Apples

Using a good-quality olive oil makes a difference in this cake, which is dense and moist and just the right amount of sweet.

That it can be served minutes out of the oven makes this the perfect last-minute sweet.

Spicy apple pie is my downfall. Tart, snappy apples like Granny Smith and Greening stand up to the classic pie spices. Fresh ginger and lemon up the zing that is essential for every apple pie.

Here, we reduce sugar and vinegar with apple cores, for delicious, intensely-concentrated essence of fall.