Ingredients
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 lb soft, ripe apricot, halved and pitted
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 4 egg
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Place a skillet over medium heat and melt 5 tablespoons of the butter. As the butter melts, lift and turn the pan to coat the sides. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of the sugar evenly over the bottom of the pan. Place the apricots, skin sides down, in the pan, arranging them in concentric circles. Remove the pan from the heat.
In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Separate the eggs, putting the whites into a large bowl and the yolks into a smaller one. In a small pan over a medium heat, melt the remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Whisk it into the egg yolks. With a handheld mixer set on medium speed or with the whisk, beat the egg whites just until they form firm peaks. Do not overbeat. Fold the remaining 3/4 cup sugar into the egg whites, about 1/4 cup at a time. Then very slowly fold in the egg yolk mixture, about one-fourth at a time. Finally, fold in the flour mixture, about 1/4 cup at a time. Pour the batter over the apricots and spread to cover them evenly.
Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes. Let the cake stand in the pan for at least 10 minutes. Run a knife around the inside of the pan. Invert a large plate over the pan. Firmly holding both the plate and the pan, turn them over. Lift off the pan. Serve the cake warm or at room temperature, cut into wedges.
Recipe courtesy of At the Farmers’ Market with Kids: Recipes and Projects for Little Hands by Leslie Jonath & Ethel Brennan/Chronicle Books, 2012.
