Autumn is here again, or almost, and with it …apples!
Crisp, juicy, and fragrant, this wonderful fruit lends
itself to dishes without number. Here, for MOTHER’s
readers, are two creations adapted from Uprisings, The
Whole Grain Bakers’ Book (compiled after the
1980). The book is available for $12.95, plus $1.50 for
postage and handling, from Mother’s Bookshelf ® , 105
Stoney Mountain Rd., Hendersonville, NC 28791.
We baked and taste-tested both of these recipes, using
MOTHER’s art and editorial staffs as the eager guinea pigs.
On the basis of our first results, we made a few small
changes in one recipe but left the other intact.
PUDIN DE PAN
• 5-6 cups of bread chunks (old bread is best)
• 1-1/2 cups of apple juice
• 1/3 cup of oil
• 1/3 cup of honey
• 1/3 cup of molasses (or maple syrup)
• 1/2 cup of chopped dates
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla
• 1 tablespoon of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
Soak the bread with the apple juice in one bowl while, in
another, you blend the oil, honey, molasses, and dates. Add
the honey mixture to the bread, and stir everything well.
Now dribble in the vanilla. Mix the baking powder and
cinnamon together, then add them to the batter. Use two
spoons to stir the mixture thoroughly: It should be fairly
thick and lumpy. Pour the batter into an oiled 9″ X 9″ pan,
and bake it at 350°F for 30 minutes, until it’s firm
but moist. Finally, spoon your confection into dessert cups
and top it with whipped cream or whipped tofu.
Our test recipe was a great success, with comments ranging
from “Great!” to a forlorn “I didn’t get any!” Our
pudin was made with molasses rather than maple
syrup, and we used some leftover white bread. Obviously,
the sweetener, as well as the type-and-age-of the bread you
use will affect the flavor, moistness, and texture to some
degree. We served our pudin without topping; in
retrospect we feel this was a good decision, as the whole
thing might otherwise have been devoured in large hunks, at
once.
APPLE CAKE
• 1/2 pound of butter, softened
• 1-1/2 cups plus
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• 5 eggs, beaten
• 3 tablespoons of vanilla
• 1 cup of yogurt (or buttermilk)
• 2-1/2 cups of unbleached flour
• 2 cups of whole wheat pastry flour
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 2 teaspoons of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 4 teaspoons of cinnamon
• 3/4 cup of chopped walnuts
• 3-1/2 cups of chopped apples, mixed types
Cream the butter and honey together until smooth. Add the
beaten eggs, vanilla, and yogurt, and stir well. In a
separate (large) bowl, combine the flours, baking powder,
baking soda, and spices. Add the butter/honey mixture, the
chopped walnuts and the apples, and stir everything
together. Pour the batter into two greased 9″ round pans,
and bake at 350°F for about 45 minutes, until a knife
inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the pans
from the oven, let the cakes cool, and serve portions with
whipped cream.
Uprisings uses only whole wheat flour in its apple
cake recipe and suggests garnishing the top with nuts.
Although our test of this original version turned out well,
most members of MOM’s crew preferred the variation we
present here. Every family has its own taste preferences,
though, so we were pleased to see that this recipe lends
itself to creative experimentation.
Incidentally, in our test of the original recipe, we used
Granny Smith apples, which are crispy, juicy, and rather
tart. To sweeten the cake without adding sugar, we baked
another version, using a mixture of Granny Smith and
Delicious apples-both Red Delicious and Golden-which proved
very satisfactory.
Oh, and the comments? Well, how about an enthusiastic
“Ummm, scrumptious!” and “This is really good!” Add to
these remarks the fact that both the apple cake and the
pudin de pan are easy to make, and you’ll see why
we feel these are two apple-icious winners.
