Irish Apple Cake

This cake, known also as Kerry Apple Cake, is a traditional Irish dessert. It can be served cold or warm, and is excellent when accompanied by chilled cream, custard (or pudding), or vanilla ice cream. Bear in mind that this cake is not a typical Betty Crocker box cake; it is much less sweet and almost more similar in consistency to a biscuit than to your typical crumb cake. But it's still very tasty and worth trying, if only in honor of St. Patrick's day...a few days late.

Irish Apple Cake
from Irish Food and Cooking
Pictures by Caroline

2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
3 or 4 cooking apples, peeled and sliced
3/4 cup sugar, divided into 1/2 cup and 1/4 cup
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 375° F and butter a 8 or 9 inch cake pan.
2. Mix the flour, powder, salt and cloves in a bowl. Cut in the butter and mix until the mixture is like fine breadcrumbs.
3. In a separate bowl, gently stir sliced apples and 1/4 cup sugar together.
   
4. Mix the eggs, 1/2 sugar and vanilla.
   
5. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and stir just until combined. Gradually add the milk (not all at once!), stirring as you go. The batter should be a stiff dough, but you may need to add a bit more milk if it is too difficult to stir.
   
6. Layer apples and batter in pan, beginning and ending with batter (you should have three layers of batter and two layers of apples). Sprinkle top of batter with white sugar.
   
7. Bake 30-40 minutes, or until springy to the tough. Cool on a wire rack.