Danish Apple Trifle (Æblekage)
This old-fashioned Danish dessert shines during the apple season, combining roasted apples, whipped cream and oat cookies.
Every autumn, Denmark enjoys an enormous harvest of apples. A lot of Danish houses will actually have an apple tree in the garden, or at least in the nearby wilderness. The season’s harvest would be pressed for juice, used for making cider or baked into cakes or puddings. This dessert is one of the best ways to usher in the autumn. Although ‘æblekage’ literally means ‘apple cake’, there’s no cake-baking involved. Instead, this dessert is essentially a trifle, layered with whipped cream, roasted apple puree and oaty biscuits. Traditionally, breadcrumbs or bread cubes would have been used, making this dessert a sink for leftover bread, but most Danes nowadays use crumbled cookies. Either way, this is a truly divine, chilled dessert to enjoy in the afterglow of the summer. Let’s go!
INGREDIENTS (serves 2x)
3-4x apples (300g) - a sweet-sour variety is best
2 tsps lemon juice
4-5 tablespoons sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
80g oat cookies (or HobNobs)
200ml double cream
2 tsps sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
WALKTHROUGH
First we’ll start with the roasted apples. Remove the core from the 3-4x apples and dice them into 1-inch chunks. You don’t need to peel the apples.
In a mixing bowl, combine the diced apples with 2 tsps lemon juice, 2-3 tablespoons of brown sugar, pinch of salt, 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Toss the apples until they’re coated.
Place the apples onto a lined baking tray and bake at 180C for 20-25 minutes, or until they’re golden-brown and fragrant.
Now we’ll puree the roasted apples. Place the roasted apples into a blender and blend them to a smooth paste. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your taste, adding more sugar or lemon juice if needed.
Let’s make the biscuit crumbs. Add the 80g oat biscuits to a blender and blend to coarse crumbs.
Now let’s whip the cream. Place the 200ml of double cream into a mixing bowl along with 2 tsps of sugar and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Whip the cream on high speed until you have soft peaks. Set aside.
Now we’ll compile the trifles. Into your serving bowls or glasses, add 2-3 tablespoons of apple puree, along with 2-3 tablespoons of whipped cream and 2-3 tablespoons of biscuit crumbs. You can repeat the layers if you prefer.
Once layered, let the trifles chill in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours before serving. Enjoy!
