Apple Walnut Kuchen

Larry and I made a final visit to the Ithaca Farmer’s Market last week. He wanted to pick up some garlic to get planted, and I was looking for kale and whatever else caught my fancy. On the way home, we stopped at the Cornell Orchard Store and picked up some gorgeous Cortland Apples. Cortlands are my favorite apples, because they are so versatile. Used fresh off the tree, or from cold storage, there is no better baking apple. They are tart and crisp and filled with rich apple flavor. Leave them out on the counter for a couple days, and they get sweeter, with a creamy succulent texture that speaks fall to me in every bite.

There are a lot of different versions of Kuchen around. Some use cake mixes, or a from scratch cake base, but I like this yeasty cake base much better. It is the perfect platform for the apples and strudel-like topping. There are a number of steps involved, but they aren’t complicated, so overall, it is super easy. This is a recipe where it pays to assemble all of the different elements ahead of time, so that it is easier to get it all put together.
In a medium bowl, combine
3 cups peeled and sliced apples
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins

In another bowl, combine
3/4 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoon all purpose flour
4 tablespoons soft butter
combine well and mix in
1 cup lightly toasted walnuts [I do mine in the microwave, 1 minute at a time, stirring between – takes about 4 minutes]

In a mixing bowl, combine
1 & 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 envelope [2 & 1/4 teaspoons] active dry yeast
1 teaspoon salt
Add
3/4 cup very warm milk
1/3 cup melted butter
Beat for 2 minutes,scrape sides of bowl, and add
1 cup all purpose flour
1 large egg
Beat another 2 minutes, scraping sides as needed. You will have a stiff batter.

Grease 2 9-inch cake pans, and divide the batter between them, spreading evenly in the bottom.Divide apples evenly and spread over the batter.Do the same with the toppingGive it an hour in a warmish spot, so it can rise Bake on the middle rack in the oven, at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes. Check with a toothpick to make sure the base is done. The apples will be nicely soft and the topping browned and bubbly. Cool on a wire rack for a bit. Can be served straight from the pan while it is still warm, with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. If you want to present it on a plate, let it cool about 30 minutes, gently loosen the edges, and keeping the blade of a table knife under the edge, tip the pan and pull the edge onto a plate with the knife. If you greased your pan sufficiently, it should slide right out. Once it is completely cool, it is much more difficult to get out of the pan in one piece – if you look closely, you might see where this one came apart on me because I waited too long to take it out of the pan. It went right back together though, with no harm done, except to my blood pressure perhaps, as we had already eaten the one that came out cleanly and I needed to get this photo. I think it still looks quite edible though, right?
It’s pretty good for breakfast too, all by itself.A lot of times, I send extra baked stuff to work with Larry, because the two of us can’t shouldn’t eat all the stuff I make. A suggestion that he take this to share was met with a look that intimated I was out of my mind, and a firm “No way – I’m eating this!” I guess he liked it, huh?
Other posts you may enjoy:
Fresh Apple Snack Cake
Apple Cheese Crisp