German Apple Cake, or Versunkener Apfelkuchen (sunken apple cake), is an all-day cake that can be enjoyed with coffee, as a dessert or even for breakfast. It's topped with sliced apples that are slightly submerged in the batter before baking. As the cake bakes, it will rise around the apples, creating a sunken effect.
This is a very simple cake, and the apples are the star of the show. Choose tart, firm baking apples, such as Granny Smith or Braeburn, which will hold their shape during baking and add a refreshing tartness to the sweet cake base. Another important ingredient in this cake is almond paste.
It's a unique tweak that surprisingly doesn't overwhelm the cake, but rather perfumes it with a hint of almond, lending moistness and dimension to its flavor. Note that almond paste is not marzipan. Almond paste has more almonds and less sugar than marzipan.
It's used in baked goods, while marzipan is a confection and often used for decoration. You can find almond paste in the baking aisle of well-stocked supermarkets. This cake is adapted from a Milk Street recipe.
** ** ** German Apple Cake Active time: 15 minutes Total time: 1 hour plus cooling time Yield: Makes 1 (9-inch) cake 1 cup all-purpose flour or 1:1 gluten-free flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon kosher salt 4 ounces almond paste (not marzipan), crumbled 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature 2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar 3 large eggs, room temperature 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1.
