cake

• Move rack to lower 1/3 of oven; set to preheat at 350-degrees. Generously coat the interior of a large bundt pan with nonstick spray, preferably a baking spray with flour.
• In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. In a big mixing bowl, place eggs, sugar, milk, butter, and oil, beating until creamy yellow. Gradually mix in the dry ingredients, but reserve the empty bowl to one side. Scrape the bowl of batter as needed, mixing until it is smooth.
• Measure out 3 cups of the batter into the reserved bowl. Add the maple syrup, espresso powder or cocoa, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and nutmeg, whisking until smooth.
• Pour half the plain batter into the greased pan. Top with half the spiced batter, spreading to the sides. Draw a butter knife through the layers, swirling up and down and around. Pour the remaining batters into the pan, repeating the swirl process with the butter knife.
• Bake bundt cake for 45 to 50 minutes. The top should feel dry and the middle should pass the toothpick test. Let cool in pan for 1 hour, then carefully invert onto a cooling rack; if any chunks stick to the pan, try to nestle them back into place on the cake.
• Finish cooling. Slice into wedges. Store under a cake dome or otherwise wrapped; individual slices can also be wrapped in plastic.

OM NOM NOM!

Brown the butter:

• In a stove pot, heat the 3/4 cup butter on medium, stirring often. Cook until the butter is medium-brown with a nutty aroma, which takes about 7 to 10 minutes. Set aside to bring to room temperature.

Make the dough:

• Line a 13×9 pan with foil and apply nonstick spray or a coating of butter.
• In a small bowl, mix together warm milk, yeast, and 1/4 teaspoon sugar. Let stand about 5 minutes. It should become foamy.
• In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, mix more base dough ingredients: white sugar, kosher salt, and remaining butter, beating for about 3 to 4 minutes until they become creamy. Stop and scrape the bowl as needed. To that, add the yeast mixture, flour, egg, and vanilla. Raise the speed to medium and beat until everything is combined and elastic, about 4 to 5 minutes, scraping the bowl on occasion. The dough should be tacky but shouldn’t stick to hands.
• Press the dough into the prepared pan in a thin layer. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm spot in the kitchen until it doubled in size, about 2 hours. In the meantime, clean the mixer bowl and paddle attachment.

Make the topping:

• Preheat oven at 350 degrees.
• To the mixer bowl, add the browned butter, white sugar, and salt, beating to combine, then raising the rhythm to medium to beat until fluffy, about 4 to 5 minutes. Beat in the egg.
• In a separate small bowl, whisk together the corn syrup, water, and vanilla. With the mixer on low, add the flour to the butter mixture alternatively with the corn syrup mix. Scrape the bowl as needed. Use an uneven spatula to spread the topping over the risen dough.
• Bake until the top is set and the edges are golden brown, anywhere from 25 to 35 minutes. The center can still be a touch soft and jiggly. Let cool completely in pan, chilling in fridge if desired. To cut, use the foil to lift the contents onto a cutting board. Slice into finger sized (1×4) portions.

OM NOM NOM!

