Caramel Apple Cake (aka John's three layered cake)

Greetings from what turned out to be a gorgeous day in Sweden!
I was asked to make cakes for some new students (roughly 30 people) and since I am a glutton for new recipes I decided to dive into a "famous" Martha Stewart one. Actually on her website it say's John Three Layered Cake, but I think they should have called it Caramel Apple Cake. This cake is incredibly easy to make, but takes forever to bake in the oven. I would say give yourself an hour for each one, at least that is about the time it took for me. The batter itself takes 10-15 mins. prep. time, so it goes by fast in the beginning. The cream butter frosting also takes some time and if you have a hand held mixer like me ( I know, I am dreaming of a Kitchen Aid mixer) then be prepared to stand for about 15 minutes whipping this frosting into shape. Overall, the cakes themselves tasted sweet and nice, a bit of a chewy texture, but that is from the loads of brown sugar. (sort of a molasses effect) The cream butter frosting was too buttery for my taste and I didn't even put in the amount of butter it called for. If I do this cake again I will taste the frosting before putting in the last 1/2C or so. Just a tip. It was a fun experience, as I learned how to make cream frosting, I had never done before and I hope it was tasty for those that ate these cakes. Well give it a shot and see for yourself if it's a winner!

Until next time,
Barefoot and Baking in the Kitchen

Started with peeling and coring the apples

Mixing the brown sugar and butter together

Adding eggs

Becomes a nice caramely look

Adding cut and shredded apples

Yummy batter

Next up is the cream frosting, I didn't take photos of
the steps before this part, but you will see in the recipe
that it requires you to cook on the stove. The part
turned out quite nice though. See the peaks forming

I like this frosting's look.

After adding the butter the frosting goes from being more
meringue like to being cream like. It's light and fluffy,
but again beware of too much butter taste.

It sort of resembles a fruit cake. While it might not look
like much or even that great, it does taste nice and with
the frosting on you won't see the splotches.

See what I mean? Now it's lovely and sprinkled with
cinnamon and cut apples on the sides gives it a little
more glamor.

Just a closer view

The apples on the side give it that "fall" season feeling.

Recipe for this cake:

• Prep Time 45 minutes
• Total Time 2 hours 20 minutes, plus chilling
• Yield Serves 12

Ingredients

• For the Buttercream:

  • 4 large egg whites
  • 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into pieces

• For the Cake:

  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pans
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for pans
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups packed light-brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, two coarsely grated and two diced

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter three 8-inch-round cake pans; line bottoms with parchment paper. Butter, then flour paper and sides (tapping out excess); set aside.
   
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together butter, sugar, and eggs until well combined; fold in grated and diced apples. Add flour mixture; mix just until combined. Divide batter among prepared pans; smooth tops.
   
3. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool cakes in pans 20 minutes, then invert onto wire racks; peel off parchment. Invert cakes again, and let cool completely on racks.
   
4. Make buttercream: In a heatproof bowl set over (not in) a pan of simmering water, whisk together egg whites, sugar, and salt until sugar has dissolved; remove from heat. Using an electric mixer on medium, beat mixture until fluffy and cooled, about 15 minutes. Increase to high; beat until stiff peaks form. Reduce to medium-low; gradually add butter, beating until fully incorporated, about 3 to 5 minutes.
   
5. Assemble cake: Place one layer on a serving plate; spread top with buttercream. Top with another layer; spread top with buttercream. Top with third layer; spread remaining buttercream over top and sides of cake. Refrigerate at least 1 hour (or up to 4 days). To serve, bring cake to room temperature; slice with a serrated knife.