Lazy Apple Cake
a buttery, lemon flavored pastry filled with apples and dusted with walnuts and meringue
Equipment
- 9x3 inch pan
- stand mixer or hand beaters
- food processor
Ingredients
Dough
- 5 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 pound butter room temperature
- ⅓ cup whole milk
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, 1 whole egg plus 2 yolks reserve whites for meringue
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
filling
- 2 pounds granny smith apples peeled, cored and thinly sliced
- 1 cup walnuts ground
- ½ cup plain bread crumbs
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- lemon, juiced optional
topping
- 2 egg whites whipped
- ¼ cup walnuts ground
Instructions
dough
- Sift flour and salt together. Rub in butter, forming pea-sized crumbs. Add sugar, egg, egg yolks, milk, vanilla extract and grated lemon zest. Stir together, then knead with your hands to make a rich dough that crumbs. Divide into 2 parts, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
filling
- Place apples, walnuts, breadcrumbs, sugar and cinnamon into a large bowl and mix together. Add a bit of lemon juice for tartness.
- pre-heat oven to 350℉
Assembly
- With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to the size of your 9x13” baking pan. Place dough into the bottom of the pan and press down around the edges to create a uniform bottom crust. Lay out the apple mixture on top, pressing the apples down. Roll out the second half of the dough and place it into the pan on top of the apple mixture. Trim the edges as needed.
- Add meringue topping: Whip the two egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Spread the egg whites on top of the dough and dust with ground walnuts. Before placing into the oven, score the top layer of the cake into 24 squares
- Bake for an hour until the meringue begins to brown. Leave it in the pan to cool before cutting. Dust with icing sugar and serve.