Apple and Blackberry Custard Crumble Cake

I made this recipe as a test for the recipe I was developing for the Sainsbury's 'apple and pear challenge'. I tweaked the recipe slightly for Sainsbury's but this is a pretty good recipe too. The inspiration for this cake came from Sunday lunch at a local pub where the crumble of the day was apple and blackberry. We didn't order dessert as we were too full but I decided to make my own apple and blackberry crumble in cake form. I added fruit to the sponge and a layer of blackberries on top. I also decided to add some hazelnuts to the crumble which gave it a lovely crunchy, nutty texture. The apples and blackberries paired beautifully and the hint of cinnamon really lifted the cake. The addition of custard and crumble appears to now be a signature bake for me but why mess with a good thing? 

 making the custard 

 adding apples and blackberries to the mix 

 more blackberries on top 

 crumble layer 

 

serve with vanilla ice cream 

For the cake

250g butter

250g caster sugar 

250g plain flour

4 eggs 

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 

2 apples, peeled, cored and chopped into small pieces

100g blackberries + 50g blackberries to dot on top of the sponge pre baking

For the custard

250ml milk

1 vanilla pod 

2 egg yolks

2 teaspoon cornflour

60g caster sugar

For the crumble

90g butter

90g soft brown sugar

60g ground almonds

80g jumbo rolled oats

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

100g blanched, whole hazelnuts 

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Make the custard first by heating the milk and vanilla pod on a low heat to simmering point. 
• Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour in a separate bowl. 
• Pour the hot milk mixture into the egg yolk mixture and continue whisking constantly. 
• Rinse out the pan.
• Return the mixture to the pan and heat gently until the custard thickens. You will need to stir frequently. 
• Make the cake mixture by creaming butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.
• Add the eggs one at at a time and mix well.
• Fold in the flour, baking powder and ground cinnamon.
• Finally add in the apples and 100g blackberries and stir by hand.  
• To make the crumble, place all ingredients except for the oats and hazelnuts in a food processor and blitz until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add in the oats and pulse gently. Stir in the hazelnuts by hand.
• To assemble the cake, pour the sponge mixture into a lined tin and smooth with a palette knife.
• Sprinkle 50g blackberries on top, pushing them in slightly. 
• Pour the custard layer on top. 
• Then add the crumble layer. 
• Bake in a preheated oven for approximately 40- 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Apple and Pear Upside Down Custard Crumble Cake

Recently I was contacted by Sainsbury's to participate in their 'apple and pear challenge'. I was sent an Orchard Assortment box which contains 4 English apples and 2 English pears.  I brainstormed some ideas and as I couldn't decide what to make, I decided to combine a few favourite desserts - fruit crumble, upside down cake and custard! I made some caramel then layered the apples and pears on top. This was followed by a layer of custard, a layer of sponge mixed with chopped apples and pears and finally a crumble layer. At the last minute, I also decided to add some flaked almonds just to give it extra crunch and texture. The cake is served upside down and it tasted absolutely divine! The sponge was really light and the caramelised fruit and custard really complemented the cake well. The crumble and toasted flaked almonds made a really good crunchy base.  Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the cake and there wasn't a crumb left at the end of the day! 

The varieties included in the Sainsbury's Orchard Assortment Box are
Rubens - red in colour, this apple has a crisp, refreshing and sparkling flavour coupled with a sweet hint of melon
Jazz - A colourful apple with flashes of red, green and yellow, its flavour is characterised as sweet and aromatic with undertones of pear
Kanzi - Scarlet red in colour with a pale green background, this crunchy and juicy apple has a deliciously complex sweet taste
Cameo - This new variety is dark red in colour offset with orange flushes. Sweet, juicy and crunchy, topped off with a blend of honey and citrus flavours.
Sweet sensation - Vibrant red blush over a green-yellow background, this pear variety is deliciously sweet to taste and melts in the mouth when ripe
Concorde - A cross between Conference and Cornice pears, the Concorde is a green, slightly russetted pear with a rich, sweet flavour.

For this recipe, I decided to use the Jazz and Cameo apples and the Sweet Sensation pear as I felt the flavours would complement each other. 

 making the caramel for the apples and pears 

 cooking the custard 

 lovely caramel 

 adding chopped fruit to the batter 

 layer fruit on top of the caramel layer 

 add custard 

 add sponge 

 add crumble and flaked almonds (see instructions - I'd recommend adding the almonds at a later stage) 

 fresh from the oven 

  I love how you can still see the pears 

 You can clearly see the caramel fruit later, custard layer and sponge. The crumble layer is definitely there but you can't see it very well here. 

