Soak the cranberries in the hot apple cider and set aside.

Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg and cloves in a large bowl.

Add the butter and mix using a pastry blender or 2 knives, making a slicing motion through the mixture. Add the brown sugar and egg and mix well.

Gradually add the milk until you have a smooth, thick batter. Add the apples and cranberries and combine.

Pour the batter into a well-greased apple-shaped pan (I purchased mine from Williams Sonoma). Smooth the surface and bake at 350F (176C) for 40 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Slice a thin layer off the flat sides of the cakes, then stack them to create an apple. Pipe on some black icing as the stem and green icing as the leaf and enjoy! You can serve it with some custard to make it extra yummy!