Apple Crumb Cake

Crumb cake was always a favorite treat in my mom's family.

My grandparents would get crumb cake sometimes on weekends when I stayed over their house, and we almost always had it when they rented a beach house at the Jersey Shore for a week in the summer.

The best crumb cake in our area is from a bakery called Mueller's.  It's not overly big or fancy, but on the rare occasion that I go in there, it still brings back happy childhood memories.

Plus I want to eat everything there.

In one sitting.

Is that wrong?

Another time we always had crumb cake was at my great-grandmother's house (a.k.a. "Gigi").  She and my great-aunt had a favorite bakery where they lived in Lyndhurst NJ, and Aunt Joyce would stock up on all sorts of treats there before our visits.

No matter how many times my mom told her "Don't go crazy," we knew Aunt Joyce would be hitting up Mazur's for some crumb cake at the very least.

Or... half the store, at most.

Honestly, I think Aunt Joyce was perfectly happy to have an excuse to buy loads of goodies at the bakery.  (Needless to say, she was pretty much the coolest great-aunt ever.)

In any event, crumb cake is a treat that will always have a place in my heart.

I got to thinking about it recently, but I'm pretty sure I can never make it as good as Mueller's or Mazur's, so I needed to put a twist on it.

We just went apple-picking last weekend and still have loads of apples, so it seemed like a natural combo.  I'd never actually had an apple crumb cake before, but really - apples... butter... sugar... what could go wrong?

And while the crumbs are still the best part, at least with this you have something to look forward to in the cake itself.

I might cut down on the sugar a bit if I make this again, as I thought it was a little sweet - but then again Mr. Vittles enjoyed the extra sugar.

Either way, for as easy as this was, it was pretty scrumptious.

I think Aunt Joyce would approve.

Apple Crumb Cake

Cake

• 3/4 C. sugar
• 1 C. flour + 2 T.
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. nutmeg
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 c. oil
• 1/2 t. vanilla
• 1 medium apple, peeled, cored & grated (about ½ C.)

Crumb Topping

• 1/2 c. flour
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 t. allspice
• 2 1/2 T. butter, melted

Preheat oven 350 degrees.  Grease an 8x8 pan and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, baking powder, and nutmeg until evenly distributed.  In a small bowl, whisk eggs, oil, and vanilla until combined and add to dry ingredients.  Mix well, then fold in grated apples. Pour into prepared pan and smooth evenly.

Prepare crumb topping: add first 5 crumb ingredients together in bowl, then add small amounts of melted butter, stirring with a fork or your fingers to combine into a crumbly mixture resembling wet sand.  Sprinkle crumbs on top of cake batter.  Bake 30-35 mins or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean with only a few dry crumbs attached.  Let cool on wire rack, then dust with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

Recipe Adapted from Cooks.com