Food Column -- apple cake

unedited oct. mt. news article:

Apples aren’t just for pies

By Kathryn Reed

All apples are not the same – and I’m not just talking about the color differences. Pippin – those are the ones my ancestors say are the best for apple pies. Something about their tartness.
However, this summer I learned Granny Smith will more than do the job.
My ego prevents me from putting my blue first place ribbon from this year’s El Dorado County Fair Apple Pie Contest into a drawer, let alone the garbage. It’s on the bulletin board in my office. I have a picture of me, the pie and local Fair Board member Tom Davis that will end up in a photo album.
I called my mom from Placerville that June day. I had to thank her for teaching me how to make crust and the pie. She said how proud her grandmother would be – the woman I’m named after.
My family won’t allow me to share the recipe with you – or the crust. Sorry.
With it being harvest time on the West Slope, an apple recipe is necessary to take advantage of all that fresh fruit. Last year Sheri who owns Mary’s Drapery brought me a box of Pippins from Apple Hill. I was in baking heaven because I can never find Pippins in local grocery stores.
Her assistant Cyndi is an ardent fan of Granny Smith. She used to frequent Apple Hill on a regular basis when her kids were younger. She still has a slew of information about the area. She shared a recipe for a cake that is often for sale at one of the many orchards this time of year.
Apple Hill Growers has been in existence for more than 40 years. It includes apple growers as well as other ag interests like wine grapes, pears and Christmas trees. Now is when the apples are at their peak.
Most weekends something fun is going on down there. Shuttle service makes it easy to get around. For information, call (530) 644-7692 or go to www.applehill.com.
As for the cake, it was printed on the 1998-99 Apple Hill Growers Map. I made it as is, though my neighbor Celine and I would cut the sugar by at least a half cup. And it only took 45 minutes for mine to be done. It’s good right out of the oven and for breakfast – a la mode is the proverbial icing on the cake.

Apple Hill Cake

Combine: 2 cups sugar, ½ cup oil, 2 eggs
Add: 4 cups diced apples
Stir together: 2 cups flour, 1 tsp salt, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp nutmeg, 2 tsp baking soda

Add dry ingredients to apple mixture. Pour into 9 x 13 greased cake pan. Bake for 1 hour in preheated 350-degree oven.