Aunt Sally's Old-Fashioned Apple Cake for Rosh Hashanah

Rosh Hashanah is coming, apples are in season, and thoughts turn to the familiar. Friends tell me this tried and true, really simple cake reminds them of the one their bubbe or tante used to make.

Aunt Sally's Apple Cake
Serves 9

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 medium McIntosh apples, peeled
and thinly sliced
1/2 cup apricot jam
Juice of 1/2 lemon
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking
pan.
2. Stir the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a
bowl and set aside.
3. Combine the apple slices, jam, and lemon juice in a bowl
and set aside.
4. Beat the eggs well with an electric mixer at medium
speed. Gradually add the sugar, beating until light and fluffy, about 2
minutes, followed by the oil and vanilla, scraping the bowl several times.
Reduce the speed to low and blend in the flour mixture.
5. Spread half the batter evenly into the prepared pan and
cover with the apple mixture. Top with the remaining batter and bake on the
center oven rack until golden, about 1 hour. Cool the cake completely in the
pan set on a wire rack. Cut into squares and serve.