Apple cake/tart

There is an apple festival at Hania's school tomorrow. I put apples on top to scare the kids away. I have a couple of girlfriends there that teach but would rather be doing something else...sometimes. The cake is for them!

Recipe adapted from Giallo Zafferano
time: 20 min preparation + 1hr baking + 30 min cooling

ingredients

• 1 apple, peeled and cored
• 200 g (1 1/3 cups) flour
• 1 teaspoons (4 g) baking powder
• 3 eggs, room temperature, separated yolks from whites
• 150 g (10 Tablespoons) butter room temperature
• 150 g (3/4 cup) sugar
• 1/2 cup raisins and/or candied ginger soaked and chopped
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• zest and juice from 1 small/medium lemon
• 1 Tablespoons cinnamon

topping

• 2 apples, peeled and cored
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 Tablespoon cinnamon
• 2-3 Tablespoons apricot jam melted on low heat

instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180C/350F (fan forced function). Prepare a baking dish (butter and line it with parchment paper). 
2. Grate lemon zest (before you squeeze the juice). Dice one apple, slice the other two in thin half-moons; spray them with lemon juice. 
3. Sift together flour with baking powder. 
4. In a bowl, beat butter with half the sugar till creamy. Add yolks, one at the time. Add cinnamon and lemon zest. Add sifted flour with baking powder. Combine. Add raisins, ginger and vanilla. 
5. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites, slowly adding the rest of sugar and a pinch of salt. Fold beaten whites into the batter, slowly. Incorporate diced apple pieces. 
6. Pour everything into the prepared baking dish. Arrange apple slices on top. Sprinkle with one tablespoons of sugar mixed with cinnamon. Put it in the hot oven for about 1 hour (max). Take it out, brush it with melted apricot jam and let it cool on a cooling rack for about 30 minutes.

notes

• cake is full of flavors; full of apples but still with enough cake for coffee time
• tight-flesh fruit with a definite taste, such as renee variety bakes the best
• apples were about 170 g (6 oz) each, medium/large
• raisins and ginger, you can take it or leave it; I had some that were getting old
• arranging apple pieces starts from the outside around in a flower pattern
• I used a 26cm/10inch round spring form
• yellow/orange jam brings out color better than a red one
• I proved myself wrong; pupils ate the cake up before any teacher got close to it