When I was younger, my Polish grandmother had a ton of recipes she would make on a regular basis. My Grandmom passed away in 2011, and before that she suffered from Alzheimer’s disease for many years. She was the kind of cook who made everything from memory. She never used a recipe or measured anything. Fortunately, one of my older cousins watched her making some of our favorite foods (pierogi and Gołąbki) and wrote down recipes so that we would have them. One of the recipes we lost was her Polish Apple Cake.
For years, we searched for a recipe that was similar, and this one is the closest we have come to hers. It’s not exactly the same, but it has all of the things we loved about my Grandmom’s. It’s STUFFED with apples. It’s like 90% apples with just enough cake to hold the apples together. The cake is very simple and moist and really allows the apples to take center stage.
I modified the recipe I found to create a smaller cake (the original recipe was made in a 13×9 pan) and to make it dairy-free. In my family of two, we don’t need a huge cake sitting around because I will definitely eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. None of the cake batter ingredients are especially “healthy,” but because there is so little batter and so many apples, the overall nutrition information is pretty decent. If you’re looking for a “healthier” cake that doesn’t taste healthy, give this one a try. I love it and I’m sure my Grandmom would be proud of this Polish Apple Cake!
PS. I’m back to fighting against daylight with my pictures, as it’s been getting dark by 6:00, so please excuse the quality on this post!
Active Time: 15 minutes Total Time: 50 minutes
Serves: 9
Ingredients:
4 medium apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced 1¼ cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt 1/3 + 1/8 cup sugar ¼ cup softened vegan butter (or regular butter) + 2 tablespoons cold butter 1/3 cup almond milk (or regular milk)
1 egg
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and lightly coat an 8”x8” pan with cooking spray. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and 1/3 cup sugar. Add ¼ cup softened butter, almond milk, and egg. Beat with a hand mixer or wisk well to combine. Pour 2/3 of the batter into the prepared pan, then layer the apples on top. Dot the reserved batter on top of the apples and spread it out slightly with a rubber spatula. Cut the remaining 1/8 cup sugar into the 2 tablespoons cold butter. Sprinkle over the top of the cake batter.
Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool and enjoy the Polish Apple Cake immediately or cover and store for up to three days.
Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories: 213 Fat: 8g Carbs: 34g Protein: 3g Sodium: 444mg Sugar: 19g
*Nutrition information is based on the products I used personally in this recipe. Different products may yield slightly different information.
