Butterscotch Apple Upside Down Torte (whole wheat)-Recipe

Butterscotch Apple Upside Down Torte – I created this recipe for my favorite (and only) big sister, Julie. My Pooh Bear! She called me about a month ago telling me how she wanted to make a butterscotch dessert for her wonderful husband Andy as a surprise. She explained to me that she had tried a few recipes, but none of them came out how she expected – some of them came out a gross watery mess. My sister is a good cook and she has tons of recipes. If she doesn’t have a recipe for something she wants to make, she always checks with me and Grandma for one. The problem is that if neither of us has one, she, like many people, turns to the Internet. Now, I’m not saying that there are no good recipes on the Internet. That would be silly, after all there’s my site :). Just kidding of course. There are lots of really good recipes to be found and a lot of reputable chefs out there willing to share. The problem isn’t a lack of good recipes, it’s the ocean of bad ones. Unfortunately for her, she fell in the ocean three times on this one. So, I made this special just for you Pooh! I love you and hope you and Andy – and everyone else out there love it! Happy Cooking! Ingredients for Torte
Dry Ingredients
1 1/2 c whole wheat pastry flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill)
1/4 c splenda
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Separate Bowl for Butter
9 Tbsp butter (I use Plugra)

Wet Ingredients
3 eggs
1/2 c yogurt – plain, fat free
1 tsp vanilla (I love the Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste – available in the “foodie Shop” on my site)

Sauce Ingredients
1 1/2 c light brown sugar
1/2 c water
4 Tbls butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp milk

3 apples (I used 1 Granny Smith, 1 Gala, and 1 Braeburn) Special Equipment
9 inch Spring-form Pan (order one in the “foodie shop” on my site :D)
candy thermometer (order one in the “foodie shop” on my site :D)

Instructions
*you are going to be kind of going back and forth between the cake, the sauce and peeling/chopping apples, just trust me, the timing is important on this cake-these instructions are how I timed mine – also read this whole recipe before you start, maybe even twice – it’s not hard, there’s just a lot going on :)
1. allow all ingredients to reach room temperature, spray your spring-form pan with cooking spray and cover the outside with foil (to prevent leaks), also get out your saucepan and mixer, and move your oven rack to the bottom
2. in a medium saucepan (mine’s 2 qt), combine your light brown sugar and water for the sauce (don’t turn it on yet)
3. measure all the other sauce ingredients, you can combine the vanilla and vinegar in a small ramekin or bowl, but keep the milk and butter separate (they go in at different times) leave everything by the stove
4. in a small bowl, combine all dry ingredients for the torte
5. in a liquid measuring cup (2 cup size) measure your yogurt, then add the eggs and vanilla to the yogurt and mix it all together
6. in a large mixing bowl, cream your butter (for the Torte) for about 30 seconds
7. beat in 1/2 of your liquid mixture (for the Torte), then 1/2 of the dry ingredient mixture scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula in between additions
8. repeat step 7 using the rest of your dry and wet ingredients, leave that there for a minute
9. turn your sugar and water mixture on med-high heat (the sauce)
10. get out your apples and start peeling, remove the core and slice them into 1/4 inch slices – like you would for apple pie – do this by the stove because you have to baby-sit the temperature of your sugar/water mixture
11. when your sugar/water mixture reaches 240°, remove it from the heat and allow it to set for four minutes *the temperature is very important, if it gets too hot, you’ll have hard candy when it cools
12. put your apple slices in the bottom of your greased spring form pan
13. go back to your torte batter and mix it on medium speed for 2 minutes – this is to develop it’s structure (to give it some air bubbles)
14. go back to your sauce which should have had sat for four minutes, add in the butter and stir to melt it in
15. when the butter is all in, add the vanilla/vinegar and stir to combine
16. add the milk and stir it in- your sauce should have a beautiful, smooth texture-if it looks curdled, it is, either it didn’t reach the right temperature, it didn’t sit long enough, or the vinegar wasn’t stirred all the way in before you added the milk – try again and don’t worry, it’s happened to all of us at some point
17. pour the sauce over the apples
18. spread the torte batter over the apples and sauce using a spatula to smooth it down, put your spring-form pan on a sheet pan (cookie sheet)
19. bake at 350° for 40-50 minutes on the bottom rack of the oven until it’s golden brown on top and a toothpick comes out clean
20. allow to cool for 15 minutes
21. Place a large plate/platter on top to the pan and flip the whole thing over-it will be juicy on the bottom
22. YOU DID IT! :D remove the pan and enjoy-serve warm

*This recipe is best served the day/night it is made. The texture changes when you have it as a left-over!