Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Apple, Raisin, Cranberry and Hazelnut-Chocolate Cake


One of the things I love the most about the food blog world is feeling that you get that that glimpse into someone else's kitchen when you read one of their posts. As an editor for tastespotting.com that moment happens multiple, multiple times a day. Just this morning, I found myself craving Chocolate Cloud Cake, Maple Bacon Pancakes and Lamingtons before the clock hit noon. This weekend, I published a Apple Praline Cake recipe from Passionate About Baking to Tastespotting and knew, immediately, that that cake was calling my name. I love that reading someone's take on a recipe can make you want to get in the kitchen, at the other side of the world, and try it for yourself.

The recipe was initially from La Tartine Gourmande which further shows how much sharing is a part of the blog community. After going through both recipes, I tweaked it to suit my mood of the day and the result was delicious! It was easy to make, not to sweet, fruity and moist. For me, cooking has always been about sharing and passing on recipe ideas and food bloggers make it that much easier for that process to take place. So.. here it is!



Apple, Raisin, Cranberry and Hazelnut-Chocolate Cake
(Serves 6)
2 large apples
2 oz dried cranberries (soaked in hot water for 20 min)
3 eggs
7 Tbsp butter, melted (1/2 cup)
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
75 grams of plain flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons of golden raisins
1/4 cup Hazelnut-Chocolate spread (I used "Crema alle Nocciole", from Barratti & Milano but any chocolate-hazelnut spread will work here)

Sift the flour with the baking powder and set aside.
Soak the cranberries in hot water for 20 min, then drain.
In the meantime, peel your apples, remove the core and slice them thinly.
Preheat your oven to 350F.
Beat the eggs with the sugar and salt until the the mixture is homogeneous, about 2 minutes. Add the cooled melted butter, hazelnut-chocolate spread and raisins and mix. Fold in the flour mixture. Mix until just incorporated. Fold in the apple slices.
Butter a round 9.5″ mold and pour in the apple batter.
Evenly top with the cranberries.
Bake in the oven for 30 to 35 min. Remove and let cool for a few min before unmolding. The cake is delicious warm and at room temperature. Enjoy!

Tip: I made the cake in smaller molds. In that case, the cakes cook for about 15 minutes (depending on the size of the mold) or until they are just set in the center.

45 comments:

Deana Sidney said...

So many good things in one cake... and I have all the ingredients in my fridge! Great recipe... and photo!

Alejandra Ramos said...

oh i absolutely agree that is one of the amazing parts about being in the food blog world; I love sharing and learning and exchanging. Most of us probably cook solo in our various kitchens in random corners of the world, but this is a way of bringing us all together.

♥Sugar♥Plum♥Fairy♥ said...

Love ur moist very delcious looking version...lovely with fantastic pics....

Rebecca said...

This looks WONDERFUL! I, too, am so thankful for the world of blogging because I've discovered so many great recipes!

Marie-Annick said...

Hello,

I vist your blog ounce and a while and I particularly like this recipe.

But I was wondering what is praline spread exactly?

Thanks!

Mary Bergfeld said...

What a lovely cake. It really sounds delicious. It is definitely tempting :-).

Chocolate Shavings said...

Marie-Annick: I changed the name to 'chocolate-hazelnut' so it would be more clear. I used "Crema alle Nocciole" which is an Italian version of Nutella - but any chocolate-hazelnut spread will do here!

Chocolate Shavings said...

Marie-Annick: Here is the link to the product I used - it's absolutely delicious!
http://www.agferrari.com/index.php/item/department/All%20Other%20Chocolate/item/5931.html

Choclette said...

I agree, it's great to see how bloggers take a recipe and adapt it in many different ways. This certainly sounds tasty.

Nina Timm said...

I can think of nothing better to have with my late night cup of java!!!

Ravenous Couple said...

tastespotting has given us so many recipes--some we've tried and many yet to be tried. This looks great!

Marie-Annick said...

Thanks! It's on my list of recipes to try!

Trissa said...

You are in an enviable position! You get to browse through tons of food porn a day and get paid for it? How lucky is that! Anyway, thanks for sharing this one - i must have missed it! It looks wicked!

Ms. Meanie said...

