Kathleen's Perfect Winter Apple Cinnamon Teacake
We're over the moon to introduce you to friend of VH and avid baker Kathleen. If you looked at her Insta feed, you'd have no idea that she works as a train conductor for a living, because it's laden with nothing but the most delectable looking baked goods, the odd gorgeous selfie, and candids of her rescue dog Buster who is, undeniably, genuinely the cutest dog in the world.
We got together with Kathleen on a chilly Wednesday a week ago, and she baked her favourite winter cake for us, her Apple Cinnamon Teacake. This teacake is a dreamy combo of apple, cinnamon, pecans, and oats (we know, because we ate a LOT of it) and the perfect dessert to share with your pals on a cosy night in.
Keep reading to learn a little bit more about our mate Kathleen, and get the recipe for her delicious teacake, which we hope you'll end up sharing with your friends over a cuppa in the chilly weeks to come.
1. Tell us a little bit about yourself
Hello! My name is Kathleen, I’m a smiley and creative 29 year old who has been living in Melbourne for the past nine years.
2. When did you start getting into baking?
I remember being a young girl, perhaps 8 or 9 and always baking with my Nan whenever I visited her. She taught me all she knew and I remember being incredibly amazed by her skills. Nana May made the best pineapple tart with a buttery shortcrust pastry and big dollop of Chantilly cream.
3. What's your proudest baking moment to date?
There are so many! I love stepping back from the kitchen bench and admiring what I have baked, decorated or cooked. Nat Paull from Beatrix Bakes is a someone I really look up to for baking inspiration. I had baked her Sicilian ricotta pie spiced with cinnamon and orange zest, snapped a pic and posted it on my socials. I remember opening my messages and seeing a lovely little message from Nat herself about my bake.
4. Whats one tip you could give to someone trying out baking for the first time?
Please don’t overthink it. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed with numerous recipes and lots of different ingredients, but at the end of the day—it’s a cake, you can always bake another one :)
5. What makes your Apple Cinnamon Teacake the perfect winter dessert?
Anything that has cinnamon, apple or butter screams comfort in my eyes, especially during winter. This cake is like a big hug from your Nan. Happiness that is cosy and warm.
Apple & cinnamon teacake with a pecan and oat crumble
Cake Ingredients
200g softened butter
100g caster sugar
100g brown sugar
1tsp vanilla
3tsp cinnamon
360g self raising flour
250ml full cream milk
4 large eggs
3-4 apples, peeled and thinly sliced
Crumble Ingredients
70g pecans, roughly chopped
30g rolled oats
30g plain flour
40g brown sugar
50g butter
1 tsp cinnamon
Method
Preheat oven to 170°. Line the base of a deep round 20cm cake tin with baking paper and lightly grease the sides of the cake tin.
To make the pecan crumble, in a medium bowl add all the crumble ingredients. Mix with your fingertips until combined and there are no more clumps of butter or flour. Set aside.
Place butter, brown & caster sugar, vanilla and cinnamon in the bowl and beat until light and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, making sure each egg is beaten well into the batter, scraping down the bowl before adding the next egg. Add the sifted flour and milk, and mix to combine until smooth.
Pour half of the batter into the lined cake tin, smooth and level batter with a spoon or spatula. Arrange apple slices over the top of the batter in the tin.
Then, carefully pour the remaining batter over the apple slices, smooth the top, and arrange a second layer of apple slices on the second half of the batter.
Scatter the pecan crumble over the top of the second layer of apple slices.
Put the cake into the oven, uncovered, and bake for 40mins.
After the 40 minutes, remove your cake from the oven. Take some foil and cover the cake tin (use oven mitts or a tea towel, be careful it will be hot). Then place back into the oven to finish baking for another 30–35mins.
To be sure the cake it baked all the way through, check with a skewer—make sure it comes out clean. If it needs a bit longer, pop it back into the oven and check every 5-10mins until cooked.
Once the cake is baked, let cake cool for 20-30mins. Remove from cake tin and dust lightly with icing sugar over the top.
Serve cake whilst warm with a drizzle of custard and ice-cream. This cake is delicious and cosy and keeps for 2-3 days in an airtight container.
Thank you so much, Kathleen!
If you try out this recipe for yourself, share it with us over social media, and then share it IRL with a friend :)
