Twenty years ago, before the Fairmont bought the Sonoma Mission Inn, I was the head line cook at the
The Big 3 restaurant. The hotel general manager went on vacation to Oregon and brought back this recipe for Apple Oat Cakes. We made it and it was wonderful, but only on the first day. The second day the cakes were flat, did not rise and were pretty gummy - not high end restaurant fare. As I sped home through the vineyards to Berkeley I thought back to my days in the Culinary Arts Department at
Contra Costa College and the answer came to me. Driving with the top off is good for things like that.
It was the double acting baking powder! It acts one when it gets wet and once when it gets hot. Add it to a hot, wet batter and its done for. So, the next day we made a batch of Apple Oat Cake, but I left out the baking soda and baking powder. The next morning I mixed them in and made a test batch. They were as god as the first time, but would they hold up? The next morning we made another test batch and success! The Sous Chef made some house made crème fraîche and we were in business.
They were so popular that our head waitress, Patsy, said that a number of her customers wanted the recipe. So, with management's permission I scaled down the 5 gallon recipe to a home sized batch. A few years ago after we moved I found the recipe in a box and I took out the wheat germ and added shelled hemp seed to it instead.
I have added this to the
Hemp Report Recipe Index (password required for login). For those of you who have not registered as a Hemp Report subscriber here is the recipe:
Ingredients: 1 1/3 cups water (11 oz)
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter (3 oz)
3/4 tsp. vanilla
3/4 tsp. cinnamon, ground
3/4 tsp. nutmeg, ground
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup medium brown sugar (6 oz)
1/3 cup shelled hemp seed (1 1/2 oz)
1 cup rolled oats (3 1/2 oz)
1 large apple, peeled, cored, and grated (5 oz finished weight) like Granny Smith
2 large eggs (4 oz)
1 cup all purpose flour (4 1/2 oz)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
Method: In a medium saucepan bring to a boil:
1 1/3 cups water (11 oz)
Reduce heat to low an add:
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter (3 oz) melted
3/4 tsp. vanilla
3/4 tsp. cinnamon, ground
3/4 tsp. nutmeg, ground
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup medium brown sugar (6 oz)
Whisk in:
1/3 cup shelled hemp seed (1 1/2 oz)
1 cup rolled oats (3 1/2 oz)
Cover and remove from heat and let sit for 20 minutes.
Mix in one by one:
1 large apple, peeled, cored, and grated (5 oz finished weight)
2 large eggs (4 oz)
1 cup all purpose flour (4 1/2 oz)
Put in a container and refrigerate overnight.
The next morning stir in:
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
And thin if necessary with 1-3 tablespoons of water.
To cook: Ladle a little more than a quarter of a cup of batter onto a lightly oiled griddle at 350° F until the bubbles stay open on the top and the bottom is medium brown. You don't want the cakes to be wider than your pancake turner. Turn carefully and cook until brown on bottom and done through. Serve with sour cream, crème fraîche or Canadian maple syrup. Yields about twenty 3" cakes.
Notes: Lightly wipe griddle with oil every time to prevent sticking.