Hah! The same things happens to me when I browse tastespotting. I want to eat basically everything I see. This cake sounds great. I love the combination of raisins and chocolate but I never thought of apples and chocolate. Great idea!

Simones Kitchen said...

Gorgeous combination of ingredients in this cake! What's not to love?

Asha @ FSK said...

Agree with you on how much food bloggers share with and inspire each other.. Lovely cake!

MaryBeth said...

WOW...this truly is an amazing cake. Such wonderful flavor and texture.

Megan said...

love all ingredients in this cake! looks delish! great photo as well as the recipe!

Deeba PAB said...

Amazing & I'm craving it all over again. Bee-yoo-ti-ful pictures & a great post. This is what I call a celebration of food bogging. Thank you for linking it all so well.
PS Just wondering which stage the hazelnut spresd is to be added. Love the idea!

Valérie said...

It looks wonderful, such a lovely texture and combination of ingredients!

Deborah said...

I think it would be dangerous to go through all of those pictures. I'd have SO many recipes bookmarked! Your cake looks absolutely perfect.

Foodie with Little Thyme! said...

All I can say is YUM!

Sara Tea said...

what great flavor combo!! such a beautiful cake!

Anonymous said...

Oh my, this cake looks so delicious-so many great tastes all rolled into one! I'm definitely bookmarking this recipe. I also browsed through your archives and love your blog, I will definitely be back! Thanks for visiting mine as well :)

Chocolate Shavings said...

Megan: Thank you so much! Let me know if you get to try any of my recipes, I'm always looking for feedback!

pigpigscorner said...

wow this cake is loaded with goodies! Looks great!

Lisa said...

This cake looks amazing! Apple's in cake really float my boat.
You are so right about bloggers being a community. I have only been a part of it a short time, but an admirer from afar for a long time, discovering so many talented people in the world makes me feel very humble.

Patricia Scarpin said...

Jen, you have said it all - it is amazing how many wonderful recipes are shared on a daily basis, I love that! And when something is beautiful and delicious like this cake it gets spread really fast.

I'm bookmarking the recipe, too - your cake is fabulous and I adore each and every flavor you combined.

El said...

This looks incredibly tempting. I so agree--I love seeing what other people bake. Thank goodness for blogs...and this incredible dessert!

Barbara said...

Yummy! That is one moist and delicious looking cake! Lots of good fruits....imagine the apples made this so moist.

Maria said...

Fabulous cake!

lisa is cooking said...

Your cake looks incredible moist and delicious! The cranberries that end up on top look great too.

zested said...

I don't know how you can work for tastespotting and not be hungry all day long!

MemĂłria said...

I, too, enjoy being part of the blogging community for the same reasons you mentioned. I especially like foodie sites like tastespotting. Thanks for doing what you do!

What a delicious-looking cake!! Wow! The photos are amazing.

Mowie @ Mowielicious said...

Fab pictures and a great recipe too, love the combination!

Kelly said...

Made this the other day, it was delicious!! I'm sure to make it again!

Chocolate Shavings said...

Kelly: I'm glad you liked it!

Sari @ Cook Your Dream said...

Yummy yummy yummy! This cake looks divine! All my favourite flavours in one cake. This is a must try! It goes straight to my bookmarks! :)

Chocolate Gifts said...

I love the combination of this recipe coz it has many flavors and the photo was great too. I would definitely try this and I'll give you feedback on what the result is.

Thanks you for sharing this recipe...

:)

sewa mobil said...

Thanks! It's on my list of recipes to try!

sewa mobil di surabaya said...

wow this cake is loaded with goodies! Looks great!

Melita said...

This has my name written all over it! I am enjoying your blog so much! Great work!

Anonymous said...

This cake is amazing! I baked it last night and it was supposed to be for guests coming over for dinner, but I could not wait to try it. So I'm making another one today!
I've altered the recipe slightly - instead of cranberries I added fresh blackberries which have this sweet-sour taste, too! It came out delicious! Thank you for the recipe, in fact, I am putting a link on my blog, hope that's ok!

Foodelf said...

What would you think about using fresh cranberries instead of dried?

the cake looks gorgeous!

Anonymous said...

Thanks! I don't have much experience with cranberries as here in Britain they are not as popular and widely available as in America.
If you think they'd be nice, I would just risk it! Good luck.
Have a happy new year!

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