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Breaking Bread with Ashley

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Dessert

Spiced Apple and Creme Fraiche Cake

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Spiced Apple and Crème Fraiche Cake is apples, spices, and everything nice! It is the perfect mixture of caramelized apples, wintery spices, and tangy crème fraiche. Although sweetened with brown sugar and maple syrup, the crème fraiche provides a lovely balance.

Even though we are not facing sub-zero temps here in Los Angeles, we have had our share of cold mornings. It is all relative, right? When it is cold, I love to bake. Obviously; all of my boys, both big and small, love these days and the tasty treats that appear on our table.

Brew some coffee. Pour milk for the little guys. Slice the cake. Share with your little ones and big ones for a not-too-sweet treat. Despite the cold, these moments will bring plenty of warmth to your table.

Birth of the Spiced Apple and Crème Fraiche Cake

Bundt cakes are gorgeous, aren’t they? I decided back in December to develop a bundt cake recipe. Have I ever made one before? Nope. Have I ever followed a recipe for a bundt cake? Nope. I still thought I could do it. That’s called fearless. Actually, maybe crazy is a better word.

Despite lack of experience, I wanted to create a bundt cake, so I charged ahead. I knew I wanted it to contain some essential winter ingredients:

  • Apples
  • Spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves
  • Dark sugars such as brown sugar, maple, and molasses
  • Something sour such as buttermilk, yogurt, or crème fraiche

After several, SEVERAL, attempts the Spiced Apple and Crème Fraiche Cake was born.

Full disclosure: It is NOT a bundt cake. Yes, the cake is soft and subtly sweet and delicious. No bundt cake texture or density. The perfectionist in me wanted to keep changing thing in or to reach the bundt cake goal. Fortunately, I realized I already had a great cake.

The enemy of good is better, right? I stuck with my creation and we enjoyed every last bite.

The details

As with any recipe, set up is key to a successful recipe. You want your cake to come out of the pan, right? Make sure you use some butter or coconut oil to grease your bundt pan getting into all the grooves. After greasing the sides, use some flour to coat the butter. I did this over the sink so I could tap the outside of the pan as I shifted it from side to side. I love cooking, but I strongly dislike making a mess. Flour can easily transform your kitchen into a snow covered war zone.

Bundt pan coated with butter and flour on blue gray surface
BakedSpiced Apple and creme fraiche cake in bundt pan on cooling rack with red pot holder

Most of the ingredients in this cake are pantry staples. During the winter, we always have loads of apples on hand because they are quick snack for the boys and my husband loves homemade apple sauce. (Click here for applesauce recipe.)

Apples pair well with spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Rather than using raw apples, I caramelized the apples in butter and added in the cinnamon. With my spiced apple sauce recipe in mind, I also added in the other winter spices into the flour mixture.

For the sweet side, I wanted to use the darker sweeteners for a rich almost gingerbread feeling. The crème fraiche adds a tanginess to balance out the sweetness.

This cake is all about balance. It doesn’t overwhelm you with sweetness. And to finish it off and make it look a bit prettier, I dusted it with a mixture of cinnamon and powdered sugar.

Baked Spiced Apple and Creme Fraiche cake dusted with powdered sugar. Red napkin, bowl of sugar, and strainer in back ground.

New Year’s Resolutions don’t have to mean no cake!

Christmas and New Year’s have come and gone leaving resolutions in their wake. You don’t have to give everything up, though, do you? Without being indulgent, the Spiced Apple and Crème Fraiche Cake will please your taste buds and your soul.

So, how are all the New Year’s resolutions going? I am generally not one for making resolutions, but I have some simple ones this year.

My resolutions are mostly centered around my family. I want to appreciate all the little moments I get to share with my husband, two boys, and our dog.  You’d think being a stay-at-home-mom would mean that these moments are unending. Not always. It is so easy to get distracted by my phone or list of to-dos’, rather than enjoying the moments.

Not this year, baby!

Blogging while being a mom can be tricky. Not impossible. Incorporating the boys into my recipes, cooking, and even photographing has been really fun.

Although both boys like helping me in the kitchen, I am noticing my younger son is much more curious. He helped me whisk the dry ingredients as well as manned the mixer.

You can see the pride emanating from my four-year-old after helping me take photographs. After asking him to hold the reflector for me behind the cake, you would have thought I asked him to go to Disneyland. He was so excited to help.

All the moments are not ideal. Having two crazy boys does make everything a bit more difficult. And fun! I need to not be concerned with the little things such as a sweet, little finger in my photo when it wasn’t supposed to be there.

Spiced Apple and Creme Fraiche Cake on red plate with two slices on white plates. Small bowl of whipe cream and another with caramelized apples.

When I think back about baking with my boys, I will cherish the little fingers reaching in to sneak the first taste. Or, as in the photo, to show me which slice has their name on it. 

Even cleaning up after recipe development can be fun. Try handing your child a whisk after making a yummy cake batter. Their tongue becomes much more effective at cleaning than water and sponge. Why does the cake batter taste so much better when licked off the spoon?

