Dallas Cake

The idea for this cake came to me in a dream. No joke. James came to wake me up on a Saturday morning and my dream land became interwoven with reality thanks to a generous dose of noun replacement. Here's how the conversation went:

James: Good morning 'Nione, time to wake up!

'Nione: Mrrmungh.

James: What, honey? It's Saturday morning...time to make breakfast!

'Nione: If we hurry, we can put butter on it.

James: Put butter on what?

'Nione: Mrrmungh...Dallas...cake.

James: You mean buttercream frosting.

'Nione: No, butter. It's all melting. On the Dallas cake.

In my dream, I had been making an apple skillet cake which had come out of the oven and was waiting to be topped with dabs of butter. I was distressed because the cake was cooling off and if I didn't hurry, the butter wouldn't melt. As I was being awakened, the only noun I could think of to represent the idea of apples in a skillet was "Dallas". I have never been to Dallas, and I have no idea if Texans would even like this cake. But, when a cake apperars to you in a dream, and turns out to be delicious, you have to keep calling it by whatever crazy name it had in the dream. And so, I give you Dallas Cake.

Note: this recipe has been significantly modified from the dream for health reasons. For example, you'll notice that we're not topping the thing with dabs of butter. But, we think it's delicious nonetheless.

Dallas Cake

(Serves 3 for dinner or more for dessert)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut five small small apples into half-inch chunks (leave the skins on...less work, more vitamins). Heat a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Melt 1/2 T. of butter in the skillet or spray with Pam. Toss the apples in the skillet along with:

Generous dusting of cinnamon (1/2 tsp.)

Squeeze of lemon juice (2 tsp.)

Large spoonful of granulated sugar (1 Tbsp.)

Cook the apples until they are starting to soften and give up some juice, then remove the skillet from the heat. Meanwhile, mix the dry ingredients.

2 c. whole wheat flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

dash of nutmeg

In an electric mixer, beat together:

3 Tbsp. semi-melted butter (nuke it until you have some liquid, some solid)

1 Tbsp. sour cream (make it a generous tablespoon)

1 egg

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Sweetener (choose one of the following or vary according to your tastes/waistline):

* 1/2 c. granulated sugar plus 1/2 c. brown sugar

* 1/2 c. brown sugar plus 1/2 c. applesauce

* 1/2 c. splenda for baking plus 1/2 c. applesauce

Add 1/2 cup milk, then mix in dry ingredients until just moistened. The batter should be moist, but not runny. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the batter into the skillet. Smash the mixture around to incorporate the cooked apples. Smooth the top.

Bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown. Eat immediately, preferrably for dinner (plan ahead and have a salad for lunch). If you have leftovers, the cake is delicious cold from the fridge.