Apple Pudding

Suddenly, it was Wednesday night and I needed something to post.  Having started work this week (woohoo!!), I haven't cooked much, and that which I have cooked has been repeats. I had planned to make some apple chips tomorrow, but decided those apples might go better baked into some goodie, so I sifted through recipes until I found an upside-down toffee apple cake which looked divine. I got all ready to make it, then I realized I didn't have enough apples. Sigh. I came this close [] (that tiny box is how close) to not baking anything, but then I remembered this apple pudding recipe I came across in my apple search.  

The recipe called for the use of ramekins, which I shamefully don't own, so I use a small pie pan instead. I think it worked out  well. 

The recipe is simple and the results are delicious.  Of course, it would be great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. What apple treat isn't?

Apple Pudding
(original recipe here) 

• 2 large apples: peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped
• 1/2 lemon, it's juice and zest [no lemons here, so I just sprinkled in a tbsp or 2 of lemon juice]
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 80 grams [roughly 3/4 cup] butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar [yes, it is meant to be listed twice]
• 1/4 cup self-rising flour*
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
  

Preheat oven to 350F.  

In a small bowl, combine apple, lemon juice, zest, cinnamon, and 1/4 cup brown sugar.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat together the butter and sugar for about 2 minutes.  Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until just combined.  Slowly add the flour until it is just combine. 

Divide the apple mixture between 4 individual ramekins and spoon over the flour mixture. [Alternately, you could just spread the apples in the bottom of a pie pan, the dollop the flour mixture on top, spreading and smoothing it with the back of a spoon.]

Bake 40-45 minutes. [Mine only needed 35 minutes, perhaps because it was more shallow than the ramekins might be.] Let rest a moment or two before enjoying it warm.

* If you don't have self-rising flour, you can easily mix up your own substitute. For 1 cup of self-rising flour, just mix together:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda