Meatless Monday: Easy Apple Cake

Here we are stuck at home again, getting plenty of exercise by shoveling lots of snow in frigid temperatures! I thought there would be an upside to this weather. Today it's Groundhog Day, and I knew that Pennsylvania was getting hit with the same storm we are having. I figured there was no way that Punxsutawney Phil could have seen his shadow, but apparently he did. If you want to believe the lore, that means 6 more weeks of winter weather are on the way. [FYI, according to the calendar, that’s exactly what we SHOULD expect since the official start of Spring is not until March 20, over 6 full weeks away.]

On a day like today my thoughts turn to easy to make baked goods. Tossing snow to the top of ever rising snowbanks expends a lot of calories. 

This is not a day to make a run for the supermarket, so I’ll share a recipe for a cake made from ingredients found in many kitchens. This simple apple cake makes an excellent dessert and is also delicious for breakfast. It’s a great way to use up any remaining fall apples you have in your refrigerator. My recipe is an adaptation from a recipe for apple coffee cake found in The Apple Kitchen Cook Book, by Demetria Taylor, published in 1976.

Cinnamon Apple Coffee Cake

Ingredients for batter

• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup rolled oats (quick or old fashioned)
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 large cooking apples, peeled and sliced

Ingredients for topping

• 1/4 cup sugar
• /2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 cup chopped nuts 
• 2 tablespoons butter

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375°
• Grease a 9” round (or an 8” square) cake pan 
• Beat egg and sugar together until creamy.
• In a smaller bowl combine and mix together the dry ingredients.
• Add alternately with milk to the egg mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.
• Stir in oats and shortening until well mixed.
• Spread half the batter in the greased cake pan.
• Arrange the apple slices on top of the batter.
• Spread remaining batter over the slices.
• Melt the butter in a small pan over low heat.
• Remove from heat and stir in the topping ingredients.
• Spoon topping over the cake.
• Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, just until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out dry.

Notes

• The original recipe called for melted shortening instead of oil.
• Vegans should note that the cake is also successful if you use egg replacer.
• Nuts were not part of the original topping. I like pecans, but walnuts and almonds also work.
• If you do have any leftovers, warm them up just a bit before serving. 

Happy Groundhog Day! [For more on this holiday, check out this blog post from the past.] 

And Happy Meatless Monday! Shovel carefully and since this storm has included a bit of wintry mix, watch out for any icy patches!

On Mondays I often blog on food, food issues, or gardening in support of Meatless Monday, one of several programs developed in the Healthy Monday project, founded in 2003 in association with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help reduce meat consumption 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.”

Saturday Short Subjects: DIY Cleaners

Although it may not seem possible, Spring weather will soon be here — even if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow tomorrow. 

If you’ve got a case of cabin fever, why not start your Spring cleaning? If you can get it done now, you’ll have one less thing to keep you indoors when the days get sunnier and warmer.

There’s no reason to spend a lot of money on cleaning solutions when it’s so easy to make your own out of inexpensive and readily available ingredients. This graphic lists my favorite recipes for DIY cleaners.  

Buy the largest bottle of white vinegar you can find, a box of Borax from the supermarket detergent aisle, and a bottle of your favorite dish soap or Dr. Bronner’s. The only pricey item is the scented oil used in three of the four recipes, but at just a few drops per batch, a tiny bottle of oil will go a long way. Your whole house will smell fresh and clean for hours. Choose your favorite fragrance (or two). You can vary the cleaner according to the season or your mood.

Try these recipes out by mixing up a batch in a heavy-duty spray bottle. Simply spray the dirty surface and wipe it down. I keep a bucket of water nearby for rinsing the cloth or mop when it gets too dirty. I keep several spray bottles handy for spills or life’s other little emergencies.

Here’s another tip. When cleaning glass, try using newspapers instead of paper towels.

Isn’t it nice when you can be Green and save some green at the same time?

Don’t work too hard.

Have a nice rest of the weekend.

Why Saturday Short Subjects? Some readers may recall  being dropped at the movie theater for the Saturday matinee — two action-packed feature films with a series of short subjects (cartoons or short movies, sometimes a serial cliffhanger) sandwiched in between. Often the short subjects were the most memorable, and enjoyable, part of the morning. That explains the name. The reason behind these particular posts is that we are all short on time. My Short Subject posts should not take me as long to write or you as long to read (or try).

Woodchuck Wednesday Redux: Special Groundhog Day Edition

If Woody the Woodchuck could exit his ice-encrusted burrow tomorrow, he'd be dead meat.* It's a good thing for Woody and for us that he's trapped inside. We don't need any woodchuck (Marmota monax, AKA groundhog) seeing his shadow this Groundhog Day. Here in New Haven, on the Connecticut coastline, we've received over three feet of snow in the last month, way more than normal. We are ready for Spring.

Which brings us back to Groundhog Day. Just how did the groundhog known as Phil in his burrow on Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, PA become the official prognosticator of Spring’s return each February 2? According to the FAQs on the official Groundhog Day site, “The celebration of Groundhog Day began with the Germans, Pennsylvania’s earliest settlers. They brought with them the legend of Candlemas Day [observed on February 2], which states ‘For as the sun shines on Candlemas day, so far will the snow swirl in May…’ The settlers found that groundhogs were plentiful and were the most intelligent and sensible animal to carry on the legend of Candlemas Day.” According to the established tradition, if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather. If he does not see his shadow, there will be an early spring.

The site further proclaims that the Phil making his prediction tomorrow is the same Phil who popped his head out on the very first Groundhog Day in 1887! He gets his longevity by taking one sip of a special punch at the Groundhog Picnic each summer. [And if he is like Woody in New Haven he also eats a diet rich in organic vegetables pilfered from area gardens.] Phil’s predictions are made to the Groundhog Club president in Groundhogese, and then translated by the president for the world.

Results from a study described in a 2005 issue of the National Geographic indicate that Phil’s days as a weather predictor may be numbered. According to those Italian and American atmospheric scientists, “Winter as we know it likely will disappear in the Northeast.” The year mentioned? 2105! It’s hard to believe on a day like today.  

Back to February 2, 2011. You can view “Punx Phil”’s prediction live at approximately 7:25 am EST, friend him on Facebook, or follow his tweets. You can send a celebratory Groundhog Day eCard or even earn a Foursquare PA Groundhog Day badge that can be unlocked ONLY on February 2, 2011. 

My plans to celebrate the day? I’m going to watch one of my 10 favorite movies — Groundhog Day, starring Bill Murray, with my best friend.

Have a good one! And all you survivors of the very recent “monster” storm which rolled across the country — Watch out for those icy patches!

*See my original Woodchuck Wednesday post.