Thai Red Curry with Roasted Cauliflower and Delicata SquashHealthy Vegetarian Meal Plan – 10.21.17
12 Comments
Dates provide most of the natural sweetness in this sticky apple ginger date cake that is smothered in a buttery caramel sauce.
I am on an apple dessert RAMPAGE.
I mean, you obviously can’t tell because I spend all my down time writing discharge summaries, only sleep 5-6 hours a night, and am too zombie-like to get my act together enough to actually post any of them.
Ssssssoooooorrrryyyyy!!!
So I’m bringing you my best of the best, greatest hits: the apple edition.
Not sorry.
We are actually still working our way through our fresh-from-the-orchard apples that we picked two weeks ago. One cake, one pie, and lots of apple snacks later, and I think we have 10 left? Something like that.
I think I’m going to make my favorite caramel apple cheesecake with the last few. I’ve actually never posted it because it’s deplorably unattractive (and also because we eat it too fast for me to photograph itevery time) butI’ve made it for the past three Thanksgivings, so you know it has to be up to snuff. Maybe this will be the year. Stay tuned.
This sticky caramel apple ginger date cake was actually thefirst thing I baked with our apples and it definitely set the tone for the season:
Delicious.
Caramel.
Sweet.
Tart.
Spiced.
(Did I mention caramel??)
In short: I’m obsessed.
Not only is this cake so soft and moist with melt-in-your-mouth apple bits in every bite, most of its sweetness comes from dates rather than refined sugar!
I had some serious doubts when I was making this and realized that theentire cake only had a third of a cup of sugar in it. That’s how much I put in my coffee!! (Kidding.)Way not enough for cake. But the datesnailed it. They add the perfect amount of sweetness without being over the top.
The cake is also deeply spiced with fresh ginger. SIX WHOLE TABLESPOONS FULL. If you are not a fan of ginger, then I would probably advise against making it. Or you could try halving the ginger if you really want to. The flavor is intense, but in a good way (in my opinion). And whatever you do, donot try to substitute dried ginger for fresh. It absolutely will not work here and will make your cake taste gross. I promise.
The buttery caramel glaze is the icing on the cake, but also the best part. It seeps into all the crevices the apples leave behind and makes them taste like magic. The recipe makes quite a bit, so we had a ton extra. I mainly used it to drizzle over not-so-great ice cream to make it palatable, but I encourage you to have grand plans for your batch.
Sticky Caramel Apple Ginger Date Cake
Dates provide most of the natural sweetness in this sticky apple ginger date cake that is smothered in a buttery caramel sauce.
Yield: 10 servings
Ingredients
For the cake
- 10 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
- 10 oz dates, pitted and chopped
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 6 tbsp peeled, minced fresh ginger
- 2 sweet-tart apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼-inch dice
For the sauce
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350F. Grease a 9-inch springform pan with butter or baking spray. Set aside.
- Bring the dates and water to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Once simmering, allow to cook for 1 minute or until dates soften. Remove from the heat and stir in the baking soda. Set aside to cool.
- Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then add the ginger. Add the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Fold in the dates and the apples.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth with an offset spatula. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center has just a few moist crumbs.
- When the cake is in the last 10 minutes of baking, prepare the sauce. Combine the brown sugar, butter, and salt in a medium pan over medium heat. Cook until the sugar is dissolved, about 3 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream and bring to a simmer, then decrease the heat to low. Cook until the sauce has thickened, stirring frequently, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly.
- Once the cake is removed from the oven, allow it to cool for 15 minutes. Remove the sides of the pan and set the cake on a serving plate or baking rack. Poke holes all over the cake with a toothpick. Pour half of the sauce over the cake while it is still warm. Serve the cake still warm with the remaining caramel sauce on the side.
Notes
More apple-y desserts!
