Plug's Apple Hand Cake
"Plug was my Mom's nickname, acquired as a child when an uncle told her she was uglier than a plug nickle (nice uncle, huh?). When she passed away in 1991 at the age of 83, most of her 24 grandchildren referred to her as Plug Cooper. Plug was a country cook who never owned measuring spoons and rarely used measuring cups; truly a Rachael Ray type personality who used a handful of this, a pinch of that & cooked things till they "smelled done". As the youngest of her 10 children, I was lucky to have one-on-one time with her & gather enough knowledge to preserve her recipes. And it was no easy task since my hands are half the size her's were! On to the cake - I've tried lots of apple cake recipes and still consider this one the benchmark. We called it "hand cake" since it was never iced & easy to grab & run."
photo by Magpie Jo
- Ready In:
- 1hr 30mins
- Ingredients:
- 10
- Serves:
-
12
ingredients
- 2 cups sugar
- 1⁄2 cup vegetable oil
- 3 eggs
- 4 cups tart apples, peeled and diced
- 1⁄2 cup pecan pieces
- 1⁄2 cup golden raisin
-
Sift together
- 2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1⁄2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
directions
- Beat the sugar, oil and eggs together.
- Stir in the apples, pecans & raisins.
- Add sifted, dry ingredients, mixing well.
- Pour into a greased 9x13" baking pan.
- Bake at 350º for 45 - 60 minutes or until it tests done (or smells done).
- Optional: Can also stir into batter 1/2 cup chopped dates and/or 1/2 cup coconut.
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Reviews
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I agree - moist, delicious with great flavor ... really good! Apple Hand cake - couldn't think to a better name. Having a great crop of apples in the back yard this was a perfect time to make this cake. Used the tarter apples, raisins and nuts along with the spices which were just right for us. Lovely apple cake that I found to be absolutely addictive. Can see why this one has stood the test of time. Thank you for sharing your mom's recipe - it is going right into my family favorites - and to my next coffee hour. -
This is REALLY good! Very quick and easy to prepare, much lighter and nicer than any other apple cake I've tried and with a slight crispiness to the top.I omitted the raisins and substituted an extra 1/2 cup of the pecans.The combination of spices was really good. This is a wonderful cake and I love the story behind it. Thanks Susie Qusie! I will be making this over and over again. -
I asked for a cake i could take to my church coffee morning and Magpie Jo recommended this to me....I was not dissapointed, it was very easy to put together, and cut into loads of pieces. Everyone loved it, especially when i called it plug's hand cake!!! I found it too sweet for my taste but young and old alike devoured it...which means i must be middle aged!!!lol Thank you SusieQusie for sharing your Mams plug's recipe with us! -
This is an amazing cake. More apple than cake, lots of flavor and moist. I had to use one cup of brown sugar because I ran out of white sugar, but it didn't take away from the cake a bit. We loved the nutmeg and cinnamon. Three large granny smith apples made almost exactly 4 cups of apples and with that it was overflowing apples. Perfect. The kids are calling it "plug cake" so clearly it has become a family favorite! Thank you for sharing this!
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
<p>Hello from suburban Fort Worth, Texas! <br /> <br /><br /> <br />______________________________________________ <br /> <br /> <br />*My rating system defined* <br /> <br />Very few recipes really knock my socks off - I love to cook but am not a gourmet. <br />This said: <br /> <br />***** - met all my expectations in taste & appearance; directions were clear & easy to follow. <br /> <br />**** - fell slightly short of my expectations in taste or appearance or directions were faulty or not completely clear. <br /> <br />*** - mediocre taste and/or appearance; most likely a recipe that I would not use again without much modification. <br /> <br />** - taste and/or appearance was not to my liking; a recipe that I would not attempt to modify or use again. <br /> <br />* - taste was absolutely not to my liking (I can't imagine ever using this rating as I can generally tell by the ingredients if I will enjoy the finished product or not) <br /> <br /> <br /><img src=http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e347/Saturn6666/chefbanner1.jpg alt= /> <br /> <br /> <br /><img src=http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j44/scmurray51/hagshat.jpg alt= /> <br /> <br /><br /> </p>
