Vegan Apple-Cinnamon Cake, by Shalva Gale

ABOUT THE RECIPE:

Shalva Gale says: This Apple-Cinnamon Cake is a beloved family recipe, updated for modern baking. Moist, dense, and loaded with tart apples and warm cinnamon—made with whole wheat flour, almond flour, and flaxseed. Your high-performance blender chops the apples and mixes the batter, so it comes together fast. Great for Rosh Hashanah, apple season, winter holiday meals, or any time you want your house to smell incredible.

Makes 12 Servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

Apples

• 4 medium apples with skins, washed and cored

Wet Ingredients

• 2 cups unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup sunflower oil or vegetable oil, plus more to oil Bundt pan (see note)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Dry Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons ground flaxseed meal
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup almond flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 

Cinnamon-Sugar Mixture

• 2 tablespoons cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat the  oven to 350°F. Wash and core apples, leaving skins on. Add apples to a high-performance blender and pulse on medium speed 5 to 8 times, or until the mixture is chopped into small pieces. (Alternately; you can cut the apples into 1/2-inch cubes by hand). Pour the apple mixture into a large mixing bowl.

Add all of the wet ingredients to the blender container (no need to rinse after the blending the apples). Blend on high for 15 to 20 seconds until combined. Add all of the dry ingredients to the container and blend on medium until just combined being careful not to overmix. Pour batter into the bowl with the chopped apples and stir until combined.

To make the cinnamon-sugar mixture, put 2 tablespoons cane sugar and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon into a small bowl and stir to combine.

Thoroughly coat a Bundt pan with oil, then generously coat all sides of the pan with a generous amount of the cinnamon sugar. (See note for pan alternative.) Pour in the batter. Bake 50 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. (When in doubt, take the cake out of the oven slightly early rather than over baking.) Cool the cake completely before flipping onto a plate, then dust the cake with the remaining cinnamon sugar, or to taste, (as desired).

SHALVA'S NOTES:

• If you do not have a bundt pan, you can make 18 muffins instead. To do so, generously coat a 12-cup standard muffin tin and a 6-cup standard muffin tin with oil. Once the batter is prepared, divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. 
• Tart apples work best, but any variety is fine. Leave the skins on for extra texture and nutrition. 
• If you are using sweetened applesauce, reduce brown sugar by 1/4 cup. 
• For a lower-fat version of this recipe, replace the 1/2 cup oil in this recipe with an additional 1/2 cup applesauce, being certain to still thoroughly coat your Bundt pan with oil.