I've been making this cake every fall for the last three or four years and it always gets rave reviews. Sweet, but not too rich, with delicious chunks of apple and walnut. Pour on some unsweetented raw cream for something really special. The original recipe is from Southern Living Magazine, though I have modified it slightly.
Ingredients
½ cup melted butter
1½ cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
4 medium apples, peeled and sliced (I use Jonagolds, though Granny Smith would be nice as well)
1 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°.
Stir together butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
Add dry ingredients to wet. Stir until combined.
Stir in apples and walnuts. Batter will be thick, more like a cookie dough than a cake batter.
Spoon into a greased 13 x 9 inch pan.
Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Tastes best when topped with cream: sweetened or unsweetened, whipped or not.
Notes
The original recipe includes intructions for making a cream-cheese frosting. I never have; I think it would be too sweet and heavy. However, you are welcome to give it a shot.
See the original recipe here: Southern Living's Chunky Apple Cake.
Recipe by Heidi Schulz Books at http://blog.heidischulzbooks.com/2011/11/chunky-apple-cake-recipe/