Inspired by the French Gâteau Invisible, thinly-sliced apples are stacked into a barely-there batter and baked into a delicate, layered loaf cake. White miso infuses both the batter and the caramel sauce, adding a welcome dose of depth. Don't be tempted to cut the cake before it fully cools. The moisture of the apples needs plenty of time to incorporate.
Ingredients
- Neutral vegetable oil, for greasing
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting the pan
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 3 tbsp white miso, plus 2 tbsp (separated)
- 2 tbsp butter, melted
- ½ cup whole milk
- 3 large eggs
- ⅔ cup sugar, plus ½ cup and 2 tbsp (separated)
- 2½ lbs tart, firm apples, such as Granny Smith or Pink Lady, peeled, cored, and cut into extremely thin slices (a mandolin on its thinnest setting works well)
- ¼ cup water
- ¾ cup heavy cream
Preparation
- Generously grease a loaf pan with vegetable oil. Line with a sheet of parchment paper long enough to allow the ends to hang over the long sides of the pan.
- Grease the parchment paper with the oil, then dust with flour, tapping out any excess. Adjust the oven rack its middle position and preheat to 375°F.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the miso and melted butter until the miso is smooth. Whisk in 2 tbsp of the milk until mixture is evenly dispersed. Whisk in the remaining milk until totally smooth. Set aside.
- Using a stand mixer or a hand mixer, whisk the eggs and the sugar at medium speed until pale and glossy, about 90 seconds. You can also do this with a traditional whisk, giving yourself about 2 minutes to fully whip the eggs with the sugar.
- Whisk in half of flour mixture until just combined. Whisk in milk mixture, followed by remaining flour mixture, until no lumps remain.
- Using a large rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir the apples into batter, making sure to coat them evenly.
- Arrange apple slices in the prepared loaf pan in flat layers, overlapping them in a shingled pattern. Do your best to make the ends of the apples flush with the pan. Save your prettiest slices for the end. Continue layering until the apples are ½-inch from top.
- Scrape any remaining batter from the bowl into pan, making sure to leave ¼ inch space from top. Gently tap the sides of the pan to knock out air pockets.
- Set the loaf pan on middle rack of oven and slide a rimmed baking sheet on the rack underneath to catch any drips. Bake until the top is golden brown and domed and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 65-75 minutes. Rotate the pan one time halfway through its baking.
- Transfer the cake to a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes. Loosen the sides with a butter knife. Continue to cool the cake in its pan for about 2 hours.
- Using the overhanging parchment paper, lift the loaf out of the pan. Transfer to a cutting board. Allow the cake to cool for 1 hour more. Be patient!
- Ad the cake cools, make the caramel sauce: In a medium sauce pot, combine the water and the sugar over medium-high heat. Whisk gently until the syrup comes to a boil, about 4 minutes, then simmer without stirring until syrup is honey-colored, about 5-6 more minutes. Jiggle the pan now and again to ensure even caramelization, but be sure to not move the mixture too much. Movement prompts crystallization.
- Add the cream and reduce the heat to medium-low. Stirring constantly, simmer until the caramel registers 225°F on a candy thermometer (about 3 minutes). Remove from the heat, whisk in the miso until totally smooth, and transfer the sauce to a heat-safe vessel.
- To serve the cake, cut into 1-inch slices and serve in a moat of caramel sauce (either warm or at room temperature).
