For batter
6 apples
4 ounces powdered sugar
1 ounce butter
2 lemons
essence of cloves
4 egg yolks

For topping
breadcrumbs

Peel six or eight good-sized apples, and take out the cores; stew in water until soft, then put in a basin and well mash, and add four ounces of powdered sugar, one ounce of fresh butter, the grated rind of two lemons, the juice of one, and a teaspoonful of essence of cloves.

Mix well with four well-beaten yolks of eggs, and put in a buttered tin in a slow oven; sprinkle with breadcrumbs, and bake for twenty minutes.

The recipe in this entry was taken from "Italian Recipes for Food Reformers" translated and arranged by Maria Gironci. The book was published in London by George Bell and Sons in 1905. Most of Maria Gironci's recipes in "Italian Recipes for Food Reformers" were originally published in the author's first book, titled, "Recipes of Italian Cookery." The second edition of this cookbook was published in 1892 in London by Gaskill & Webb. "Italian Recipes for Food Reformers" caters to vegetarians, omitting all meat-based dishes. Unfortunately, Maria Gironci's wonderful cookbooks are not yet available at www.archive.org, though reprints are available through reputable publishers. According to the Library of Congress all books published before 1923 are in the public domain.... P.S. While this recipe is called a cake, in reality, it comes closer to a pie or a pudding than it does to what is known thought of as a cake. It's possible that at the turn of the last century the word, cake, encompassed a wide variety of sweets. Actually, this particular recipe is easy to do, and quite pleasant to the palate. Photo and notes: Mary Melfi.

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