°.

brush the chilled apples and leaves with the beaten egg.

sprinkle with demerara sugar, or maple sugar. 

discreetly poke a few holes in the pastry near the edges to let the steam escape.. i forgot this on a couple and the pastry split. 

i poked the holes under a couple of the leaves and near the stems and also on the bottom edges with a toothpick. 

bake for approximately 30-35 minutes, until golden brown.

check on them after 25.. you may need to rotate your baking tray.  i did.. my oven has a hot spot.

serve warm.. with vanilla ice cream perhaps? a salted caramel sauce perhaps? both? enjoy!

 

the colours remain breathtaking in our valley!

 

let’s enjoy this gift of a warm weekend…  

we’ll blow a little kiss back at the summer,  

and save our favourite sweaters for the following weekend.

warm autumn hugs,

laura

carl laidlaw orchards