Costco’s Caramel-Glazed Apple Cake

October 11, 9:27 PMSalt Lake City Lunch ExaminerHeather King

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Earlier this week I had some minor surgery and several friends were kind enough to offer to bring over dinner and dessert so my husband, Robert, and I didn’t have to worry about it that night. In true fashion, Julee went all out. She prepared crockpot pork chops with rice, roasted veggie salad, bread and even made dessert! Chris made us dessert as well.

Here’s where the story gets interesting. In between the time that I came home from Huntsman Cancer and the time that they were bringing over dinner, Julee and Chris had been talking to each other about what they made for us. Turns out, both ladies made the same Caramel-Glazed Apple Cake dessert from the Costco Connection magazine. A bake-off was born.

Knowing that I am a foodie and that Robert and I love a good competition, Julee and Chris decided that we would judge their cakes and announce the winner of the bake-off. So here we are.

With the exception of the apples used (Julee used Golden Delicious, Chris used Gala) the spices, moistness and texture were nearly identical and extremely delicious. I ended up eating pieces of each for both dessert and breakfast and it worked equally well as a breakfast type of coffee cake as it did as a fall dessert.

The final results of our bake-off: I preferred Julee’s version because of the Golden Delicious apples which were sweeter. Robert preferred Chris’ because of the tartness of the Gala apples which are his absolute favorite.

Winner: Julee and Chris for being fantastic friends and bakers!

Here’s the recipe from Easy Cooking The Costco Way.

Caramel-Glazed Apple Cake

CAKE
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
3 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 Washington Granny Smith or Golden Delicious apples, cored, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch pieces
1 1/4 cups chopped pecans or walnuts
2 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

CARAMEL GLAZE
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup heavy cream

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter and flour a 9-by-13-inch pan.
2. To prepare the cake, beat both sugars and oil in a mixing bowl until very well blended. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt; gradually add to eggs, mixing just until blended. Stir in apples, pecans and vanilla; pour into pan.
3. Bake for 50-75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan while preparing the glaze.
4. To prepare the glaze, melt butter in a saucepan over low heat. Stir in both sugars and salt; cook over medium-low heat for 2 minutes. Add cream and boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
5. Poke holes in the cake with a skewer or toothpick. Pour on the glaze.
Serve warm or at room temperature. Top with whipped cream or ice cream if desired. Makes 12 servings.