There are many regional variations of this wonderful recipe, but however you make it, Apple Stack Cake is a delicious showstopper at any table.
This cake features 6 layers of molasses and ginger cake, filled with autumn-spiced apple butter, dusted with nutmeg on top. It’s a delightful cake to bake for your Thanksgiving table, or when you have an abundance of local apples. Enjoy it warmed up with a dollop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, or straight out of the refrigerator.
Ingredients:
2 sticks salted butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup molasses
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
1 ½ tablespoons baking soda
2 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup buttermilk
For the filling and top:
3 cups apple butter
Pinch of ground nutmeg for dusting
Instructions:
Prepare your baking pans. You will need six 8-inch cake pans. If you do not have six 8-inch cake pans, you can bake the layers in batches using the pans that you have.
Grease the bottom and sides of the pan with butter. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper. Set the pans aside.
Preheat your oven to 350°F.
In a stand mixer or a hand mixer, cream your butter until smooth.
Add your sugar, gingers, molasses and baking soda to the butter. Cream together until smooth and well combined.
Next, add your eggs into the batter one at a time. Mix until well incorporated.
Add your flour into the batter all at once. Fold in the four until mostly combined.
Pour in your buttermilk and mix until everything is well combined. The batter should be very thick and sticky, but spreadable.
Put about 3 large dollops of batter into each pan. Try to visualize what 1 ¼ cup looks like. That’s how much you want to add for each pan. I don’t recommend using a measuring cup to do this step, because the batter is so sticky, you’ll only make a mess and loose batter if you try measuring it out.
Spread the batter in an even layer, smoothing out the top.
Bake the cakes for 15 minutes.
Remove the cakes from the pan immediately, using a butter knife to release the edges from the pan.
Allow your cakes to cool for a bit before assembling.
Once you’re ready to assemble the cake, have all your layers, a spoon or off-set spatula, and your apple butter at the ready.
Lay down your first layer of cake.
Add about ¼ cup of apple butter, or 2 heaping spoonfuls, to the top.
Spread the apple butter in an even layer.
Repeat this for all layers, even the top layer.
Dust the top of the cake with ground nutmeg.
Serve immediately or let it sit in the fridge to settle, in a closed container.
Enjoy plain or with a dollop of cream on the side.
-Delaney Blomstrom
