3 Spoonfuls of Sugar

I stumbled upon this paperback in the 1980s,
and it is a treasure.

We had some apples that were going bad, and don't like to waste anything in this time of fewer trips to the grocery store. This recipe for Apple Cake is from a charming old cookbook I love called Sweets for Saints & Sinners, by Janice Feuer, illustrated by Veronica di Rosa. It was published in San Francisco in 1980, and I found it on the "giveaway table" at my first magazine job. Woman's Day editors often put things out for the taking on the hallway tables--cross-stitched tablecloths, crafty curtains and other projects from photo shoots, cookbooks, even treats.

The recipe is so easy, you can slide it in the oven in under 30 minutes. It is really delicious. I cut back the total sugar from 1 cup to 3 tablespoons. This cake would be delicious made with hazelnut or walnut oil, but they're pricey and I didn't have any. Fig loved the cake. This small loaf is mostly fruit, and it vanishes fast.

APPLE SNACK CAKE, adapted from Sweets for Saints & Sinners

2 cups unpeeled apples [about 2 to 3 apples], rinsed and diced
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 egg [I used egg replacer powder]
1/4 cup canola oil
2/3 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Grated nutmeg, about 1/2 "nut" or use ground nutmeg but freshly grated is best
Pinch of sea salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup white or whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Shelled walnut or pecan halves, optional

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Line the bottom of an 8 by 4 inch loaf pan or an 8-inch cake pan with parchment paper, or butter and flour the pan.
3. Combine the diced apples with the sugars in a bowl and let stand. 
4. In medium-size bowl, whip the egg lightly with a whisk. Whisk in the oil, then cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
5. With a wooden spoon, stir in the apple mixture, flour and vanilla. I added a handful of pecan halves.
6. Spoon the thick batter into pan; smooth out best you can.
7. Bake for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

TCOY

1. Clipped overgrown forsythia shrubs again [we have several in the backyard] and filled a lawn and leaf bag to bring to the curb.
2. Picked up my hair color bag at salon. [It was outside on salon porch with other customers' secret formulas.]
3. Ate some baby spinach.

FOOD

• Dan and I are trying hard to get Punch on board for remote school. She had 11 am Zoom session with math teacher. P lost a tooth last night [still has 3 baby teeth to go]. Was up at 2 am. Dan made a BIG brainy breakfast with scrambled eggs, Hungry Jack pancakes, bacon and sausage, with a little glass of milk. I had 2 fluffy, small, fat HJ pancakes w butter and a little pure maple syrup, 3 pc bacon, 1 sausage, 1 whole-wheat toast with butter, 1 coffee w milk.
• I made the apple cake. I had 2.5 pieces. It was so toasty and good.
• About 6 walnuts.
• Tall ice waters.
• Lunch during home school day; baby spinach w avocado, tomato, croutons, feta and a little dressing; six Bagel Bites, worst ever. 
• Second coffee with whole milk.
• 8 Ritz crackers w a couple slices Cheddar.
• Spoonful crunchy Skippy PB.
• Breaded, pan-browned flounder, tartar sauce, broccoli, Basmati rice.

$ MONEY SPENT OUT OF POCKET

• Nordstrom credit card, pretty Wacoal bra on sale, free shipping, $29.98. [Using the Nordstrom phone app is fun and fast. Great filters for sales, size, brand, etc.]
• Paper Plane Coffee in Montclair, curbside pickup, three iced drinks for tomorrow at 9:30 am, can't wait, including Iced Matcha for Punch, $3.50 tip to help support staff, $22.16.
• Charity donation, Giving Tuesday Now, $25.

Total daily spend: $77.14.

Ongoing monthly spend as of May 5: $220.14.

Avg daily spend: $44.03.