An original recipe by bakingaddict

For the caramel
200g caster sugar
3 tablespoons water
2 apples and 1 pear - peeled and sliced

For the cake
220g butter
220g caster sugar
220g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 eggs
chopped apples and pears (I chopped up the fruit leftover after layering the cake base as shown)

For the custard
570ml/1 pint milk
60ml single cream
1 vanilla pod
4 egg yolks
35g caster sugar
2 teaspoons cornflour

For the crumble
100g plain flour
50g ground almonds
125g butter
35g demerara sugar
35g caster sugar
60g rolled oats

100g flaked almonds (optional)

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Make the caramel by placing 200g caster sugar and 3 tablespoons of water into a pan over medium-high heat. 
• Watch carefully until it is amber in colour - do not stir the mixture at any point. Take it off the heat and carefully pour it into a lined baking tin. 
• Arrange the apple and pear slices as shown. 
• Make the custard by heating the milk, cream and vanilla pod on a low heat to simmering point. 
• Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour in a separate bowl. 
• Pour the hot milk mixture into the egg yolk mixture and continue whisking constantly. 
• Rinse out the pan.
• Return the mixture to the pan and heat gently until the custard thickens. You will need to stir frequently. 
• Make the cake mixture by creaming butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.
• Add the eggs one at at a time and mix well.
• Fold in the flour, baking powder and vanilla extract.
• Finally add in the chopped fruit.
• To make the crumble, place all ingredients except for the oats in a food processor and blitz until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add in the oats and pulse gently. 
• To assemble the cake, add a layer of custard to the caramel fruit and smooth with a palette knife.
• Add in the sponge mixture and level with a palette knife.
• Place the crumble on top.
• Bake in a preheated oven for approximately 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. 
• Take the cake out of the oven and sprinkle flaked almonds all over the top and return to the oven for a further 10-15 minutes or until the almonds are toasted and brown. [I added the almonds before baking but it browned quickly so I had to cover the cake with foil after about 20 minutes - I would definitely recommend adding the almonds at the end] 
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before turning it upside down on a serving tray to serve. 

Disclaimer: I was sent an Orchard Assortment Box from Sainsbury's for review purposes and a Sainsbury's gift card to cover the cost of the ingredients. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own. 

Cinnamon, Fruit & Nut Mix Cookies

These cookies are inspired by a pack of fruit and nut mix with cinnamon dusted milk chocolate almonds that I found in the shops. I decided to add in more cinnamon, some chopped chocolate as I had a bit leftover and leftover berry mix (raisins, sultanas and dried cranberries). I also used wholemeal flour and oats to make it seem healthier! They were absolutely delicious. I love the cinnamon which was strong but not overpowering and it was the perfect balance of fruit, nut and chocolate. 

I'm sending this to the Biscuit Barrel Challenge hosted by Laura from I'd Much Rather Bake Than... who has chosen the theme "Spices" The recipe contains quite a bit of cinnamon which is perfect for this time of the year. 

I'm also sending this to the No Waste Food Challenge hosted by Elizabeth from Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary. I used up my leftover chocolate and berry mix. 

An original recipe by bakingaddict

225g butter
220g dark brown sugar
180g wholemeal flour
250g oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
2.5 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 eggs
150g fruit & nut mix with cinnamon dusted milk chocolate almonds
70g chocolate, chopped
100g berry mix (raisins, sultanas, dried cranberries)

• Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease and line 2 baking trays.
• Cream the butter and sugar for a few minutes.
• Add in egss one at at time a mix well.
• Mix in flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon and oats.
• Finally stir in the fruit, nuts, chocolate and berry mix. 
• Using a small ice cream scoop, place round balls of dough spaced apart on a baking tray.
• Bake for approximately 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
• Allow to cool on the tray for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
• The cookies will harden as they cool. 

Apple, Pear and Raspberry Yoghurt Muffins

I created this recipe based on ingredients I had in my fridge/cupboard.  I tried to make this as healthy as possible by incorporating fruit, wholemeal and spelt flour and a minimal amount of sugar. I even left the skins on the fruit for added fibre!  The end result was quite tasty although it was slightly dense in texture, almost like a bread and butter pudding. The sprinkling of chocolate chips and mini cornish fudge balanced out the flavours well and were a delightful hidden treat if you got some in your muffin! I'm sure it would have tasted a lot better with butter but these are a reasonable substitute if you want to watch the calories. 

I'm entering this to AlphaBakes which is hosted by myself and Caroline from Caroline Makes. The letter this month is "Y". You can use the letter Y as the name of the bake/dish or as the main ingredient. The Y here is of course yoghurt. 

I'm also sending this to the No Waste Food Challenge hosted by Elizabeth from Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary. I created this recipe to use up the end of bags of flour, chocolate chips, mini cornish fudge and leftover fruit in my fruit bowl. 

And to Treat Petite hosted by Kat from the Baking Explorer and Stuart from Cakeyboi. The theme this month is "Free From".  This recipe is free from butter/oil/fat and plain flour. 

And to Four Seasons Food hosted by Louisa from Eat Your Veg and Anneli from Delicieux. The theme this month is Virtuous Food and eating this definitely makes me feel virtuous.

 

 wet ingredients, dry ingredients and fruit 

 love the colour of the fruit 

 ready to go in the oven 

 yum! 

An original recipe by  bakingaddict
Note - the quantities may seem odd as I used up what I had leftover but feel free to change it around or make substitutions.

