• Turn oven on at 375, pre-heat.
• Dice the 2 apples for the cake and slice the 3 apples for the topping. Put them in a bowl, add confectioner sugar and cinnamon, mix and put them aside, this will give the apples time to get liquid with the sugar/cinnamon mix. Slice the 3 apples for the topping. Keep them separate.
• Mix flour with a pinch of baking powder, put it aside as well.
• Soften the butter and coat the baking dish with it. Put the rest aside for the batter.
• In a big mixing bowl, whisk the eggs for about 2 minutes. add the flour in 1/4 increments and alternate with the liquid in 1/3 increments. Start with adding flour increment first and finish with the flour mixture last.
• Pour slowly the half & half, vanilla extract into the batter. You can keep the hand-held mixer with one hand and pour it with the other hand so the mixing is consistent. Lastly, add the butter, honey, and mix a bit more.
• At this point don't use the electrical mixer. Add the coated apples with confectioner sugar and cinnamon. Add the walnuts and fold everything into the batter.
• Pour onto the baking dish. Place in oven for about 8-10 minutes.
• Get the baking dish out of the oven (close the oven so it doesn't lose heat) and decorate with sliced apples as you desire. Sprinkle the confectioner sugar/cinnamon mix on top evenly. Place back in the oven for another 30 minutes.
• When ready, remove the baking dish from the oven and place on a cooling rack.

Notes

• This recipe is based on using a 9X13 baking dish. Please note that your baking time might vary slightly if the dimensions of the baking dish are different because the cake will be thicker or thinner so it might need a different baking time. Adjust accordingly.
• The cake is not too fluffy, it’s supposed to be that way because of the number of apples inside it. It’s a rather a heavy cake (weight wise).

• Squeeze the chorizos out of their casings and break into bite-size pieces. Place the olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat and cook the chorizo until well browned about 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain the excess grease.
• Cook the pasta in salted boiling water until al dente. Drain through a colander and set aside (do not rinse!).
• Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly butter a 9 X 13 pan. Toss together the pasta, chorizo, and Cotija in the baking dish.
• To prepare the mornay sauce, heat the milk in a small saucepan over medium heat. As soon as the milk starts to steam and tiny bubbles form around the edges of the pan, turn off the heat. Place the butter in a medium saucepan and melt over medium flame. Add the flour and stir with a flat-edge wooden paddle just until the roux begins to take on a light brown color, scraping the bottom to prevent burning, about 3 minutes. Slowly add the milk, chipotle peppers, and cumin, stirring (or whisking) constantly until the sauce thickens enough to evenly coat the back of a spoon–a finger drawn along the back of the spoon should leave a clear swath. Remove from heat and add most of the Lincolnshire Poacher to the sauce–reserve a handful or so for topping–and stir until completely melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Be careful with the salt, as the cheese is already salty.
• Pour sauce over pasta and stir all around to coat. Top with the reserved Cheddar and green scallions. Bake for 25 minutes or until crispy brown on top. Allow the dish to cool for 5 minutes before serving, then garnish with a bit more freshly chopped scallion if desired.