This coming Wednesday, September
20th, is Rosh HaShana Eve. The Jewish New Year that we celebrate
today was actually the agricultural New Year in the ancient Gezer calendar that
was celebrated on the first new moon of the fall. There are several symbols
related to this holiday, one of them is a slice of apple dipped in honey; it
signifies the wish for a sweet new year. This symbol is the inspiration for the
following cake recipe. To create this cake I combined two different recipes: my mother’s honey cake recipe, and a
friend’s apple cake recipe. In this recipe I use only ¼ cup powdered sugar and
¼ cup honey. If you prefer your cake to be sweeter – simply double the powdered
sugar quantity: use ½ cup instead of ¼. I use coconut sugar instead of cane
sugar, that’s why the sugar in the photos is brown. Feel free to use your
preferred type of sugar. To turn sugar into powder – simply process it in a
coffee grinder. The spices I use here are optional. You can use just what you
like, or not use them at all. Their contribution to the cake is very mild and
not overpowering at all. For the
apples I used Honeycrisp apples, but other types of apples should work
here as well. For the topping use
your favorite type of nuts; I used chopped walnuts.
Wishing you all happy, sweet, and
healthy New Year.
Ingredients:
4 large apples
6 eggs
1 cup almond flour
1 cup arrowroot powder
½ cup milk (dairy or plant base)
¼ cup powdered
sugar
¼ cup honey
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp ginger powder
½ tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
Topping ingredients – optional:
¼ cup honey
2 cups chopped nuts
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350F/180C
Core, peel, and chop apples into big cubes and place them in
a medium size pan. Spread evenly to cover the surface of the pan.
Separate eggs.
Whip egg whites with cream of tartar, and gradually add the
powdered sugar. Stop mixing once
eggs color is opaque and you have solid foam with visible stable ridges.
Mix together dry ingredients: almond flour, arrowroot
powder, spices, baking powder, and salt.
Mix together wet ingredients: egg yolks, honey, and milk.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix well.
Add egg foam gradually to the mixture. Fold it carefully
into the batter.
Pour batter on top of apples.
Bake for 40 minutes – or until the center of the cake is
solid.
Adding topping:
Toast chopped nuts in a hot pan for about 5-7 minutes. Stir
constantly.
Remove nuts from pan and let them cool on a plate.
Pour honey on top of the cake just as it comes out of the
oven. Use the back of a teaspoon to spread it around.
Sprinkle toasted nuts on top.
Let cake reach room temperature before serving.
