Recipe: Connemara apple cake has true Irish roots
it resembles a large scone. (Photos: Debbie Arrington) |
In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, this Irish country recipe offers comfort and a lot of apple flavor.
Connemara apple cake comes from “The Irish Heritage Cookbook” by Mercedes McLoughlin and Marian McSpiritt (Tribeca Books), a 1984 collection of Old Country family recipes collected by the authors and friends in Ireland. This is an adaptation of that heritage recipe.
The result turns out more like a giant (and moist) buttermilk scone than a cake, with lots of big juicy chunks of apple. Unlike most apple cake recipes, there’s no added spice – no cinnamon or nutmeg. So the apple flavor really comes through.
It’s a pleasant Irish twist on a breakfast or coffee cake; of course, it would be fine for tea, too.
Speaking of apples, the last of my fall harvest went into this almost-spring recipe. They had kept crisp after months in the refrigerator. They may not have been the prettiest or the biggest apples, but they worked fine in this cake and still tasted great.
in the cake. |
Here’s another Irish "recipe" adapted from the same heritage cookbook and handed down for generations:
An Irish recipe for happiness
4 cups love
2 cups loyalty
3 cups friendship
Other ingredients to taste
Take love and loyalty and mix thoroughly with faith. Blend with tenderness, kindness and understanding. Add hope, sprinkle abundantly with laughter. Bake mixture with sunshine.
Serve generous helpings daily to your family, friends and all you meet.
(With maybe some Connemarra apple cake on the side.)
Connemara apple cake
Adapted from “The Irish Heritage Cookbook” by Mercedes McLoughlin and Marian McSpiritt
Makes 6 servings
nice and moist. |
Ingredients:
like a scone. |
Comments
0 comments have been posted.Sacramento Digs Gardening to your inbox.
Thanks to Our Sponsor!
Local News
Sites We Like
Garden Checklist for week of Dec. 8
Make the most of dry weather while we have it this week. Rain is returning.
* Rake leaves away from storm drains and gutters. Recycle those leaves as mulch or add to compost.
* It’s not too late to plant something. Seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.
* Trees and shrubs can be planted now, especially bare-root varieties such as fruit trees or rose bushes. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from winter rains.
* Plant bare-root berries, kiwifruit, grapes, artichokes, horseradish and rhubarb.
* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.
* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now.
* Brighten the holidays with winter bloomers such as poinsettias, amaryllis, calendulas, Iceland poppies, pansies and primroses.
* Keep poinsettias in a sunny, warm location; bring them inside at night or if there’s rain.
* Plant garlic and onions.
* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while they’re dormant.
* Clean and sharpen garden tools before storing for the winter.
* Mulch, water and cover tender plants to protect them during threat of frost. Succulent plants are at particular risk if temperatures drop below freezing. Make sure to remove coverings during the day.
* Rake and remove dead leaves and stems from dormant perennials.
Powered by California Local
