Date, Apple & Brown Sugar Meringue Cake

I think this might just be my favourite cake I’ve made to date—no joke! There are definitely a few steps involved, so it might look like a lot at first glance. But don’t worry—if you break it down and prep a few things ahead of time, it all comes together really smoothly. Plus, the end result is totally worth it: layers of flavour and texture that are seriously next level.

To start, get your cake in the oven—that’s step one. While it’s baking away, you’ve got the perfect window to pull together the rest of the elements. Just get everything prepped and ready to go, and when the cake’s cooled, you’ll be all set to assemble.

overhead stock motion making date, apple & brown sugar meringue cake

Date, Apple & Brown Sugar Meringue Cake

Serves: 10-12 slices

Takes: 1.5 hrs + cake cool down 1-2 hours

Date cake ingredients:

• 300g pitted dried dates, roughly chopped

• 1 1/2 cups boiling water 

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 125g butter, at room temp 

• 160g brown sugar

• 3 eggs, at room temp

• 225g self-raising flour 

• 1 tsp ground ginger 

Method: 

Preheat oven to 150 degrees C. Grease and line a 20cm round cake tin with baking paper.

Place chopped dates in a heatproof bowl. Add boiling water and stir in baking soda. Set aside for 20 minutes or until the mixture has cooled slightly.

Transfer to a food processor or blender. Process until smooth. 

Use an electric beater or stand mixer to beat the butter and sugar in a bowl until light and creamy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Fold in the date mixture. Sift over the flour and ground ginger and fold until combined. Spoon batter into the prepared pan.

Bake for 65-70 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let it sit for 20 minutes and turn out onto a wire rack to cool down completely. 

Prepping the elements: 

Do this ahead of time to make assembly quick and easy!

Ginger crumble

(alternatively, you could crush up 2x gingernut biscuits)

If making the ginger crumble:

• 2 tbsp plain flour

• 1 tbsp brown Sugar

• 15g butter, softened

• 1 tsp ground ginger 

Combine all ingredients into a small mixing bowl, and rub the butter into the flour, sugar, and ground ginger until a rough-lumpy-sand texture forms. Spread out onto a lined tray and bake for 10 mins at 160 deg until golden. Leave out onto the tray to cool completely and store in a small container. 

Stewed apple:

• 1 large green apple, peeled and cut into small 0.5-1cm in size pieces

• 1 tbsp maple syrup

• 1/4 tsp cinnamon 

Add apple pieces into a pan with the maple syrup, and cinnamon. Simmer on low to medium heat until the apples start to soften. Remove from heat and set aside until assembly. 

Make right before assembling the cake

Whipped vanilla mascarpone:

• 300g mascarpone

• 2 tbsp icing sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla bean essence

Hand whisk the mascarpone with the icing sugar and vanilla.

Brown sugar meringue frosting:

• 2 egg whites 

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

• 1/4 tsp cream of tartar

• pinch of fine sea salt

Add egg whites, cream of tartar, salt, and sugar into a heat-proof bowl that is larger than a small pot of water. Double boil on low heat whisking until the sugar is melted (test by rubbing between fingers). Once melted use a stand mixer or electric beater to whip on high, adding vanilla 1 minute into whipping. Whip until firm peaks form. 

Assemble the cake:

Spoon the mascarpone over the cake and spread evenly. 

Add stewed apple bits over the top, followed by the ginger crumble.  

Smear the meringue over the cake and torch to toast! My favourite part!

Enjoy!