132. Passover Sponge Cake with Apples (p. 711)

One of the things that I've enjoyed most about The Project is learning more about various cultures as I organize my cooking around the different holidays throughout the calendar. I've made Coquilles St. Jaques on Bastille Day and Crepes on Candlemas. The Book's excellent collection of Jewish dishes are a great example of how cooking can be a cultural education. I've made Honey Cake on Rosh Hashanah and Date Walnut Rugelach for Hanukka. I made this recipe, along with the Ashkenazic Haroseth, for Passover.

One of the most recognizable Passover traditions is the prohibition against consuming, or even possessing, chametz (fermented items leavened breads and cakes and most alcoholic beverages). That means no yeast breads, and depending upon the branch of Judiasm, no chemical leavners like baking soda and baking powder, either. This recipe relies on beaten egg whites to give it lift.

To make this cake, I first sifted together some matzo cake meal and some potato starch and set it aside. Next, I separated six eggs and beat the yolks with some sugar, lemon zest and juice and then I stirred in the cake meal mixture. After that, I cleaned the beaters and beat the egg whites (if you don't clean the beaters before beating the whites, any yolk left on the beaters will prevent the whites from beating properly). I added a little bit of sugar and kept beating until I got "stiff, glossy peaks." Then I folded the fluffy egg whites into the yolk-cake meal mixture.

To assemble the cake, I spread about a third of the batter into a springform pan. Then I put down a layer of thinly-sliced Golden Delicious apples and sprinkeld them with a generous amount of cinnamon and sugar. I added another layer of batter, another layer of apples, sugar and cinnamon, and a final layer of batter. I cooked it for about an hour and cooled and unmolded it.

The cake tasted pretty good. It was sweet and tender, if just a little bit chewey. It looked very nice when sliced with the pretty layers of apple slices and cinnamon. The only clue that this was a "Passover" cake was a very slight hint of that distinct matzo flavor.

I took this cake to work and left it in the kitchen in the morning. It went over pretty well. Just after lunch, there was only a small slice left. I was very disappointed, however, that the office cleaning lady threw away the bottom of my springform pan. Can you believe that!?! In her defense, she might have mistaken it for a disposable pie plate. I'm sure it wasn't malicious. But, the result is that I need a new nine-inch springform pan.

Date Cooked: April 5, 2009
Degree of Difficulty: Medium
Rating: B

131. Ashkenazic Haroseth (p. 902)

I'm not Jewish, but when I was a little boy, I attended a Jewish nursery school because it was only a few blocks from our house. Ever since I then, when we made construction-paper Seder Plates, I've had an interest in Jewish food and culture.

Haroseth, or charoset, is one of the six elements of the traditional Seder Plate. Each of the items on the plate recalls a part of the Jews' exodus from Egypt. This element, with its dark color, and pasty, pebbly texture, is meant to represent the mortar that the Jews used during their enslavement to build the storehouses of Egypt. Symbolism aside, this dish tastes nothing like mortar. In fact, it was pretty good. The Seder Plate has a reputation as being more of a traditional than a gastronomical experience. But, while the bitter herbs and shank bone don't seem that appealing, haroseth is said to be enjoyed libreally and is a favorite of children.

This recipe,* which comes from the Ashkenazi branch of Judiasm in Eastern Europe, combines chopped Macintosh apples, chopped walnuts, cinnamon, a pinch of salt, and a generous splash of Passover wine. Apparently these are all ingredients mentioned by King Solomon in The Song of Songs. All you do is combine the ingredients and let them sit in the refrigerator overnight to allow the flavors to develop. Serve it on matzos and enjoy!

The area I live in doesn't have a particularly large Jewish community, and I think that's why I had a tough time finding the ingredients for this recipe and the other Passover dish I made (a Passover Sponge Cake with Apples that I'll post about next). For this recipe, I was able to find matzos at my usual grocery store, but it wasn't until I got home that I noticed that they weren't "Kosher for Passover." Same with the Manischewitz wine I bought. The grocery store had just run out, so I went to the New Hampshire State Liquor Store. Under a handwritten sign that said "Kosher Wine for Passover" I found a few lonely bottles of Manischewitz Elderberry wine. The Book calls for the Concord Grape variety, but it was either Elderberry or nothing, and I figured that it was close enough. Well, when I got home and did a little bit of research, I learned that Elderberry is the only variety of Manischewitz that's not available "Kosher for Passover." Thankfully, I was looking for "Kosher for Passover" items for reasons of authenticity rather than religion. Otherwise, it would have been a real challenge to make these two Passover dishes.

