SERVES 10-12 | PREPARATION TIME: 15 MINUTES | COOKING TIME: 40 MINUTES
My Yiayia (grandmother) lived with us when I was little. I spent lots of time with her in the kitchen, learning many traditional Cypriot recipes. This one is quite special to me as it brings back lots of memories of her. INGREDIENTS
400g apples
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
100g caster sugar
125ml milk
2 eggs
280g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
Demerara sugar (optional)
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180°c/160°c fan/Gas Mark 4. Peel the apples then chop them into small cubes. Place into a bowl and sprinkle over the sugar and cinnamon. Mix well and leave to one side while you make the cake batter.
In another bowl, mix the olive oil and caster sugar together. Add the milk and eggs, stir well with a wooden spoon, then gradually add the flour, mixing it in a little at a time. Lastly, add the baking powder. Mix the batter well to make sure there are no lumpy bits.
Tip the apples into the cake batter and stir well. Pour into a 22cm round cake tin, smooth out the surface and add a generous sprinkling of Demerara sugar. This gives the top a lovely sweet crunch because the cake itself is not overly sweet.
Bake the cake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes. Check whether it’s ready by inserting a skewer into the centre; if the skewer comes out clean it’s done. If there’s some mixture clinging to the skewer, leave the cake in the oven for a few more minutes then check again.
Leave to cool slightly in the tin before turning out and cooling completely.