Baked Apple and Cranberry Buckle

1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
6 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled and thinly sliced (about 12 cups)
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
1 cup sweetened dried cranberries
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 tsp. kosher salt, divided
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups whole milk
Vanilla ice cream, for serving


Preheat oven to 350°, with rack in center of oven. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a large Dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot over medium. Add sliced apples, brown sugar, cranberries, cinnamon and 1 teaspoon salt; cook, stirring often, until apples have softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and set aside.

Whisk flour, granulated sugar, rosemary, baking powder, vanilla and remaining 2 teaspoons salt in a large bowl until combined. Whisk in milk.
Melt remaining 1/2 cup butter in a 13x9-inch cake pan in oven, about 4 minutes. Remove from oven.

Pour batter into center of cake pan; let batter spread naturally to cover bottom of pan. Spoon most of the fruit mixture (about 7 cups) with juices into batter, leaving some batter visible in between clumps of fruit. Bake in oven until set and golden brown, about 1 hour.

Remove from oven, and top with remaining fruit mixture with juices. Serve immediately with ice cream.

Quick tip! To quickly soften clumpy brown sugar, place it in a microwave-safe bowl and cover tightly with a damp paper towel. Microwave for 30 seconds, and fluff with a fork.
Serves: 12
Active time: 25 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 25 minutes