As I said, this dish was pretty good. It wasn't amazingly great, though. The apples stayed crisp and sweet, and the cinnamon was a clean and bright note, but the wine was the dominant element in the recipe, giving the haroseth a cloying sweetness and booziness. I found it a bit liquidy too, which suprised me, since I was expecting the apples to soak up more of the wine. In all, I'm glad I made this recipe, and I'm enjoing snacking on it from the refrigerator this week, but I don't think I'll make it again.

Date Cooked: April 4, 2009
Degree of Difficulty: Easy
Rating: B-

*This recipe is not on epicurious.com.

74. Baked Sliced Apples (p. 802)

I wanted to make this recipe* when Macintosh apples were fresh and in season.

This was a quick and easy fall dessert. First I peeled and cored four apples and sliced them into 1/4 inch horizontal slices, being careful to keep the slices together. Next I brushed the stacked slices with lemon juice (presumably to keep them from discoloring) and placed them in a baking dish. Then I put some brown sugar, butter and rum into the baking dish and each of the apple cavities. I baked the apples for a time, and then inserted cinnamon sticks into the cavities and cooked the apples for a bit longer, basting them with the pan juices.

I served the apples with some fresh sweetened whipped cream. I didn't have any Calvados, so I passed on the optional Calvados-flavored whipped cream, although I'm sure that it would be great. Since this was a quick and easy dessert to end a casual dinner at home, I also skipped the optional garnish of organic apple or mint leaves.

The Book's blurb says that slicing the apples prior to cooking them helps them maintain their textural integrity better than a whole apple, which would become soft as it bakes. Maybe I cooked this a bit too long, because some of the slices were a bit apple-sauce-like. But, at any rate, I really liked this dessert. The apples were sweet and tender. The butter, sugar and rum combined to make a sweet and caramel-y syrup. The cinnamon stick gave the apples a nice flavor and aroma.

Date Cooked: November 2, 2008
Degree of Difficulty: Easy
Rating: B

* The recipe on epicurious is the same as the one in The Book, except that, instead of "Baked Sliced Apples" it's called "Sliced Baked Apples." Go figure.

64. Pumpkin Apple Bread (p. 599)

What do you think of when you think of fall? Maybe it's the changing colors of the leaves, or the crispness in the air. But if you're like me, fall means two things: pumpkins and apples. Well, what do you know, this recipe* puts them together into what The Amateur Gourmet calls "fall ... bundled up and baked in a loaf."

This isn't your basic pumpkin bread. No siree. First, there's the sweet, crunchy streusel topping. Is there anything that isn't made better by adding streusel topping? Next, when you cut into this loaf, you're surprised to find it studded with sweet, tender chunks of apple. The other thing that I loved about this loaf is that it packs a punch with a healthy dose of my favorite fall spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice. And, it smells great while it's baking.

Like several of the other loaf recipes in The Book, this recipe makes two loaves. But, because I only have one loaf pan, I cut the recipe in half. After the loaf I made was gone, I wished I had another loaf pan.

Date Cooked: October 15, 2008
Degree of Difficulty: Medium
Rating: A-

* This recipe isn't on epicurious.com, but The Amateur Gourmet has it on his site.

61. Apple Crisp (p. 812)

I made this recipe* for dessert when Travis and Jodi came over for dinner a few weeks ago. Since I knew that time would be short, and that I wanted to devote my full attention to my Roasted Chicken with Pan Gravy, I looked for something that was relatively easy to make. And with the leaves changing color all around me, this quintessential fall dessert just about leapt off the pages of The Book.

This dessert has everything I could want in an apple crisp. The sweet, crunchy, crispy topping was delicious, and the apple filling, if a bit softer and more applesauce-like than I'd like it to be, was very good. The addition of orange zest gave it a really unexpected flavor kick.

I really liked this dessert, but it looks like I'm the odd man out among the Gourmet cook-through-bloggers. Neither Teena nor Kevin gave this recipe high marks. Kevin thought that the filling was too sweet and that the texture was all wrong. Both of them were less than impressed with the topping. Kevin was displeased with its "cookiness," and Teena thought that it was "grainy." I must admit that I agree with Teena that the pecans in the topping cooked a lot faster than the rest of the dish, to the point of almost being burned (I actually had to cover the whole dish with aluminum foil a little more than halfway through the cooking time to prevent the nuts from getting totally incinerated). Other than that, though, I thought it was a winner, especially when served warm and topped with a dallop of vanilla ice cream. I didn't see this dish on Melissa's blog. Maybe she'll make it soon and if she likes it, we'll be all tied up, two to two. Come on, Melissa, don't leave me hanging.

