Russian Sharlotka Sponge with Tart Apples

What you need

• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 180 g (scant 1 cup) granulated sugar
• 150 g (1 1/4 cups) plain flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder, optional; the beaten eggs do most of the lifting
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract, or 1 tsp vanilla sugar
• 700 g (1.5 lb) tart apples, about 4, such as Antonovka or Granny Smith
• 1 tsp butter, for the pan
• 1 tbsp icing sugar, for dusting

Method

Restated from the original video

1. 1

   Heat the oven to 180 °C (350 °F). Grease a 23 cm (9 in) springform pan with the butter and line the base with parchment.

2. 2

   Peel and core the apples and cut them into slices about 5 mm thick.

3. 3

   Beat the eggs with the salt on high speed until foamy, about 1 min.

4. 4

   Keep beating and add the sugar a spoonful at a time. Continue until the mixture is pale, thick and tripled in volume, 8-10 min; a trail dropped from the whisk should sit on the surface for a few seconds.

5. 5

   Whisk the flour with the baking powder in another bowl.

6. 6

   Sift the flour over the eggs in three parts, folding gently with a spatula after each until no dry streaks remain. Do not overmix.

7. 7

   Fold in the vanilla.

8. 8

   Fold about three quarters of the apples into the batter and scrape it into the pan. Scatter the remaining apples over the top.

9. 9

   Bake until the top is deep golden and a skewer pushed into the centre comes out clean, 45-55 min. Keep the oven door shut for the first 30 min.

10. 10

    Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 min, run a thin knife around the edge and release the ring.

11. 11

    Dust with the icing sugar just before serving, warm or at room temperature.

Imported from natashaskitchen.com. Recipe Grab pulled out what you need to cook it; the video stays where its author put it.