Makes 12 muffins 
150g spelt flour
150g wholemeal flour
85g dark brown sugar
50g honey
2 eggs
165g fat free raspberry yoghurt x 2
70g fresh raspberries
1 apple - cored and chopped
1 pear - cored and chopped
20g mini cornish fudge
20g dark chocolate chips
50g milk chocolate chips
flaked almonds to decorate (optional)

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Sift the flours in a medium bowl and stir in brown sugar, mini cornish fudge pieces and chocolate chips.
• In a separate bowl, lightly beat the eggs and add yoghurt and honey and mix. 
• Pour the wet ingredients in to the dry ingredients and finally stir in the fruit. 
• Spoon into muffin cases and sprinkle a handful of flaked almonds on top if using. 
• Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. 
• Allow to cool in the tray for a few minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Orange Squash Cupcakes

This month's Random Recipe Challenge hosted by Dom from Belleau Kitchen is "New Year, New Book". I received 1 cookbook for Christmas last year which has been on my wishlist for a while so I was extremely pleased to add it to my collection. It's red velvet chocolate heartache by Harry Eastwood. Its full of natural and healthy recipes that mainly use vegetables instead of butter or oil in cakes. It's brilliant for January baking when everyone is on some sort of diet or the other but this will definitely be used year round. It's particularly good for gluten free recipes that taste good. 

I opened the book to a random page and got page 18 which is Orange Squash Cupcakes. The cupcake contains eggs, sugar, butternut squash, white rice flour (I used brown rice flour as that was all I could find), ground almonds, zest and juice of an orange and baking powder. The icing given is a butter icing but I decided to keep it completely butter free so I made a simple glaze icing with icing sugar and fresh orange juice and orange zest. The verdict - absolutely delicious!! You will not believe that these cakes contain no butter or oil. It was moist and flavourful with a slight grainy texture from the ground almonds. I can't wait to try more recipes from this book! 

This recipe will also fit in nicely with a few other blog challenges this month. Made with love Mondays hosted by Javelin Warrior where the idea to make everything from scratch.

Cooking With Herbs hosted by Karen from Lavender and Lovage. She has chosen the theme citrus this month and this contains fresh orange zest and orange juice.

Four Seasons Food hosted by Louisa from Eat Your Veg and Anneli from Delicieux. The theme this month is Virtuous Food and these definitely fit the bill. 

 Treat Petite hosted by Kat from the Baking Explorer and Stuart from Cakeyboi. The theme this month is "Free From".  This recipe is free from butter and oil and it's gluten free! 

Calendar Cakes hosted by Rachel from Dolly Bakes and Laura from Laura Loves Cakes. The theme this month is "If it makes you happy..." These little cakes made a lot of people happy and I love the brightness and freshness of it which reminds me of spring.

 

 adding butternut squash to the egg/sugar mixture. I couldn't find my grater attachment so had to grate it by hand which is why it's coarser than I'd like 

 ready to go in the oven 

 decorated with simple glaze icing and an orange slice 

Recipe from Red Velvet Chocolate Heartache by Harry Eastwood page 18. It has been republished here with kind permission from the publisher. 

Orange Squash Cupcakes

THESE CUPCAKES BELONG to July picnics with squashed sandwiches, cotton

dresses, Scotch eggs and cartons of juice.

MAKES 12

2 medium free-range eggs

160g caster sugar

200g peeled and finely grated butternut squash

finely grated zest and juice of 1 orange (juicing varieties, such as Seville, are best)

100g white rice flour

100g ground almonds

2 tsp baking powder

1⁄4 tsp salt

FOR THE ICING

75g unsalted butter, cold and cubed

200g icing sugar, sieved

finely grated zest of 1 orange

1 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice

FOR THE TOP

a little grated orange

zest

YOU WILL NEED

a 12-hole muffin tray

12 paper cases (see page xxvii for exact size)

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4 and line the muffin

tray with paper cases.

2 Whisk the eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl for 5 minutes,

until pale and quadrupled in volume. Add the grated butternut squash

and orange zest, and whisk again. Mix in the flour, ground almonds,

baking powder and salt, along with the orange juice, until they are

well introduced.

3 Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases, aiming for it to come

four fifths of the way up each case. Place in the oven for 20 minutes

until risen and cooked. Don’t be alarmed that they are flat on the top

rather than dome shaped. Cool in the tin for 15 minutes, before

refrigerating until cold enough to ice.

4 Whilst the cupcakes are cooling, make the icing. Whisk the butter

in a large mixing bowl with an electric whisk until pale and fluffy

before adding 100g of the icing sugar. Whisk again to incorporate the

sugar. Add the orange zest and juice, as well as the remaining sugar.

Beat once again to combine. Refrigerate until the cupcakes are cool

and ready to ice.

5 Ice when the cupcakes are cold, with the help of a small knife

or spatula.

TRUST ME TIPS

Don’t worry if the icing curdles when you add the orange juice.

It will come right and give up the tantrum when you add the final

batch of icing sugar. If for whatever reason it doesn’t quite right itself,

simply add more sugar until it has calmed down and is unified again.