There’s something very special about autumn, the season that officially began on September 22 in the northern hemisphere. Also referred to as the “autumnal equinox,” it’s one of the two moments in the year when the sun is exactly above the equator and day and night are of equal length. The date, which most mark as the first day of Fall, also marks the season of changing leaves, cooler nights, and indulgent autumn fruits like apples, pears, and figs, some of the best ingredients for tea breads, muffins, and cakes like these.
PEAR, APRICOT & ALMOND ROULADE
Serves 6
Renvyle House is an historic country house hotel in Connemara, County Galway, located along the shores of the Wild Atlantic Way. It was once the home of a powerful Gaelic chieftain, and in more modern times, the home of Irish poet, statesman, and surgeon Oliver St. John Gogarty. Since becoming a country house hotel in 1883, Renvyle has played host to many famous people, including Lady Gregory, William Butler Yeats, and Winston Churchill, to name a few. Its award-winning restaurant, Rusheeduff, inspired this yummy roulade.
4 ounces dried apricots, chopped
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon fresh lemon Juice
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 Anjou or Bartlett pears, peeled, cored, and diced
1/4 cup ground almonds
2 tablespoons sliced almonds
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Vanilla ice cream, for serving
1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a small saucepan, combine the apricots, honey, lemon juice, brown sugar, and pears. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until the apricots begin to soften. Remove from heat; let cool. Stir in the almonds.
3. Dust a work surface with flour. Unroll the pastry sheet; roll into a 14x11-inch rectangle. With the long side facing you, spoon the fruit mixture onto the lower third of the pastry. Starting at the long side, roll up like a jelly roll. Tuck the ends under to seal. Place the pastry seam-side down on the prepared pan; brush with egg wash. Cut several 2-inch-long slits 2 inches apart onto the top.
4. Bake the roulade for 25 minutes, or until puffed and golden. Cool on the baking sheet on a wire rack for 15 minutes; dust with confectioners’ sugar.
5. To serve, cut the roulade into slices; serve with ice cream.
KERRY APPLE CAKE
Serves 8
Apples have been grown in Ireland for three thousand years. Eating apples, cooking apples, and cider apples are all grown there, with Bramley’s Seedling the variety most widely planted in places from County Armagh to Tipperary and Waterford. A good substitute for the Bramley is Granny Smith, Winesap, Fuji, or Honeycrisp. Serve the cake with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or clotted cream.
4 ounces butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons milk
2 cups self-rising flour
4 large Bramley or Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into thick slices
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
2 tablespoons flaked almonds
Vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or clotted cream, for serving
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat a deep 9-inch round pan with no-stick cooking spray; line with parchment paper.
2. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and milk; sift in the flour. Mix well; stir in slices from 3 of the apples. (The mixture will be quite wet, so add more milk if needed).
3. Transfer the mixture to prepared pan. Arrange the remaining apple slices over the top of the cake; sprinkle with brown sugar and almonds.
4. Bake the cake for 40 to 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes before cutting into slices. Serve warm with whipped cream, custard, or ice cream, if desired.
SPICED FIG AND WALNUT CAKE
Serves 8
You’ll love the flavor of the tea-soaked figs in this cake. Soaking dried fruits in a liquid like tea is a technique many cooks use to plump up fruit in fruitcakes and tea breads.
2 cups hot black tea
10 large dried golden figs, halved
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
6 ounces butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Crème fraîche, for serving (optional)
1. Soak the figs in tea for about 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-inch round baking pan with no-stick baking spray; line the bottom with parchment paper.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves.
4. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter and granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the brown sugar and 1 egg. Beat in the flour mixture and remaining eggs in 2 additions. Beat in the vanilla; stir in the walnuts.
5. Drain the figs; cut into small pieces. Stir into the batter. Transfer to the prepared pan; smooth top.
6. Bake the cake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of pan to loosen. Invert cake onto serving plate, remove parchment and then return to upright. Dust top with confectioners’ sugar before cutting into slices. Serve with a dollop of crème fraiche, if desired.
Margaret Johnson’s “Recipes” page also includes “Ireland Hopping: Adventures in Food, Drink, and Travel.” To order one of her signed cookbooks, visit irishcook.com.
