Apfelkuchen

Apfelkuchen by SBFBakes

Ingredients

For the Cake
1 tsp instant yeast
2 cups/250g All Purpose Flour (plus some for kneading)
1/3 cup/70g granulated sugar
1/2 cup whole milk, lukewarm
1 egg yolk
3 tbsp/40g unsalted butter, room temperature
Zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
2-3 medium/large apples (I like a mix of granny smith and honeycrisp)

For the Streusel
1 cup/120g all-purpose flour
1/3 cup/70g granulated sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch salt
5 tbsp unsalted butter, cubed into small pieces and cold

Directions

1. Grease and line an 8" or 9" springform pan.

2. Mix together the yeast, flour, sugar, salt, and zest in a large bowl. Whisk together the egg yolk and milk, then add to the dry ingredients. Add in chunks of the softened butter and knead in the bowl until a shaggy dough develops.

3. Scrape out mixture onto a floured surface and knead for a few minutes until smooth. You can add a bit more flour if the dough is very sticky, but don't add too much since the dough is supposed to be soft and floppy. Form the dough into a ball and put it in the prepared pan. Cover and let rise for 1- 1 1/2 hours in a warm spot (don't worry if the dough does not rise very much though!)

4. Gently push the dough down and spread to the edges of your pan, then dimple the dough. Cover and let rise another half hour.

5. During this second rise you can prepare the apples and streusel. Peel the apples and cut into 1/2" cubes or so, then toss with the lemon juice and set aside. For the streusel, mix together the dry ingredients (everything but the butter) then cut in the butter by rubbing the butter into the mixture with your fingertips until the pieces are pea-sized (you can also use a pastry cutter for this). Chill the topping until ready to use. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

6. Once the dough is puffed up slightly, sprinkle the apples over the dough (it will seem like a lot, but don't worry-they cook down!) and press the pieces into the dough. Cover with the streusel and bake for 55-70 minutes, until the streusel is cracked and bits are turning golden brown (if you are feeling brave you can unclamp the sides of your springform to check the sides of the cake for browning)

7. Let cool for 30 minutes in the pan, then on a cooling rack.