Firstly, welcome to the first post on the new blog! Winter is just around the corner in the southern hemisphere which means apples are at their best and rhubarb is also available. These two simple ingredients together, are a match made in heaven. Add a few spices in to the mix and you have a recipe for, well, for, the complete opposite of disaster! I have written this recipe just as an apple only upside down cake but you can add some lovely rhubarb too if you have it. Or try other fruits, like pears or even peaches in the summertime. Berries would also work well I think!

To cook our cake we are going to use Hot Air Humid. This amazing VUZG function which can be used so often for your traditional baking recipes like cakes, slices, cookies and muffins. When it is used, the Combi Steam keeps the moisture from the food inside the oven space while it cooks, by sealing the vents and other places where it can escape. This helps to keep the food lovely and moist. Cooking with Hot Air Humid is still cooking with fan forced style heat so you don't forgo any browning but you can rest assured that a dry tea cake will not be on the menu. A great way to explain it is to think of Hot Air Humid as similar to cooking with a lid on your pan. Often, opening the oven door during or after cooking with this function can result in steam or moisture being released. Sometimes it can be assumed that this is steam being produced from the water tank, when in actual fact, it is just the moisture that has come from your cake batter (or whatever else you have been cooking) while it was cooking. It's such a beautiful function and perfect for so many things from your sticky lamb roast to roast pork with crackling (of course!) all the way through to slow cooking casseroles - no lids required! Start by sticking to your usual timings and temps from past experience or any of your recipes and rejig if needed as you get the feel for your oven.

If you don’t have a V-ZUG Combi Steam never fear - I still have you covered. You would cook this recipe and anything where you want the same kind of result using your Combination Steam function and set your variable steam to 10% or low as you won’t need much. Just enough to keep the cake and the fruit moist. Easy peasey!

So let's get you started with this gorgeous Apple Upside Down Cake...

(makes one cake)

Ingredients:
125g unsalted butter (chopped into 2cm dice)
1/2 cup brown sugar firmly packed (100g)
1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
2 eggs (cracked into a small jug)
1 cup self raising flour (150g)
1/2 cup cornflour (80g)
1/2 cup milk (125ml)
1/4 cup greek yoghurt
3 stalks rhubarb (chopped into 2cm chunks) - optional
1 granny smith apple (peeled and sliced)
1 tsp cardamon powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbs extra brown sugar

Method:

1. Place the chopped butter, cracked eggs, milk and yoghurt into the oven. Select Steam. Set the temperature to 35°C or low and allow to soften and warm to room temp for around 10 mins.*

2. Meanwhile, grease and line a 20cm spring form cake tin with baking paper creating a circle on the bottom and a collar (or thick strip) to cover the sides.

3. Toss the apple, rhubarb (if using), spices and extra 1 tbs brown sugar together in a mixing bowl then spread evenly into the bottom of the pan on top of the baking paper.

4. When the butter is softened remove ingredients from the Combi Steam. Select Hot Air Humid (or Combination Steam with 10% steam setting) Set the temp to 160°C. Place a rack into the bottom shelf of the oven. Allow to pre-heat.

5. Cream the butter and remaining brown sugar with electric beaters (I use my KitchenAid stand mixer with flat beater attachment) for a few minutes until very light, fluffy and pale.

6. Add the eggs one at a time and continue beating until well combined between each addition.

7. Add the warmed milk and yoghurt and the flours and mix on low speed until combined. To make sure the cake is light and fluffy don’t over beat it.

8. Pour and spread the cake batter into the tin on top of the fruit mixture. Smooth the top with a spatula.

9. Bake for 35 minutes or until a skewer in the centre comes our clean. Allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before releasing the sides and inverting onto a cake rack or plate and removing the base.

10. Serve warm or cooled as desired. (I like a bit fat dollop of double cream with mine!)

*When baking it is always best practise to ensure that all ingredients are at room temperature or a little warmer. You never want to add cold liquids or eggs into your batter as it can sometimes cause curdling and can affect the texture of your cake. Warming them gently using Steam is the perfect solution!

Hope this warms the winter hearts of all my loyal subjects. If you are in a warmer climate or during warmer seasons you could swap the apple & rhubarb for sliced fresh pineapple.

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Til next time, Happy Combi Steaming!

Yours in the kitchen,

The CSQ. x