Apple Calvados Cake – With French Calvados Cream Sauce
This is one of those recipes that I have experimented with over and over….. and couldn’t decide on which version I liked best. Elegant or Rustic? Either way, the apple flavor kissed with a gentle hint of Calvados makes for the perfect Apple Calvados Cake. So, for this post, it’s a 2-for-1! Elegant or more rustic, either option is super moist and amazing.
This Apple Calvados Cake is a super simple cake, based on the traditional French apple cake. It is quite versatile. It can be made with apples that are more uniformly thinner sliced for an elegant cake. Or, you can chop your apples in chunkier, larger pieces for a more rustic appearance. Either way, you can top it with a dusting of powdered sugar, or a lovely Calvados Cream Sauce (Calvados Crème Anglaise).
A bit of history
Normandy France is know for their apples, dairy, and Calvados, which is a brandy made from apples. Normandy and Brittney are my favorite areas of France, probably because they remind me of Whidbey Island, with the sea never too far away. French apple cake, or gâteau aux pommes, grew from France’s long apple-growing tradition, especially in Normandy and Brittany, where home cooks turned abundant orchard fruit into simple, buttery rural desserts. Earlier apple-and-bread puddings appear in French cookbooks from the 14th and 15th centuries, while the apple-rich cake recognizable today became more common in the late 19th and 20th centuries.
Like Normandy and Brittney, here on Whidbey, and in the Pacific Northwest in general, we have an abundance of apple trees…. and apples. Every late summer into fall, I try to find unique uses for our apple excess. Apple sauce, Apple Pie, Apple Tarts, Apple Scones, Apple Cinnamon Waffles, and of course, Breton Chicken all are staples of the season. This lovely Apple Calvados Cake has definitely earned a spot in the seasonal apple rotation.
Tips:
- If you choose the more “chunky rustic” version, simply alter the apple slicing into apple “chunks” that are 1″-2″ pieces. For this version, I also add about 1/4# more apples, to make a bit taller cake. You will also need to add about 10-15 minutes to the baking time.
- If you don’t have Calvados (which I highly suggest finding some), a rum or a brandy will substitute nicely – both in the cake and the Cream Sauce.
Other Wonderful Apple Recipes to try:
- Apple Frangipane Tart
- Apple Cinnamon Waffles
- Chai Apple Pie
- Crabapple Chutney (substitute apples for crab apples)
Apple Calvados Cake with French Calvados Cream Sauce
Equipment
- 8" Spring Form Pan
Ingredients
Apple Cake
- 1 Pound Apple Slices, Peeled and Cored, from a variety of sweet/tart apples, such as Honeycrisp, Granny Smith and Pink Lady. You will start with 1.25-1.33# of apples. After peeling and coring, you should have about 1# of thickly sliced apples for your cake.
- 8 Tbsp Butter, melted
- 3/4 Cup Flour
- 3/4 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 2 Large Eggs
- 3/4 Cup Sugar
- 3 Tbsp Calvados Can substitute with rum or brandy
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla
Calvados Cream Sauce
- 3/4 + 1/8 Cup Boiling Milk
- 1/4 Cup Sugar
- 2 Egg Yolks
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 1 tsp Calvados
Instructions
Apple Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Generously grease an 8" springform pan.
- Peel and core the apples. Cut into quarters. Slice quarters into thick slices, then, cut the slices in half, so you have chunks of apple that are 1/4-1/2"" thick and about 1½" long.
- Melt the butter. Set aside to cool.
- In small bowl, mix dry ingredients. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs until they are foamy, about 1 minute.
- Add in the sugar and whisk until well combined and frothy, 1-2 minutes.
- Whisk in the Vanilla and Calvados. Whisk until blended.
- Next, whisk in half of the flour mixture until combined. Follow with half of the melted butter. Whisk to combine. Follow by the last half of the flour. Whisk to combine. Finally, add the last half of the melted Butter. Whisk gently until combined an you have a smooth batter.
- With a rubber spatula, gently fold in the apple pieces. Mix until apples are well combined and coated.
- Gently scrape the batter into prepared pan. Push and press the apples around to settle into the pan. Use spatula to make top as level as possible.
- Place on parchment-lined baking sheet. Place in oven. Bake for about an hour, checking at 50 minutes, or until top is golden and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove from oven. Let cool in pan for 5-10 minutes, then carefully run a knife around the edge of the pan and release the springform pan.
- Allow cake to cool until slightly warm, or to room temperature.
Calvados Cream Sauce (Calvados Crème Anglaise)
- Gradually beat the Sugar into the Egg Yolks and continue beating for 2-3 minutes, until the mixture is pale yellow and creamy. You will know you have beat it enough if when a bit is lifted in the beater, it will fall back into the bowl forming a slowly dissolving ribbon on the surface.
- While beating the yolk mixture, very gradually pour the boiling milk in a thin stream of droplets, beating constantly. Doing this very slowly allows the eggs to warm slowly, so as not to cook.
- Pour mixture into heavy bottomed saucepan, and set over medium-low heat. Stir continuously with a wooden spoon, taking care to scrape along all areas of bottom of the pan.
- Stir until sauce thickens to a consistency that when lifted, the back of the spoon is lightly coated, and doesn't run when you run your finger through the coated spoon. Using a candy thermometer, you should shoot for no warmer than 165℉.
- Remove from heat. Whisk for a few minutes to cool. Run through a fine mesh strainer to remove any bits of cooked egg.
- Whisk in the Vanilla and Calvados.
- Drizzle over slices of Apple Calvados Cake. Enjoy!
So good!! The Calvados crème anglaise was a perfect touch!!
Agreed! I probably could just eat the Crème Anglaise by itself!! It does pair perfectly with the apple cake, bringing out the subtle flavor of the Calvados in the cake.