APPLE CAKE!!!

Baking is a marvelous thing, isn't it? There is almost nothing more satisfying than taking something out the oven and seeing how lovely it is! That being said, here is a pretty easy cake recipe I made today, which, if our oven wasn't missing an element and I hadn't forgotten to take the necessary steps to pacify its temperamental heating system, would have turned out a little less crunchy underneath! Also, this cake didn't rise above 2 inches, so it would probably be a yummy idea to make two rounds and put one on top of the other, and separate them with whipped cream or something like that.

1/2 cup softened butter

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/4 tsp vanilla

1 and a half cups of self-raising flour

pinch of slat

1 tsp cinnamon (ground - obviously don't stick a stick of cinnamon in the mixer!)

2 cups grated apple (or 1 cup grated and 1 cup chopped - whatever you feel like!)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts/raisins/anything interesting

1) Turn your oven on! 180°C/350°F

2) Soften the butter - either cheat and use the microwave, or just be prepared and leave the butter out the fridge for a while before you start backing

3) Beat the butter and the sugar in a mixer. The recipe says until light and fluffy, but honestly it's hard to see how a grainy mixture of sugar and butter can be "fluffy" - so just beat it until it looks well-beaten!

4) Add the eggs to the mixture, one at a time, mixing as you add

5) Add the vanilla

6) Sieve the flour and salt and cinnamon straight into the mixture. Fold the flour in, so that when you turn the mixer on again, it doesn't go everywhere! Then do some more beating until it's all combined.

(I like to the use a spatula to make sure that the stuff at the bottom of the bowl is actually getting a look-in with the mixing metal arm thing!)

7) Stir in the apples and any other extra things you wanted.

8) Put it in the oven and DON'T FORGET TO TAKE IT OUT!

9) Bake for 40-45 minutes

I added icing sugar on top (confectioner's sugar is the fancy name for that, I think).

ENJOY