CINNAMON APPLE SHEET CAKE

Prep: 30 minutes Bake: 50 minutes Makes: 18 pieces The firmer and fresher the apple, the better the cake. Ground cinnamon, like most ground spices, loses flavor with age. Start your fall baking season with a fresh jar.

Vegetable shortening for greasing the pan

3 cups, plus 2 tablespoons, all-purpose flour, see note

3 large (or 6 or 7 small) Gala, Honeycrisp or SweeTango apples, about 1½ pounds total

⅓ cup packed dark brown sugar

1½ tablespoons ground cinnamon 1½ cups granulated sugar 2½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt 4 large eggs 1 cup expeller-pressed canola oil or safflower oil

½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

½ cup powdered sugar

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Use vegetable shortening to heavily grease the interior of a 13-by-9-inch metal baking pan. Add 2 tablespoons flour to the pan. Working over the sink, shake the pan to coat it on all sides with flour. Shake out any excess flour.

2. Peel, core and quarter apples. Slice the apples into ¼-inch thick wedges. (If your apples are large, cut the wedges in half.) Put apples into a medium bowl. Stir in brown sugar and cinnamon; mix well.

3. Mix remaining 3 cups flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Whisk eggs together in a small bowl. Make a well in center of flour; pour in oil, orange juice and vanilla. Pour in beaten eggs. Use a large rubber spatula to gently fold the mixture just until all the flour is moistened.

4. Spread about two-thirds of the batter over the bottom of the prepared pan. Gently arrange apple mixture over the batter, being careful not to let apples touch the sides of the pan. Use the spatula to dollop the remaining batter evenly over apples (they won’t be completely covered).

5. Bake until top is nicely browned and wooden pick inserted in a batter area comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Cool in pan on wire rack.

6. Stir a couple of teaspoons of water into the powdered sugar in a small bowl to make a smooth, thickish glaze. Use a large fork to drizzle the glaze over the warm cake. Serve cake while it’s still warm.

Note: For a gluten-free version of the cake, JeanMarie suggests using Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour in place of the all-purpose flour. We tested the cake this way in Tribune’s test kitchen and tasters loved the result.

Nutrition information per serving: 319 calories, 14 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 41 mg cholesterol, 46 g carbohydrates, 28 g sugar, 4 g protein, 150 mg sodium, 1 g fiber