• Preheat oven to 400-degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Prepare the sliced apples by using a large bowl to stir them with sugar, lemon juice, and pie spice. Let the mixture stand for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Spread apple mixture in an even layer on prepared pan.
• Bake the apples until they are fork-tender and have released significant moisture, 12 to 16 minutes. Rotate the pan and stir halfway through. The apples should reduce in size slightly but retain their shape. Let the apples cool while continuing with other stages. Also, turn off the oven, as it won’t be needed for a while.
• Begin the dough. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat 1/2 cup flour, white sugar, brown sugar, yeast, and salt at medium-low speed. Add the warm milk, eggs, and vanilla, beating everything on medium about 2 minutes until it’s combined. Scrape the bottom and sides of bowl a few times. Gradually add the remaining 1 1/2 cups flour.
• Switch to the dough hook attachment. Beat at low speed until dough is smooth and elastic. It should start to pull away from sides of bowl. This will be around 6 to 9 minutes.
• Add the softened butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition. This will take 6 to 8 minutes total. Scrape the sides of bowl and dough hook as needed. If the dough looks slightly broken during this stage, that's okay–keeping beating it and it'll come back together.
• Increase mixer speed to medium-low and beat until a smooth, elastic dough forms, about 6 minutes.
• Turn out dough onto a clean surface and knead 4 to 5 times. Shape into a smooth round. Place dough in a large ungreased bowl. (At this stage, the dough could be covered and placed in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.) Cover it and place it in a warm spot until it doubles in size, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.
• Cut a piece of parchment to fit in the base of a springform pan. Apply nonstick spray with flour in pan. Add cut paper. Spray again to coat paper and sides.
• Punch down dough, then cover it and let it rest for about 10 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into an 11-inch circle. Use the bottom of the springform pan to poke a 9-inch circle in the middle of the dough. Fold and press outside edges inward to create a crimped edge. Lift the dough to place it in the prepared pan. Press dough to make sure it fills the bottom. Crimp and secure the edges again if needed. Cover and let rise again in a warm place for 25 minutes. Dough should be puffed and hold an indentation when it’s poked.
• Preheat oven to 325-degrees.
• Now make the filling. In the clean bowl of the stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the butter, white sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, salt, and pie spice at medium speed. Gradually add the cream cheese, beating until smooth. Add egg, beating until combined, then add the flour. Scrape the bowl to make sure everything is mixed.
• Use your fingertips to dimple center of dough back down, leaving outside crust higher and puffed. Crimp and secure edges if necessary, and press out any air bubbles if you see them.
• Spoon and spread cream cheese mixture in an even layer in center of dough. Arrange the sliced apples slightly overlapping in two concentric circles. (You may have leftover slices. Eat’em on their own!)
• In a small bowl, whisk together egg and water. Brush outer edge of dough with egg wash. Sprinkle pearl sugar along the crust.
• Bake for 20 minutes. Rotate pan. If the crust is browning, cover it with foil. Bake for another 25 to 28 minutes. When the tart is done, the crust will be golden brown. The filling should be set around outside edges and slightly jiggly in center. An instant-read thermometer inserted in center should register at least 175-degrees.
• Let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Using a small offset spatula, loosen edges of bread. Remove sides of springform pan. Let cool completely on pan base on a wire rack.
• The tart can be enjoyed fresh after it cools. Leftovers should be stored in the fridge, but will be cloggy if eaten chilled. It’s best warmed with a short zap in the microwave, about 15-20 seconds; if it’s made too hot, the cream cheese melts! Leftovers can also be individually wrapped and frozen for later. Thaw in fridge.

OM NOM NOM!

• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Generously grease the interior of a large bundt pan.
• In a mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in baking powder and salt, followed by 3 of the eggs.
• Measure out the flour. Add a few tablespoons of it into the mix. Add another egg. Add a bit more flour followed by another egg. Repeat to incorporate the last egg. Add the two extracts and the milk, followed by the last of the flour. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl well, then beat until the batter is smooth and fluffy.
• Pour batter into the pan and smooth out the top. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the cake passes the toothpick test. Let cool for about 15 minutes, then invert it onto a rack to cool completely.
• Make the glaze. The amount will look like a lot, but there’s a lot of exterior to this cake. For easier clean-up, place parchment paper beneath the rack. Use a pastry brush to apply the glaze to the cake. Let glaze set an hour or so before slicing.
• Store in a sealed container or with slices individually wrapped.

OM NOM NOM!

• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a 13×9 pan with foil and apply nonstick spray or butter. Set aside.
• Peel, core, and shred or finely dice-up one apple. Thinly slice the other apple cross-wise, removing the seeds.
• In a large bowl, mix together butter, brown sugar, apple butter, eggs, and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, scraping bottom of bowl to make sure everything is mixed. Fold in the shredded/diced fresh apple and the chopped dried apple. Spread batter in pan, using uneven spatula to level out. Arrange apple cross-sections over cake.
• Bake for about 40 minutes. The middle should pass the toothpick test. Move to a wire rack.
• Immediately mix glaze to go over hot cake. Drizzle it all over the top, using the back of a spoon or a pastry brush to distribute across surface. Cool completely to set the glaze, speeding process in fridge if desired.
• Use foil to lift cake onto a cutting board to slice. Pieces can be individually wrapped and frozen for later, or will keep several days covered in the fridge. Eat cold or warmed slightly in microwave.

OM NOM NOM!

• Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line an 8×8 or 9×9 square pan with aluminum foil and apply nonstick cooking spray.
• Prepare the apples. Peel then dice up one of the apples. The other two, peel and slice thinly.
• To a large bowl, add the brown sugar and eggs. Whisk for about a minute until thoroughly combined and creamy.
• Add the sour cream/yogurt, pure vanilla extract, and melted butter. Whisk well.
• In a separate medium size bowl, combine flour, kosher salt, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and allspice.
• Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Before the dry ingredients are fully incorporated, add the diced apples. Continue to fold in until no streaks of flour remain.
• Pour batter into the prepared baking pan, then use an offset spatula to smooth it out. Shingle the thinly sliced apples on top. The sprinkle turbinado sugar all over the slices.
• Bake for 35 minutes. Pull out the cake and brush on the honey across all of the nooks and crannies. Place the cake back in oven to bake for another 5 to 10 minutes, until the top is turning golden brown. The apples on top should be fork-tender with the center cake passing the toothpick test.
• Let cool at least 30 minutes before slicing in. Store covered in the fridge. Cake can also be frozen for later enjoyment.

OM NOM NOM!