Mini Apple Cobblers with Sweet and Salty Biscuit Toppings
Double Apple Bundt Cake with Lemon Glaze
Mini Caramel Apple Pop Tarts with Brown Sugar Glaze
More from my site
- Healthy Vegetarian Meal Plan – 4.13.19
- Bites of Bittman – Oven-Roasted Plum Tomato Tart Pizza with Pesto
- Curried Lentils with Garlicky Yogurt and Coconut Rice
- Cranberry Beans with Tequila, Green Chiles, Quick-Pickled Onions, and Mexican Rice
12 Responses to Sticky Caramel Apple Ginger Date Cake
Kate says:Thursday, October 19th, 2017 at 11:38 am
I feel like the ginger is probably a good “sweetness cutter” for the caramel!
Reply
- Pam says:
Thursday, October 19th, 2017 at 12:00 pm
Best of the best indeed! It looks absolutely drool worthy. Hope you get some sleep soon.
Reply
- Carrie says:
Thursday, October 19th, 2017 at 5:03 pm
Would it be possible to do this in a non-springform pan?
Reply
- joanne says:
Friday, October 20th, 2017 at 6:17 am
Yes, I think that would be fine!! It’s just easier to remove from a springform pan. Since you want to smother it in the caramel while it’s still warm, just be super careful while flipping it back over so that it’s top-up because warm cakes are more prone to breaking.
Reply
- Kelsey says:
Saturday, October 21st, 2017 at 6:13 pm
This looks incredible. Added bonus–I happen to love ginger. I must make this and soon. Good thing I have coworkers who will eat anything that gets set on the break room table…without question or hesitation.
Reply
- renee says:
Sunday, October 22nd, 2017 at 6:30 pm
If the dates are nice and moist already, do you still need the water and baking soda for the recipe?
Reply
- joanne says:
Sunday, October 22nd, 2017 at 9:30 pm
The baking soda is likely important for rising, so I wouldn’t omit it. I’m honestly not sure about the water, but it sounds like you went ahead and tried it anyway so let me know how it turns out!
Reply
- renee says:
Thursday, October 26th, 2017 at 12:09 pm
Yes, It definitely needs the water and baking soda. 🙂
Reply
- renee says:
Sunday, October 22nd, 2017 at 8:37 pm
So I looked up the original recipe from Samantha Seneviratne’s cookbook, The New Sugar and spice. Everything is the same except her instructions are to ” stir in date ‘mixture’ and fold in apples.” Mixture I assume means the dates, water and baking soda. I made it minus the water and soda and it really looks like …well, not as pretty as the one on the other site .” Brooklyn Supper”
Reply
- Lisa Dunford says:
Thursday, November 9th, 2017 at 3:46 am
I love apple…yum!
Hope you are having a great weekend Joanne!Reply
- Darren Lawrence says:
Thursday, November 19th, 2020 at 11:52 am
Mum looks lovely apart from the hair on the plate….
Reply
- Darren Lawrence says:
Thursday, November 19th, 2020 at 11:54 am
Mmm
Hate spell checker…….Reply
Carrie 
joanne 
renee 
Darren Lawrence Leave a Reply
Welcome to Eats Well With Others, where we take a vegetable-and-cupcake laden approach to life (always with a bit of laughter on the side)!
Summer
Privacy Policy
Popular Posts
- One Pot Vegan Caribbean Pelau with Beans and Spinach
- Ottolenghi’s Eggplant Dumplings Alla Parmigiana
- Italian Cream Puffs with Custard Filling (St. Joseph’s Day Pastries)
- One Pot Miso Noodle Soup
- Momof*cku Milk Bar Pistachio Layer Cake
- Crispy Chickpeas and Halloumi with Greens and Garlicky Yogurt
- Roasted Sweet Potato and Halloumi Salad
- Creamy Feta, Tomato, and Chickpea Israeli Couscous Casserole
- Sicilian Baked Eggs with Artichokes, Burrata, Spinach, and Spicy Tomato Sauce
- Rhubarb Cream Cheese Hand Pies
