Apple Cider Bundt Cake

Makes 1

Ingredients

Cake

  • 2 cups apple cider
  • 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup Red Fife flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons apple pie spice mix
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 3/4 cups sugar
  • 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2/3 cup buttermilk, room temperature
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 3 large eggs, room temperature

Coating

  • 2 Tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon Baobab fruit powder (optional)

Method

  1. Add the apple cider to a medium pan, and over a medium heat boil to reduce to 1/3 cup quantity. Remove from heat and allow to cool
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  3. Prepare a 12-cup bundt pan by liberally spraying with baking spray, or generously grease with butter and flour. Pay special attention to all those crevices and folds
  4. In a large bowl, whisk together both flours, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt
  5. In separate bowl, whisk together sugar, cooled cider concentrate , oil, applesauce, vanilla, and eggs
  6. Add egg mixture to flour mixture; whisk until combined, making sure there are no flour pockets
  7. Transfer batter to prepared pan, and bake for 45- 50 minutes, until a tester inserted in center comes out clean
  8. Transfer pan to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet; let cool 15 minutes
  9. While the cake cools make the coating. Mix together remaining sugar, cinnamon and Baobab fruit powder
  10. After 15 minutes, turn the cake out onto a cooling rack set over some baking parchment
  11. Brush with melted butter, then sprinkle liberally with the sugar coating. Let cool completely before serving

Apple Fritters

Makes 8

Ingredients

Apple Fritters

  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 tablespoons applesauce
  • 2 large Granny Smith apples or Honey Crisp apples peeled, cored and diced

Glaze

  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons Baobab Fruit Powder (optional)
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

  1. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in medium bowl. Make a well in the center and add 1/3 cup milk, eggs and applesauce. Stir just to combine. Fold in apples
  2. Heat 1 1/2 inches of oil in heavy skillet, Dutch oven or deep fryer to 375F degrees
  3. Drop about 1/4 cup of batter per fritter into hot oil; spreading it out as you drop
  4. Cook each side until golden brown; approximately 2-3 minutes per side
  5. Use a slotted spoon to remove to a cooling rack set over some paper towels to drain
  6. While the fritters cool, whisk together 1/4 cup milk, Baobab fruit powder, powdered sugar and vanilla. Dunk each fritters in the glaze to coat.  Place on wire racks to drip and air dry

Freezing & Reheating

If you’re making your fritters for later, they keep really well in the freezer compartment. Freeze for up to 2 month for best taste. You’ll need to remember not to glaze them though! Allow your unglazed fritters to cool completely before wrapping individually in cling wrap, popping in freezer bags and storing in your freezer.

The best way to thaw frozen apple fritters is to remove them from the freezer, unwrap them and place them into the fridge. It is best to leave them overnight to ensure they thaw all the way through.

If they have not thawed all the way through by the time you want to eat them, you could leave them out on the counter for up to an hour to speed up that process. 

To reheat, and to ensure you get a nice crisp apple fritter, you can either use a toaster oven or a conventional oven. Place the thawed fritters on a baking tray and reheat them at 375F for 5 minutes.

Once they’re reheated you can glaze them as Step 2 above.

Air Fryer Apple Pies

Makes 8

Ingredients

  • 3 cups peeled apples, diced
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 2 and 1 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch
  • 8 egg roll wrappers
  • 1/2 cup cream cheese, room temperature
  • 2 tablespoon sugar

Method

  1. Preheat air fryer to 400°.
  2. In a small bowl, combine apples, brown sugar, 2 teaspoons cinnamon and cornstarch and mix well
  3. With a corner of an egg roll wrapper facing you, spread 1 scant tablespoon cream cheese to within 1 in. of edges.
  4. Place 2-3 tablespoons apple mixture just below center of wrapper
  5. Fold bottom corner over filling; moisten remaining wrapper edges with water. Fold side corners toward center over filling. Roll egg roll up tightly, pressing at tip to seal. Repeat with remaining egg roll wrappers
  6. In batches, arrange egg rolls in a single layer on greased tray in air-fryer basket; spritz with cooking spray (I usally do mine in 2 batches of 4)
  7. Cook until golden brown, 5 minutes. Turn; spritz with cooking spray. Cook until golden brown and crisp, usually another 5 minutes.
  8. On a separate plate, combine sugar and remaining 1 teaspoon cinnamon; roll hot egg rolls in mixture to coat (using a tongs help!)
  9. Serve and enjoy! (Leave to rest for about 5 minutes as the internal filling can be quite hot!)

*If you’re upscaling this recipe for more than 8 apple pies, I’ve found it best to make and cook 8 at a time. Any more and you risk letting the ones sit uncooked becoming soggy

**Cooked apple pies can be quickly reheated in your air-fryer preheated at 350F for 3 minutes

    Dead Man’s Fingers

    What’s Halloween without a little treat from the Other World, huh? These delightfully dreadful cookies are a wonderful treat to have lying around at any festively freakish gathering. A spin on traditional sugar cookies, they really do look more than the sum of their parts. They’re also easy enough that you can rope in some ghoulish little helpers for the fun.

    A point to note that like all sugar cookies, you want to avoid baking them to the usual cookie state of “golden brown”- this will result in them being a tad too hard for enjoyment. Bake them for the time required below, or until hte edges are just starting to turn a light golden brown. The cookies may look under-baked but trust me here- they will taste so much better!