I don’t have the answer, but I love these memories with my boys. I love seeing the delight in their eyes as they taste what I have made. This is why I cook. This is why I spend countless hours in the kitchen. Even though the moments may be small, these are the moments my boys and I will remember together.

Slice of Spiced Apple and Creme Fraiche Cake on white plate with dollop of whipped cream. Small glass bowl of spiced apples in background

I hope a piece of this Spiced Apple and Creme Fraiche Cake brings you some warm moments with those you love during winter.

Happy New Year’s!….Love, Ashley

Slice of Spiced Apple and Creme Fraiche Cake on white plate with dollop of whipped cream. Small glass bowl of spiced apples in background
Print Recipe
5 from 3 votes

Spiced Apple and Creme Fraiche Cake

Spiced apple and crème fraiche cake is the perfect mixture of caramelized apples, wintery spices, and tangy crème fraiche to balance the light sweetness. This cake is good for your taste buds and your soul!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time50 minutes
Resting time15 minutes
Total Time1 hour 10 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: apple, breakfast, cake, creme fraiche, dessert
Servings: 12 slices
Calories: 440kcal
Author: Ashley

Ingredients

Caramelized Apples

  • 3 large apples chopped into 1/2 inch pieces (I used fuji and pink lady)
  • 2-3 tbsp butter
  • 3 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • pinch salt

Cake

  • 3 cups All Purpose Flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp kosher salt
  • 2-3 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1/8 tsp ground clove
  • 4 large eggs
  • ½ c maple syrup
  • 1 cup dark brown sugar or muscovado sugar
  • 1 cup unsalted butter melted
  • 280 g crème fraiche (approx 1 1/4 c)
  • 2 tbsp molasses

Instructions

Caramelized Apples

  • Preheat oven to 350F for cake.  
  • Warm pan over medium heat. Melt butter and then add in apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Turn heat to low and let simmer until apples are tender and caramelized. Remove from heat. Let cool while preparing cake. 

Cake

  • Prepare a 10-12 cup bundt pan. Lightly grease pan and then lightly flour ensuring surface is covered.
  • In medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves with whisk until combined.
  • In large bowl whisk, eggs, maple syrup, molasses, and brown sugar together until combined. Ensure melted butter is at room temperature, add it into egg mixture and whisk together. Fold in caramelized apples. 
  • Add about half of dry mixture to wet mixture and gently fold until just combined. Don’t over mix. Add half of crème fraiche and fold in until combined. Repeat once more with dry ingredients and then crème fraiche.
  • Pour mixture into prepared bundt pan. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
  • Remove from oven. Let cool in pan for 10-15 minutes. Turn pan over on to plate and cake should gently slip out. Let cool before serving. Store covered at room temperature.

Chocolate Haystack Cookie

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I have never been a huge cookie fan.  It is not that I don’t like them but there are so many other sweets I tend to prefer.  Chocolate!  Pretty much anything chocolate does it for me.  Enter the one super special cookie that does reside at the top of my list for favorite sweets…The Chocolate Haystack Cookie!

Have you ever heard of it?  The name doesn’t imply much other than it is about as eye catching as a pile of hay plopped on the ground.  It is the flavor.  The texture.  The ease of preparing.  The little tweaks you can make in flavor to give it a pop.  These are what really make the Haystack a simple and delectable treat.

The story makes them taste better…

Before we get into the ease of making these little guys, the story behind the cookie is also why I hold them close to my heart.  As a young girl I spent a good deal of time at my Nana’s house.  She had a few favorites treats that she liked to make or at least these are the three that my childhood memories revolve around.

Peanut butter fudge was my brother and Uncle’s favorite.  My Nana’s banana bread was my favorite so she would turn it into a birthday cake in the shape of a beautiful lamb (because who wouldn’t want a lamb birthday cake, right?!) And the third was the boiled cookie.

Sounds appealing, right?  The name doesn’t do it justice.  Regardless of the name, my dad loves this cookie.  The name does sum up the cooking method.  These boiled cookies are a snap to make especially if you want to whip up a cookie in the summer without turning on the oven.

Chocolate Haystack Cookie

Chocolate Haystack Cookie

I remember watching my Nana makes these cookies.  She had the recipe written on a card or paper that she had attached to the inside of a cupboard in the kitchen.  My favorite part was when she pulled the pot off the stove and we quickly had to scoop out the chocolatey-oaty-coconuty goodness and plop them onto the waxed paper.  You had to do this step with haste before the mixture stiffened up.

Chocolate Haystack Cookie

For years my Nana was the only source of these cocoa rich delights…until my Dad met my now step-mom, Beverly.  I was around eleven or twelve and this new woman enters the picture.  At some point (my memory isn’t perfect) Beverly starts talking about making one of her cookies called the haystack.  Nana was my Dad’s mom so he had grown up with the boiled cookie.

Anyways, after much talk, Beverly makes these so-called Haystack cookies.  Guess what? The chocolate haystack cookie was the exact same thing as our beloved boiled cookie.  Maybe that was one of the many reasons my Dad eventually married Beverly.  It was a sign. Wink wink!

