Hello, friend.
So some exciting news... I’M IN A MAGAZINE!!
That’s right, the rumors are trumors. The blog title does not lie. I am in a magazine!
So rewind to December of last year. I had been following the magazine Local Wolves on Instagram for a while (around October-ish). One day, I was scrolling through my Instagram feed when I came across one of their post with the caption “#newbeginnings”. It was an open call for submissions where you emailed them, answering the question “how were you going to challenge yourself in 2016?”, for a chance to have a potential spot in their user submitted section of the magazine. I thought “Why I can answer that!” So I sat down in front of my laptop and starting writing. I wrote about the blog, my love of food, and my journey with stuttering. I sent the email and walked away from the computer, knowing I was never going to hear anything back.
Fast forward two weeks, and sitting in my inbox was an email titled “Feature Request for Nathaniel Crawford / TermiNatetor Kitchen - March 2016” from Cathrine, the editor and chief of the magazine. I may have screamed a little (or a lot!). She explained how she wanted to do an editorial feature on ME for the magazine. WAT?? I genuinely thought she had messaged the wrong person. She assured me I was the Nathaniel she was reaching out to, and she wanted to write about me, the blog, and my stuttering and how all those worlds coincided. I was so honored, I immediately accepted!
A few weeks later, I got to experience my first photoshoot where I meet the incredible Penelope Martinez. She’s one of the most talented photographers I know and is an all-around awesome person! I was intending for the shoot to take an hour or so, but five hours later and an afternoon of baking, photographing, and eating cake, it became an all day affair and one of my fondest memories ever. Being in this issue of Local Wolves is a huge step in my blogging career. I'm so humbled by the idea that people find my work and story inspiring. I hope to always keep using my journey with food and stuttering to inspire others. If I'm able to impact just one person's outlook or self-worth for the better, then this whole blogging thing is worth it.
Soooo….I’m finally able to say that my feature in the March issue of Local Wolves Magazine is finally out, online now!! You will be able to read my feature (page 29!) as well as all the other features highlighting some amazingly talented creators who are in the issue as well.
The reason for the cake
This is the recipe for my Grandma Crawford’s Cinnamon-Apple Pound Cake. My Grandma Crawford was known for her cakes in her row house neighborhood back in Baltimore. Unfortunately, she passed away when I was little, so I never had the chance to meet and bake with her, but her memory lives forever on in her recipes. Every time I make this cake, I make it as a memento of her. So when thinking of a recipe to do for the magazine, I knew I had to use hers.
This cake is my favorite cake of ALL time. Full of sweetness and hints of autumnal flavors, this cake is what dreams are made of. This cake is dense, moist, and full of cinnamon-vanilla flavors. Taken right out of the oven, the wafting aromas of baked apples, soft and golden and caramelized from the molten sugar, come rolling out. The batter has one secret ingredient, orange juice. The OJ adds moisture and a slight tangy sweetness to the cake. Weird addition, but it is what makes this cake. I added my own touch to my grandma’s recipe by making a salted caramel sauce to be drizzled on top. The sauce created a beautiful balance of sweet and salty. All around, it’s the perfect cake for an after dinner dessert or a mid-Sunday treat with a cup of coffee.
This post is for you Grandma Crawford.
Grandma Crawford’s Cinnamon-Apple Pound
Cake with a Salted Caramel Sauce
Ingredients
Apples
6 Granny Smith apples, peeled &
thinly sliced
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons sugar
Salted
Caramel
1 cup sugar
5 tablespoons butter, cut into slices
½ cup heavy cream
Pinch of sea salt
Cake
Batter
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup oil
½ teaspoon salt
2 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
2 ½ cups sugar
4 eggs
1/3 cup orange juice
3 teaspoons baking powder
Directions
Preheat the oven
to 350 degrees F
For the apples: In a large bowl, mix together the apples,
cinnamon, and sugar. Set aside.
For the salted caramel sauce: In a medium saucepan,
heat up the sugar. Whisk every so often until the sugar begins to brown, clump
up, and dissolves into a caramel color. The longer the sauce cooks, a deeper
and more bitter taste will be achieved. I prefer a lighter, nuttier profile
than the other. This step takes about 5-10 minutes.
Once the sugar has
dissolved completely, remove the sauce off
the heat and let rest for 30 seconds. Carefully whisk in the butter and stir
until combined. Gently add the heavy cream and whisk until combined. Finally,
add a pinch of salt. Let cool, about 10-15 minutes, before transferring to an
air-tight container for storage.
For the cake batter: Add all the ingredients for the batter to
a large bowl and mix to combine until thick
mixture forms. Transfer half of the batter into a greased and floured tube pan. Place one layer of apples over
the batter, then layer with the rest of batter and then top with apples. Bake
for 1 hour 50 minutes to 2 hours or until a toothpick
inserted comes out clean.