    Makes apx 24 (depending on size)

    Ingredients

    Graveyard Dirt

    • ¼ cup butter; melted
    • 1 Cup granulated sugar
    • 1 Cup cocoa powder
    • ½ pinch salt
    • slivered almonds; chopped walnut; shaved dark chocolate; shaved milk chocolate (Optional)

    Fingers Cookies

    • 2 cups All Purpose Flour
    • ½ teaspoon baking powder
    • ¼ teaspoon fine salt
    • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
    • 1 cup sugar
    • 1 large egg, at room temperature
    • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    • 28 large, flaked almonds
    • ½ cup smooth, raspberry jam
    • 1 Tablespoon light corn syrup

    Method

    Graveyard Dirt

    1. Melt butter in the microwave in a small glass or ceramic bowl (microwave safe) and allow to cool to room temperature
    2. In a large mixing bowl, blend the sugar, salt, and cocoa powder until thoroughly mixed
    3. While whisking, slowly add the melted butter and continue mixing gently until blended, but dry
    4. Using a fork, continue mixing until it looks like dark soil
    5. At this stage mix in the chopped nuts to give the soil texture
    6. Spoon the “dirt” on to your serving plate or tray, ready for your finger cookies

    Fingers Cookies

    1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Prepare a cookie sheet with baking spray or line with a silicone mat, or baking parchment. Set aside until needed
    2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside until needed
    3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed, about 10 minutes
    4. Add in the egg, vanilla and mix until well combined and smooth.
    5. Gradually beat in the dry flour mixture, ¼ cup at a time until a dough forms
    6. Remove the bowl and using about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough at a time, roll the dough between your palms into 5-inch-long fingers about 1/2-inch thick. Firmly press a sliced almond into the end of each finger to make fingernails
    7. Make several horizontal cuts, about 1/4 inch deep, in the center of each finger to make mimic skin folds at the knuckles. Gently press the dough on either side of the cuts to shape the knuckles
    8. Arrange the fingers on the prepared baking sheet and bake until light golden, 16 to 18 minutes
    9. Transfer the fingers to a wire rack and cool completely
    10. While the cookies cool, in a small saucepan, combine the jam, corn syrup and heat over low heat until warm, about 2 minutes, stirring gently
    11. Dip the blunt ends of the fingers in the warm jam and arrange on a plate of the graveyard dirt for serving

    Saskatoon Berry Pie

    Makes 1x 9inch double crust pie

    Ingredients

    Pie Crust

    • 2 ½ cup all-purpose flour
    • 4 teaspoon granulated sugar
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup cold unsalted butter, diced
    • 1/2 cup ice water

    Filling

    • 4 cups fresh, or frozen, Saskatoon berries (if using frozen berries, thaw and drain)
    • ½ cup granulated sugar
    • 3 ½ tablespoon corn-starch
    • 1 teaspoon almond extract
    • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
    • 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
    • 2 tablespoons chilled butter, cut in small pieces

    Filling

    1. Add all sauce ingredients to a medium bowl and stir well to ensure the berries are well coated. Set aside until needed. See note * in step 6 below

    Pie Crust

    1. Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl or a food processor.  Whisk or pulse briefly until combined
    2. Sprinkle the diced butter evenly over the dry ingredient mixture until the butter is evenly dispersed into pea-sized (or smaller) bits.  If using a food processor, briefly pulse the butter and dry ingredients together 5 to 7 times until the butter is evenly dispersed into pea-sized (or smaller) bits, then transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl
    3. Sprinkle the dough evenly with the ice water. Use a spatula to quickly mix the water into the dough until it is evenly combined, and the dough begins to form moist clumps.  (If the dough is not sticking together, you can add 1 or 2 more tablespoons of water to help it clump.)
    4. Using your hands, quickly pack the dough into a ball. Divide into 2, then flatten the dough balls into 3/4-inchthick disks
    5. Wrap the dough disks tightly in plastic wrap, then refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 3 days, until ready to roll out and use
    6. When ready to bake the pie, preheat your oven to 425 F, remove one disk from the refrigerator and let rest for 10-15 minutes. (*I usually prepare the filling at this point)
    7. Roll on a lightly floured counter until least 12 inches in diameter and about 1/8 inch thick
    8. Gently fold the rolled-out dough into quarters and carefully transfer dough to the pie dish, and gently press the dough into the sides of the plate without stretching it
    9. Using a knife to trim off any excess pastry, leaving about a 1-inch border of crust around the top of the pie plate. Carefully lift and fold the outer 1/2-inch edges of the crust back under itself, pinching the crust gently to sculpt an upstanding ridge
    10. Chill this pie crust in the refrigerator while you make the lid using the second disk of dough
    11. When ready, fill your pastry lined pie dish with the filling and dab the chilled butter pieces on top
    12. Cover with the second (top) pastry disk and pinch the edges together to seal. Use a small knife of scissors to make slits/ vents in the top crust
    13. Transfer your pie to the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350 F and bake for a further 45-50 minutes, until the filling is bubbling through the slits and the top is golden brown. (If the edges start to brown too quickly, cover with foil)
    14. Once baked remove the pie from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack before serving