I never got the exact recipe from my Nana, but Beverly wrote hers out on a card and gave it it me as a gift.  A very special gift which I will always hold close to my heart.

Although the recipe I use now is from Beverly, every time I make the Haystack I think of my Nana.  Then, I think of Beverly who helped teach me how to bake.  There are so many memories and connections that exist because of this one simple cookie.  Maybe that is why it is one of my favorites…

For the “baking” part…

As I mentioned this cookie is not baked like most cookies.  All you need is your stove and a decent sized pot. A wooden spoon or heat resistant spatula.  Wax paper.  A scooping device such as a tablespoon or ice cream scoop. Strong will power to not lick spoon every time you scoop a cookie on to the paper.

Chocolate Haystack Cookie

The recipe is pretty simple to follow as long as you don’t overcook the mixture on stove.  You know this happened if your mixture seizes up too quickly once you add the oats and coconut.  Butter, sugar, cocoa, and milk all go into the pot on the stove for the “boiled” part.  I melt the butter into the milk and then I add the sugar and cocoa.  Let the mixture come to a rolling boil and  add in the vanilla and salt.  Remove from heat and add in remaining ingredients (oats, coconut, etc.).

Using your scooping device of choice you will scoop out golf ball size lumps and place on wax paper.

Chocolate Haystack Cookie

From here, the simplistic magic of the haystack will take place.  The creamy texture that the mixture had while hot will slightly stiffen adding a dense chew.  I can’t quite describe the texture but it reminds me of the first time I tried halva. Not crumbly.  Not creamy.  Not crunchy.  Just right.

Chocolate Haystack Cookie

Wait, I think you need to get a little closer so you can start to drool..

Chocolate Haystack Cookie

The cookies are sweet but the darkness of the cocoa is balanced out by the sugar.  The coconut and oats work beautifully together.  My step-mom’s recipe calls for nuts such as walnuts or pecans, but we do not use since my son has a tree nut allergy.

Now, if you want to add some flare to your basic chocolate haystack cookie, there are a few variations we have tried and others I want to try.  Peanut butter or peanuts is a classic favorite in our peanut butter OBSESSED (two PB fudge recipes) family.  Peppermint extract or peppermint candy also adds a lovely Christmas flavor.  I want to try a mocha play on the haystack by adding some coffee or ground espresso to the mixture. I will have to update you once I have tried…

Chocolate Haystack Cookie

Don’t forget…the best part is always licking the spoon during clean up. If you have any kiddos around, I am sure they would be eager to help you out.  These are my assistants and they are always willing to lend a hand (or tongue.)

For now, I hope you find yourself addicted to the flavor and texture of the chocolate haystack just as my family and I have over the years! These simple little haystacks have lots of love to give 🙂

I love and miss you, Nana!

Chocolate Haystack Cookie
Print Recipe

Chocolate Haystacks

This chocolate haystack cookie is an irresistable stovetop cookie.  No baking required.  A perfect balance of cocoa, sugar, oats and coconut.

Ingredients

  • 4 oz unsalted butter
  • 6 tbsp cocoa powder preferrably alkalized (dutched processed)
  • 1/2 cup whole milk
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • dash sea salt
  • 2 1/2 cups Quick cooking oats
  • 1 1/4 cup coconut, shredded and unsweetened I use Bob's Red Mill
  • 1/2 cup chopped nuts See Note

Instructions

  • In medium pot over medium-low heat, add in butter and milk.  Gently stirring to prevent from burning. 
  • When butter has melted, add the cocoa and sugar into milk and butter mixture.
  • Continue to stir over medium-low heat while sugar dissolves. Leave pot on stove until mixture comes to a rolling boil. Stirring frequently to prevent burning. 
  • Once mixture has come to a gentle rolling boil, add in the vanilla and salt. Stir.
  • After mixing in vanilla and salt, remove from heat and stir in oats, coconut, and nuts (if you are using.)
  • Stir until well combined, then using a scooping device (tbsp measure or ice cream scoop are my usual go-to's) scoop out golf ball sized scoops and plop them down on wax paper. 
  • Leave cookies until cool and dry. You should be able to pick up haystack looking cookie from wax paper once they are cool and dry. 
  • Try to eat just one...I dare you! Enjoy!

Notes

Note: My step-mom's original recipe calls for sweetened coconut and chopped nuts.  In full discloure, I altered this part of the recipe.  I switched to the unsweetened Bob's Red Mill coconut to decrease the sweetness.  I eliminated the nuts due to tree nut allergy. 
Note 2: If you are adding peanut butter to mixture, add it just before you add in the vanilla.  Let butter, milk, cocoa, sugar mixture come to rolling boil, then stir in 1/3 c creamy natural peanut butter. Stir until combined. Add in vanilla and salt and then remove from heat and proceed with adding the remaining dry ingredients.  If you are adding in peppermint extract, do so when you add in vanilla.  Do it in very small increments as a little goes a long way. I would suggest starting with 1-2 drops and see how it tastes.   Add in candy cane pieces when adding in the oats and coconut. 
 

Merry Christmas and Enjoy!