I have just returned from France where I stockpile my precious jars of local Fleur du Sel Caramel, or Salted Caramel as it's known here (6 jars, this time...). It's become a cult ingredient of late, beloved of celeb chefs like Nigella who was photographed dripping in the stuff - I'd hate to try to wash that out of my hair... or turned into
decadent martinis in one of my favourite restaurants, The Tannery. Me, I just love the stuff. It has a grown up edge compared to standard sugary caramel and I've made it into all sorts of dishes from homemade icecream to
very grown up desserts. Listen, just give me a spoon and I'm in my happy place. As the weather is changing, it's time to make an autumnal cake. This traybake is warmed up with a healthy hit of cinnamon which melds beautifully with the sweet apple and salted caramel to make a sticky decadent cake. You can fancy it up by turning it into a sponge (use 2 x 8 inch cake tins and sandwich together with a cloud of Calvados whipped cream and a drizzle of caramel) or bake it in a loaf tin for afternoon tea. I made my cake in a 9-inch square tin, lined with baking parchment for easy removal.
Salted Caramel & Apple Traybake
250g Self Raising Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
225g Caster Sugar
2 Eggs
2 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
150g Butter, melted
2 tbsp Salted Caramel
4 Cooking Apples, peeled, cored & roughly chopped
Preheat your oven to Gas 3 / 150c and line a 9-inch square tin with baking parchment
In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, sugar, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla, butter & caramel togetherfor about a minute until very well combined.
Add the chopped apples and gently mix through.
Pour the mixture into the tin and level out with a spatula.
Bake for 60-75 minutes (check after an hour - it's ready when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean). Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
This is delicious served warm with cream, icecream or creme anglaise (posh custard) as a fabulous dessert. It keeps for 3-4 days in an airtight container, but I doubt it will last that long...
I love my apples and caramel. This is definitely a must try for me and my sister. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness this looks and sounds amazing. Definitely something I'm going to try.
ReplyDeleteHale Mon the welsh Sea Salt company have just produced Salted Caramel with brilliant Anglesey Sea Salt
ReplyDeleteOh good man Bill.....I was just thinking where on Earth can I get some *claps* So going to make this now. :o))
ReplyDeleteHi, can I just say without even reading your blog (have now) I immediately like it, it's very inviting and well laid out with fabulous photos too! Anyway back to the cake, I love apple in cakes and this salted caramel sounds an excellent bed fellow though I've not come across this particular ingredient yet! Calvados cream sounds divine as an accompaniment - thank you for a delicious recipe:-)
ReplyDeleteBill - that's an interesting new development.
DeleteCamilla - If you're looking for Salted Caramel (or Fleur du Sel Caramel as I buy it in France), Marks & Spencer sell jars of it. You might want to buy two - one for cooking and one for just sticking a spoon into!
Thanks for this recipe, I changed the castor to soft brown sugar and also dotted dollops of salted caramel on top of 1/2 the mixture in the tin then added the rest. You didn't stipulate the weight or size of the apples so I guessed at 350g. This has worked beautifully, it's really scrummy.But #2 son wants the apple grated so will have to tweek your recipe lol
ReplyDeleteOh and thanks to Bill (above) I now am the proud owner of 3 jars of salted caramel via Hale Mon, an excellent company do deal with btw. :o)
It's a really flexible recipe and very forgiving of alterations as you've discovered...
ReplyDeleteJust made this with pear...Ill let you know how it goes
ReplyDeleteMaybe you should get those long island advertising agencies to market this for you; it has a lot of potential for a global hit!
ReplyDeleteHello Aoife, I was just looking through your recipes and I came across this fantastic creation with one of France's best exports - caramel au beurre salé. I was wondering if you'd like to enter it into this month's Gourmandize Giveaway, the theme of which is apples?
ReplyDeleteHave a look and let me know what you think:
http://www.gourmandize.co.uk/article-1-recipe-competition-for-the-best-apple-recipe.htm
Best,
Laurence
Love apple and caramel together. I'll have to give this a try.
ReplyDelete