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Caramelized Upside-Down Apple and Almond Cakes

Makes: 
  6-8 cakes depending on the size of your small ramekin
Special tools:
  ramekins, a.k.a. annosvuoka (small, round ceramic 
  dishes), that have about 250ml/1 cup volume
Time: 
  about 2 hours
Source: 
  The Professional Pastry Chef

* 150g or 5oz light brown sugar or raw sugar
* 100g or 7 tablespoons butter, room temperature
* 1 teaspoon cinnamon
* 1 teaspoon nutmeg
* about 6 medium golden delicious or granny smith apples (about 1 apple per ramekin)
* vanilla-almond filling (see below)

1. Grease the inside of the ramekins with butter.
2. Cream the brown sugar, butter, cinnamon and nutmeg until smooth 
and lightened in colour. Divide the brown sugar mixture in half and 
spoon about a tablespoon into the bottom of the ramekins. Place the 
ramekins on a baking sheet and set aside.
3. Peel the apples, trim off the ends, cut in half crosswise, remove 
seeds with a melon baller or the end of the peeler and proceed to 
slice apples crosswise into thin slices. Place one slice into the 
bottom, pressing it down over the brown sugar mixture. Layer more 
slices in the ramekins, filling them almost to the top and filling 
any holes where bits of core were removed. If any slices are too 
wide for your baking dish, gently pare away the excess with the 
peeler. Brush a bit of the brown sugar mixture over the top apple 
slice so it doesn't dry out.
4. Cover ramekins with a sheet of aluminum foil (to keep the 
splatter of the butter to a minimum) and bake at 190C/375F for 
about 30-40 minutes or until the apples have cooked down to about half
of their original volume. Remove from oven and set aside to cool for 
at least 30 minutes to an hour. When cool, take a sharp knife and run 
it around the sides to remove any caramelized sugar. Brush a small 
amount of butter on the sides before adding the almond filling.
5. Place the vanilla-almond filling into a pastry bag with a large 
plain tip. Pipe the filling on top of the baked apples, dividing it 
evenly among the forms. (Use a ziplock bag with a corner cut off if 
you don't have a pastry bag as you want to disturb the apples as 
little as possible when placing the almond filling.)
6. Bake at 190C/375F for about 20 minutes or until the filling is 
just baked through and light golden brown on top; be careful not to 
overbake the cakes, which will cause them to become tough and dry. 
Let the apple cakes cool until you can pick the ramekins up with your 
bare hands.
7. Run a knife around the inside edge of a warm cake and unmold onto 
a plate. Serve with a scoop of vanilla or cinnamon ice cream and 
caramel sauce.

Vanilla-Almond Filling

* 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar or the seeds of 1 vanilla bean added 
  to the granulated sugar
* 55g or 2oz granulated sugar (about 1/2dl)
* 80g or 3oz almond paste
* 80g or 5.5 tablespoons butter, room temperature
* 2 eggs, room temperature
* 80g or 3oz bread flour (about 1.5dl)
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1. Sift the flour with the baking powder. Set aside.
2. Place the vanilla sugar and granulated sugar in a mixer bowl 
with the almond paste. Beat together and add butter gradually to 
avoid getting lumps in the batter. Cream the mixture together for a 
few minutes until it is smooth and light in colour. Add the eggs, 1 
at a time, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add flour mixture to the 
batter on low speed, mixing just until it is incorporated.

Fortified Caramel Sauce

Makes: about 2 cups/4 dl
Time: about 20 minutes

* 225g granulated sugar
* 40ml or 1/4 cup water
* 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
* 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
* 180ml or 3/4 cup heavy cream
* 25g or 1/4 stick butter

1. Place the sugar, water and lemon juice in a small saucepan. 
Bring to a boil. Brush down the sides of the pan with a clean brush 
dipped in water. Add the light corn syrup. Cook over medium heat 
until the syrup reaches a golden amber colour (about 5-10 minutes).
2. Remove the pan from the heat and add the heavy cream carefully. 
Stand back as you pour in the cream, a little at a time while 
stirring constantly, as the mixture will splatter. Stir to mix in 
the cream. If the sauce is not smooth, return the pan to the heat 
and cook, stirring constantly, to melt any lumps.
3. With the pan off the heat, add the butter. Keep stirring until 
the butter has melted and the sauce is smooth.

Good advice from Mark Jason Dominus
First ask yourself `How would I do this without a computer?' Then have the computer do it the same way. (#11929)