Comfort food: apple cake

Eastside Road, December 4, 2010—

I HAVE BEEN REMISS, as the house corrector points out: I've neglected to mention dessert these last two days. In my defense, it's been served some little time after the end of dinner, after posting the eatingblog in at least one case. Still, that's no excuse.

It's a splendid dessert, Agnes's Dutch Apple Cake:


I think Lindsey was reminded of her mother's recipe when she noticed a few late apples on one of the trees (that's one in the background of this fuzzy photo). Agnes wrote the recipe out on a 3x5 index card, as housewives have done since index cards were invented; I wonder how many such cards there are in the world, and consider the great body of culture they contain. If only we had the equivalents from ancient Greece!



Agnes's version is so nice, not at all too sweet — though of course the nature of the apple is important. (She, or any good cook, would know exactly what "3 tart apples" represents.)
Appelkoek or appelgebak — there's a difference, but I don't know what it is — is a favorite treat of ours when we're in Netherlands; we often have a slice with a cup of good boring Dutch coffee as a break at a museum. It's generally served with a good helping of slagroom, and I have to admit I like that, but we don't have whipped cream on this cake at home — not even a spoonful or two of heavy cream, which I'd like even better. Please, Lindsey?