Apple Sharlotka

Ok, let's get it right this time.

I got extremely frustrated this weekend. It wasn't fun. We went snowboarding, which I was really excited about, however the snow conditions were a challenge. I struggled, worked my butt off (literally, you should see the definition in my thighs!) but really just ended up getting so mad at how hard it was.

Sound familiar? No, of course it doesn't...

It doesn't matter how old you get, it seems that frustrations will continue to get the best of you. Seriously, when will I grow out of this learning phase? Ever? Please?

Alright, it seems that by the sounds of things I need a time-out. For real. This is me taking a step back, a deep break, and accepting to be in the moment, just for a second.

The facts - I wasn't able to battle through the icy sheets or mogul-piled snow every time. I noticed how tired I got quickly, and how much my legs burned at the end of basically every run.



I did, however, take on a black (icy and steep and tricky-tricky) diamond at least five times and was able to battle my way through it, falling only on the last time I did that run (clearly showing signs of fatigue there). And! I was able to "jump" a mini log (or at least slide over it and get a tiny-mini bit of air) and then land balanced. Sounds to me as though it wasn't a total learning failure.

Ok, so I would lose it and resort to behaviours of a frustrated five-year old who just wants to be good at things, like right now. It was so silly! I wasn't perfect at everything right away. What a surprise!  And the defense chimes in with "you are still learning the sport and that was the first time you had been out this year (second time this season since you went at New Years, which had muuuuch more forgiving conditions)."

I guess the right way to treat these learning situations is acceptance. And the wrong way (my approach) is to let the frustration beat you in the moment. So what's the goal? To mature towards a better approach.

Maturity, please just take over.

Welllll, I guess it's ok. I'm still pretty young...let's hold off on this maturity business for a little while. Let's also try to just get better, more comfortable, and less five-year old behaviour-esque.

Let's make a cake to get it right. And seriously, this is the world's most least maintenance simple, super cake.

Apple Sharlotka Recipe (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

6 large apples
3 eggs
1/2 cup honey (you can substitute for sugar if you would like)
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup kamut flour
Light whipping cream, to finish
(optional) Cinnamon, to finish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a bundt cake pan with parchment paper and set aside.

Peel apples and then chop into medium sized chunks. Place the chopped apples directly into the bundt cake pan.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and honey with an electric mixer until fluffy and thick. Beat in the vanilla, and then stir in the flour with a spoon until just combined. The batter will be very thick.

Pour the batter over the apples in the pan and use a spatula to spread the batter so it covers all exposed apples. Press down the batter so that it fills to the bottom.

Bake for 55-60 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, and then flip the cake out onto another rack. Serve with whipping cream and dust with cinnamon (if desired).
 

Yum, just look at those apples fall out from the cake!