Modern Jewish Cuisine with Jake Cohen

I Could Nosh
Jew-ish cookbook author Jake Cohen is back with a new cookbook, I Could Nosh: Classic Jew-ish Recipes Revamped for Everyday. Cohen joins us to discuss how to make modern Jewish cuisine accessible for everyday cooking, and take calls from our listeners.

 

Recipe: Apples & Honey Snacking Cake 

 

Makes 1 (9-inch) square cake 
Prep Time: 20 minutes, plus cooling time 
Cook Time: 45 minutes 

Like every schmuck in the Northeast, I go apple picking in the fall with my family. And while it’s mainly for the photo ops, we do always end up leaving with a bushel of apples that I have to bake my way through. This is the cake I revisit every fall on repeat, doubling as the perfect dessert to serve for Rosh Hashanah. The batter itself blends olive oil and applesauce to create the best crumb, while remaining moist for days, making it a great bake-ahead option. Kissed with honey and packed with chunks of apples, it’s just as delightful for a sweet breakfast as it is for a late-night snack eaten hunched over the sink. 

1 cup olive oil 
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar 
¾ cup unsweetened applesauce 
½ cup honey 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
2 large eggs, at room temperature 
2 ¼ cups (304g) all-purpose flour 
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg 
1 teaspoon kosher salt 
½ teaspoon baking soda 
½ teaspoon baking powder 
2 Honeycrisp apples, cored and chopped 
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting 

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9-inch square cake pan with parchment paper, leaving overhang on all sides. 

  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, granulated sugar, applesauce, honey, vanilla, and eggs until smooth. Add the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Gently stir together the dry ingredients piled above the wet ingredients a few times before folding together into a smooth batter. Fold in the apples until incorporated, then pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. 

  3. Bake the cake, rotating the pan halfway through the cooking time, for 45 to 50 minutes, until golden brown and it reaches an internal temperature of 190°F. Let cool completely in the pan, then transfer to a cutting board. Dust with confectioners’ sugar, then slice and serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. 

From I COULD NOSH by Jake Cohen. Copyright © 2023 by Jake Cohen. Reprinted by permission of Harvest, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.