Birds Of A Feather - Celebration

 Today, Canary Tales Blog, established in 2009, hits an amazing 300,000 page views!

Top ten viewer countries today:

1. United States

2. Canada

3. United Kingdom

4. Indonesia

5. Australia

6. South Africa

7. Turkey

8. Mexico

9. Singapore

10.Germany

Let's Celebrate how Canary Culture unites people all over the world!

French Apple Cake Pictured Above
One 9-inch (23 cm) cake
Adapted from Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan
Dorie doesn’t specify any type of apple but instead advises that you should use a mix of them.

• 3/4 cup (110g) flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 4 large apples (a mix of varieties)
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup (150g) sugar (you can also substitute Splenda by using 3/4 c. splenda instead of sugar)
• 3 tablespoons dark rum(optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 8 tablespoons (115g) butter, salted or unsalted, melted and cooled to room temperature

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC) and adjust the oven rack to the center of the oven.
2. Heavily butter an 8- or 9-inch (20-23cm) springform pan and place it on a baking sheet.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
4. Peel and core the apples, then dice them into 1-inch (3cm) pieces.
5. In a large bowl, beat the eggs until foamy then whisk in the sugar, then rum and vanilla. Whisk in half of the flour mixture, then gently stir in half of the melted butter
6. Stir in the remaining flour mixture, then the rest of the butter.
7. Fold in the apple cubes until they’re well-coated with the batter and scrape them into the prepared cake pan and smooth the top a little with a spatula.
8. Bake the cake for 50 minute to 1 hour, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool for 5 minutes, then run a knife around the edge to loosen the cake from the pan and carefully remove the sides of the cake pan, making sure no apples are stuck to it.
Serving: Serve wedges of the cake just by itself, or with crème fraîche or vanilla ice cream.
Storage: The cake will keep for up to three days covered. Since the top is very moist, it’s best to store it under a cake dome or overturned bowl.

 Being diabetic, we make this cake with Splenda instead of sugar. I was skeptical about the large apple pieces but that really makes it! Be sure to use at least three varieties of apples. This one includes locally grown honeycrisp, Jonathon, and golden delicious. The important thing is use distinctly different apple flavors. With each bite being a slightly different favor you just can't get enough of it. We also, occasionally add one teaspoon cinnamon or apple pie spice but it is equally good without it. For a topping I use whipped cream.