One thing to note if you do make this recipe, you'll have enough apple crisp to feed an army. The dish pictured above is one of those great big lasagna pans, and you can see how full it is. Hope you're hungry.

Date Cooked: October 4, 2008
Degree of Difficulty: Medium
Rating A-

*This recipe does not appear to be on epicurious.com.

60. Parsnip and Apple Puree (p. 554)

I wanted something a little different, a little more sophisticated (but still easy), to serve with my Roast Chicken, and this recipe* was just the thing I was looking for.

There's not much to it: all you need to do is cook peeled and chopped parsnips and Granny Smith apples along with some onions in simmering water until it's all soft and tender. Then whiz it all up in the food processor with a little bit of sour cream and finish up with salt and pepper. That's it.

The result looks an awful lot like mashed potatoes, but this dish isn't like any mashed potatoes you've ever had. The texture is smooth and creamy, thanks to the pureeing and the sour cream. The flavor is great, too. It's got the earthy starchiness of the parsnips balanced by the crisp sweetness of the apples. This was a great change of pace, and a really nice compliment (along with some simple steamed fresh green beans) to the Roast Chicken.

Date Cooked: October 4, 2008
Degree of Difficulty: Easy
Rating: A-

* This recipe is not online.

53. Apple Rasin Cake (p. 704)

I made this recipe a couple of weeks ago on the first weekend of fall. I wanted to make something that would officially kick off the autumn season, and this cake seemed like just the thing.

At it's core, this is a simple spice cake with a hefty dose of apples and rasins folded into the batter. Actually, since the cake is cooked in a Bundt pan, it doesn't have a core at all, but you know what I meant.

To get the full "fall in New England" effect, I used Cortland apples grown in my own town at the 130-year-old Mann Orchards. The Book calls for "3 Cortland or Empire apples, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice." At first, this doesn't seem like too difficult a request, but about halfway into the second apple, my hand started cramping up, and I just couldn't handle the dicing anymore. So, recipe instructions notwithstanding, my cake contained "1 1/2 Cortland apples cut into 1/4-inch dice" and "1 1/2 Cortland apples coarsely chopped." I know, I know, I'd be kicked out of Le Cordon Bleu or the CIA for corner cutting like that, but, as you'll see in a moment, the lack of uniformity in apple pieces was the least of this cake's problems.


The Book says to butter and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan, knocking out excess flour. Because I have a non-stick Bundt pan, I blithely ignored this instruction, saying to myself that it only applied to those suckers who don't have a non-stick pan. I guess I'm the sucker after all. As the cake cooked, it filled the whole house with its intoxicating apple-cinnamon-nutmeg aroma (maybe the tablespoon of dark rum in the batter also had something to do with the intoxicating quality of the aroma?). Once the cake had cooked for the prescribed time, I took it out of the oven an put it on a rack to cool in the pan for a while.

When it came time to turn the cake out of the pan, things went south pretty quickly. I ran a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the cake, but when I flipped it over, nothing happend. I tapped the bottom of the pan gently. Still nothing. I tapped a little less gently. Nothing still. So, with some foreboding, I began to shake the pan somewhat vigorously until the bottom half of the cake plopped onto the cooling rack while the top half remained firmly in place in the pan. This whole experience was reminiscent of the unfortunate Blueberry Almond Coffee Cake incident. Thankfully, I wasn't making this for guests, so it didn't matter that it wasn't pretty. And even though it wasn't going to win any beauty contests, it sure was good.

We really liked the flavor and texture of this cake, and we loved having it on hand for snacking througout the week. The blurb in The Book says that it's great to pack in lunchboxes. Hear, hear! I'll probably make it again, but when I do, I'll add some chopped walnuts to the batter because, while apples and raisins are a great duo, walnuts really are the third musketeer in this scenario, aren't they? Also, the blurb on epicurious notes that the recipe comes from Richardson’s Canal House Inn in Pittsford, New York, where it is served with caramel sauce. The Book doesn't mention the caramel sauce, however, and it wasn't until I was eating the cake that it sruck me that caramel would have been a natural and welcome accompaniment.

Date Cooked: September 20, 2008
Degree of Difficulty: Medium
Rating: A-