What is the difference between apple pie spice and allspice?

Apple pie spice is a blend of various ground spices. On the other hand, allspice is a standalone spice derived from the berry of the Pimenta dioica plant . Not only do the two have different flavor profiles, but they also serve different uses in cooking.

Can you use eating apples instead of cooking apples in a cake?

You can use any eating apples that are in season, or any that you have to hand , but my favourites are Cox's Orange Pippins and Braeburn apples for flavour.

What is the closest spice to allspice?

While allspice is a spice on its own, not a blend, it's very easy to create a similar-tasting mixture with spices you already have in your kitchen. Whisk 3½ teaspoons ground cinnamon , 1¼ teaspoons ground nutmeg and a pinch of ground cloves, then use as a 1:1 replacement for ground allspice in a recipe.

What is a substitute for 1 teaspoon of apple pie spice?

Use our instructions to substitute a single teaspoon of apple pie spice in your recipes. For 1 teaspoon homemade apple pie spice recipe: stir together ½ tsp. ground cinnamon plus ¼ tsp. ground nutmeg, ⅛ tsp.

What is the best apple to use in a cake?

Bon Appetit says the best apples for baking are Jonagold, Honeycrisp, Braeburn, Mutsu, Winesap, Pink Lady (Cripps Pink) but they also use Granny Smith often. They've listed several apples that have already been mentioned that are crisp and either sweet or tart.

Should you peel apples before baking?

peel your apples. While the debate on whether or not to peel your apples seems never-ending, it really comes down to a matter of personal choice . Unpeeled apples will add a bit of color and texture to your pie, but they may prevent the apples from melding together when baked.

Can you substitute apple pie spice for allspice?

Substitutes for Allspice include using a combination of cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon as well as similar spice blends such as pumpkin pie spice (with some added pepper to achieve the savory notes of allspice) or apple pie spice.

What is a substitute for apple pie spice?

It's super easy to make your own apple pie spice substitute: Just combine 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon with 2 teaspoons each each ground nutmeg and allspice . You can make this mixture in bulk and store in a spice jar in your spice cabinet. Use your homemade blend as an even swap for apple pie spice in any recipe.

What is allspice alternatively known as?

Allspice, also known as Jamaica pepper, myrtle pepper, pimenta, or pimento , is the dried unripe berry of Pimenta dioica, a midcanopy tree native to the Greater Antilles, southern Mexico, and Central America, now cultivated in many warm parts of the world.

What is the difference between spice and allspice?

As a general rule of thumb, allspice is used more in savoury cooking . World cuisine such as Caribbean, Moroccan and Indian benefit from the sweet, spicy and earthy aromas. Mixed spice caters more to dessert cooking, although that's not to say it can't be used in savoury dishes.

An Old-Fashioned Apple Spice Cake Recipe on Food52 (2024)

Fall

by: betteirene

September27,2009

1 Ratings

An Old-Fashioned Apple Spice Cake Recipe on Food52 (1)

Serves 6-8

Jump to Recipe

Author Notes

I asked for this recipe about 45 years ago from one of my mother's friends when we lived on an Air Force Base in Okinawa. I had just begun to bake and the recipe is so easy that it was a success on my first try. With a few tweaks, I've been baking it ever since. Try to use a nice, flavorful apple like Granny Smith, Jonathan, MacIntosh, Rome or Paula Red. —betteirene

Test Kitchen Notes

Betteirene's recipe is like a cake with a snowcap. The bottom half is reminiscent of carrot cake, textured with grated apples, raisins and chopped nuts. The cake batter is dense and on top of it you spread a thick layer of brown sugar meringue. As you assemble it, you’ll be convinced of its imminent doom. Fear not! In the oven, the meringue toasts and the cake, protected by its meringue roof, retains its moisture, and the best part is the pudding-like layer that forms between them. The meringue needs to be beaten over a water bath, and we learned the hard way that you need hand-held beaters to do this -- whisking it by hand for 10 minutes over a pan of hot water is like running a marathon in heels. Also, we think that light brown sugar is the way to go for both the meringue and the cake.- A&M —The Editors

Test Kitchen-Approved
Your Best Apple Cake Contest Finalist

What You'll Need

Ingredients

For the Meringue:
2 large egg whites
1 ¹/₂ cupsfirmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoonswater

For the Cake:
¹/₂ cupunsalted butter at room temperature
1 cupfirmly packed brown sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoonbaking soda
¹/₂ teaspoonsalt
1 teaspooncinnamon
¹/₂ teaspoonground ginger
¹/₄ teaspoonground cloves (optional)
2 large, meaty apples, cored and grated on the large holes of a box grater
¹/₂ cuptoasted chopped walnuts (optional)
¹/₂ cupraisins (optional)
2 cupsspooned and leveled all-purpose flour

Directions

Position a rack in the middle level of oven. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9"x9" baking pan or casserole dish.
To make the meringue, place the egg whites, brown sugar and water in the top of a double boiler. Put enough water in the bottom of the double boiler to touch the bottom of the top pot. Over high heat, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until peaks form, 3-5 minutes. Set aside.
For the cake, beat together butter and brown sugar until fluffy; add egg yolks and blend well. By hand, stir in baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, grated apples, walnuts and raisins. Fold in the flour, blending well but being careful to not overmix.
Spoon batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Spread meringue evenly over the batter. Bake until top is crisp, about 45 minutes. If you serve it while warm, the meringue will crack when you cut it, but that's a good thing. If you want nice, neat uniform slices, serve the cake the next day.

Tags:

Cake
American
Clove
Raisin
Apple
Walnut
Thanksgiving
Rosh Hashanah
Fall
Dessert

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16 Reviews

Jane November 6, 2022

I’m disappointed that my meringue didn’t turn out crackly, but instead more of a spongy meringue like in a lemon meringue pie. I think there is a key omission in the recipe. After whipping the meringue, it says to “set aside.” I set the whole double boiler aside, and I believe the meringue continued to cook while I made the cake. It should either be taken off or out of the hot pot, or made after assembling the cake. This was by no means easy either, plus I felt like I used every pot and bowl in my kitchen. The cake itself was good but for all the work, I’m afraid to try again for a crackly meringue.

Little P. October 22, 2019

Is this.a Swiss meringue? Whip to soft, medium, or stiff peaks? Recipe doesn't indicate.

Jane November 6, 2022

Little P. -seeing this 3 years later, it seems you’ve been abandoned by the editors. I wonder if you tried it and what your experience was. You can see my comments above, but for what it’s worth, I whipped the meringue to a medium peak. I think the failure of my meringue was due more to leaving it in the hot pot after whipping, as opposed to how much I whipped it.

zeldie January 31, 2014

This cake is beautiful and I might think the most absolutely delicious I have ever made! it is a sweet cake and easy! My Mother (Hungarian) made a version of this 45 years ago also! in NYC! Food 52 suggests using light brown sugar. I used 3/4 cup light brown and 1/4 dark brown for the cake part. For the meringue part I used only 1 cup consisting of 3/4 light brown and 1/4 dark. using 1 1/2 cups makes it super sweet. I put the meringue ingredients into my stainless steel mixer bowl (Kitchen Aid Mixer) then put that right over some water simmering in a saucepan…I took a hand whisk and whisked for a couple of minutes till the mix felt warm then popped the bowl into the standing mixer with the balloon beater attachment and put it on high…I got the most stunning meringue in minutes! standing over the stove with a hand mixer is insane! and waiting for an accident. my way is safe fast and efficient.