I first ate this cake in the USA where it is almost their equivalent of the UK’s ubiquitous sticky toffee pudding. All you need to make this are scales, a bowl and a mixing spoon. The sauce is dairy, but can just as easily be made parev with Alpro cream and a margarine of your choice. This recipe suits a 26cm (10in) bundt tin.

Method

• Pre-heat oven to 170°C and oil your bundt tin well.
• Mix the flour, sugars bicarbonate of soda, spices and salt together in a large mixing bowl. I like to use a whisk to make sure it is all thoroughly blended.
• Next peel, quarter, core and chop the apples into ½cm cubes, adding them one by one to the flour mixture, and mixing to coat them. If you prefer, you can grate the peeled, cored apples on a coarse grater.
• Add the nuts and give it all another good mix.
• Measure the oil into a jug. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat with a fork or whisk until well blended.
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry and combine with a large spoon until well incorporated.
• Pour the batter into the cake tin and give it a few sharp knocks to settle any air.
• Bake for 55 -70 minutes until a skewer comes out clean. Keep an eye on it after about 30 minutes as you may wish to cover it with foil if it browns too quickly. Allow to cool in the tin on a wire rack.
• While the cake cools, place the sauce ingredients in a non-stick saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring well to blend and cook until the sauce coats the back of a wooden spoon. Taste and adjust the salt but be cautious, it will be extremely hot!
• Turn the cake on to a serving plate and serve drizzled with a little sauce. Serve the rest in a jug.

Louis Mann