LATVIAN APPLE TORTE

My grandma Milda Narbatovics brought this coffee cake to every family gathering.

Äpple torte
Makes 8 servings

SUPPLIES

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 cups flour, plus 1 tablespoon (divided)

1 cup sugar, plus 2 tablespoons (divided)

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature, plus 1 tablespoon (divided)

3 eggs

4 cups apples, peeled and sliced (about 5 medium)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine salt, baking powder, cinnamon and 2 cups flour in a bowl. In another bowl, cream 1 cup of sugar with 1 cup of butter until smooth, then add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in dry ingredients by hand, stirring just to combine. Do not overwork or mixture will be tough. Stir in apples.

Prepare a 9 x 13 pan by rubbing it with remaining 1 tablespoon butter and dusting with remaining 1 tablespoon flour. Knock out excess.

Add cake mixture to pan, spreading it out evenly. Place sliced apples in rows on top of batter, then sprinkle top with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, and an extra sprinkle of cinnamon for color.

Bake in preheated oven about 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool on rack, then remove from pan for slicing and serving. Serve with ice cream, if desired.