We can all benefit from Ina Garten 'Good Equipment' advice shared by Ina Garten on page 87 of How Easy is That (Clarkson Potter).
68 'kitchen tools' suggestions are listed throughout the book many of them simple and practical. Most of us will have to do without number 22 (2 dishwashers).
I received How easy is that ? a couple weeks ago amongst a host of others and it fell off my radar.
These past few days, I started asking various sources including publishers for suggestions on recipes for the holidays.
Allison at Clarkson Potter offered as one of her favorites the Easy Cranberry & Apple Cake from How Easy Is That (page 204-205). It has comfort on a cold day all over it.
Here it is:
Easy cranberry & apple cake
Serves 6 to 8
This recipe is inspired by a cranberry pie from Sarah Chase’s book Cold Weather Cooking. My friend Barbara Liberman calls it “easy cake”—I call it delicious. It’s even better served warm with vanilla ice cream.
Ingredients:
12 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over for stems
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and diced
½ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 tablespoon grated orange zest (2 oranges)
¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
11⁄8 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
¼ pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ cup sour cream
1 cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Step by step:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Combine the cranberries, apple, brown sugar, orange zest, orange juice, and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon in a medium bowl. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs on medium-high speed for 2 minutes. With the mixer on medium, add 1 cup of the granulated sugar, the butter, vanilla, and sour cream and beat just until combined. On low speed, slowly add the flour and salt.
Pour the fruit mixture evenly into a 10-inch glass pie plate. Pour the batter over the fruit, covering it completely. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar and 1⁄8 teaspoon of cinnamon and sprinkle it over the batter.
Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean and the fruit is bubbling around the edges.
Serve warm or at room temperature.
(* Photo by Quentin Bacon, photo and recipe used by permission of Clarkson Potter)