Italian Apple Cake: Paper-Thin Apple Slices and Only 4 Tablespoons of Flour for a Pudding-Soft Crumb

You will love this traditional, extra-moist Italian apple cake for its high proportion of fresh fruit and tender batter. It is made with very little flour, so the finished dessert is like a delicious apple pudding scented with lemon and butter.

Thin apple slices soak up the fluffy batter and soften into a creamy texture as they bake. After baking, brush the cake with sweet apricot jam, which gives it a beautiful shine and a fresh fruity note.

Ingredients

Instructions

1. In a bowl, whisk the 2 eggs with 4 tablespoons of granulated sugar and a pinch of salt until foamy.
2. Add the finely grated zest of 1 lemon and the 50 g (3 1/2 tablespoons) of melted butter. Whisk everything together again.
3. Sift 4 tablespoons of all-purpose flour and 16 g (3 1/2 teaspoons) of baking powder through a fine sieve into the bowl. Whisk into a smooth, fairly thick batter without lumps.
4. Quarter the 4 medium apples, peel and core them. Using a slicer or mandoline, cut them into very thin slices into a separate bowl.
5. Sprinkle the sliced apples with the juice of 1/2 lemon and toss with a spatula so they do not brown.
6. Add the apple slices to the batter and fold with a spatula until every slice is evenly coated in a thin layer of batter.
7. Line the bottom of an 8-inch (20 cm) springform pan with parchment paper and grease the sides with butter.
8. Transfer the apple mixture to the pan, level the surface with a spatula and the back of a spoon, and tap the pan gently on the counter.
9. Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F (180°C) for about 40 minutes, until golden.
10. Let the baked cake cool in the pan, then carefully release and remove the ring. Brush the whole surface with a thin layer of apricot jam.

Coffee goes well with this cake, as it does with a cup gingerbread cake or a farmer’s cheese cake.

Video Recipe

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)