Little compares to the warm and inviting aroma of apple cake! Filled with lots of spices, brown sugar, and even the juice from the apples themselves, this is probably one of my ultimate favorite cakes, whether it happens to be apple season or not.
Apple Cake, a Cake for All Seasons!
I love it when the inspiration to whip up something deliciously sweet and fragrant comes out of sheer practicality and the need to de-clutter the fridge!
When I was recently looking to clean out my fruit drawer, I came across a big handful of gala apples that were not necessarily as crisp and fresh as I'd prefer as a snack; but they were perfect for use in a moist, delicious apple cake.
And because you'll never need to prod me too much to get me into my kitchen to bake a cake (my personal weakness, and my way of expressing my love!), I was only too happy to oblige and put these apples to good use.
The buttery aroma is fantastic, and somehow, one slice never seems to be enough!
For the Best Apple Cake, You Need the Juice Too!
That combination of apples and spice baking away in a cake (or in apple hushpuppies, or in an apple snickerdoodle dessert) always reminds me a bit of an apple orchard or “U-Pick” farm that fries up some of those delectable and irresistible apple donuts or fritters on the weekends.
Don't you love all those apple goodies...?
It's one of the coziest scents that I can think of, one that contains the darker, more caramel nuances with the combination of butter, brown sugar, cider and cinnamon—it smells like fall!
And so, for my cozy apple cake recipe, I adore using fresh-pressed apple juice in the actual batter of the cake, as it provides extra flavor and a sweet, soft crumb; and I get this juice directly from the apples that I'm using in the cake.
A portion of the juice is added to the batter, and a portion is later used as a light “syrup” that's poured over top of the baked cake, while it's still warm, so that it gets absorbs for extra flavor and moisture.
Talk about “fresh-pressed” juiciness at its best!
Here's how I make my apple cake:
- I preheat my oven to 350°, and spray my bundt cake pan with cooking spray.
- Using two bowls, I grate my apples on a box grater placing my grated apples into one of the bowls; then, I take handfuls of my grated apples, and squeeze them tightly over the other bowl to get all the juice out of them. Then I separate out two portions of the juice, one for the batter and one for the “syrup” at the end.
- Next, I whisk together my dry ingredients in a large bowl, followed by my wet ingredients.
- When ready, I add about ⅓ of my dry ingredients at a time into my wet ingredients and fold those in; I finish by folding in my grated apples along with about 6 tablespoons of the apple juice.
- I pour my batter into my cake pan, and bake for about 50-55 minutes, or until the cake is baked through.
- While the cake bakes, I prep my quick “syrup” by adding the rest of the apple juice, plus a touch of brown sugar, to a small sauce pan; I allow it to simmer for a few minutes until it slightly reduces and thickens, then set it aside.
- Once the cake is baked and finally turned out of the pan, I slowly pour the apple “syrup” over it and allow that to soak in.
- When the cake is completely cooled, I pour over my finishing touch, my sour cream drizzle!
This cake is unbelievably moist and delicious, and let me tell you, that “Country Apple Pie” scented candle in my kitchen has nothing on the aroma of this apple cake!
Tips and Tidbits for Apple Cake:
- "Them apples": I like to uses gala apples for this cake, as they're not super expensive and have lots of very “apple-y” flavor. Plus, they've typically got a good amount of juice in them, which is perfect for this recipe.
- Aromatic spices: Because I really want that apple flavor to shine in this apple cake recipe, I tend to stick to only a hint of ground cinnamon in the batter. But if you like a lot of spice, you can always add in more cinnamon than what my recipe calls for. You can even add a few others: all-spice, a touch of nutmeg, perhaps a hint of cardamom...
- Cake pans: With the bundt pan I use, it typically takes about 50-55 minutes to bake the cake. You could also use a 9x13” rectangular pan, and then it would take roughly 38-40 minutes, or two 9” can pans, which would take closer to 24-26 minutes. (These are rough times for the other pans—make sure to check as you bake.)
- Butter, for aroma: Melted, unsalted butter is my preferred fat in this apple cake—the flavor and aroma is wonderful! However, you can substitute vegetable oil, if you prefer.
Feast your eyes on these, or just jump to the recipe:
Recipe
Apple Cake
by Ingrid Beer
Category: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Yield: Serves 12
Nutrition Info: 459 calories
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 50 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 10 minutes
Apple Cake Ingredients:
• 7 medium-small gala apples, unpeeled
• 2 ½ cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 ¼ cup brown sugar, plus 2 tablespoons, divided use
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup melted unsalted butter, slightly cooled
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts (optional garnish)
Sour Cream Drizzle Ingredients:
• 4 ½ tablespoons sour cream
• 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
-Prepare the cake: preheat the oven to 350°, and mist a bundt pan, or similar style cake pan, with cooking spray.
-Prepare two bowls, and begin by grating the unpeeled gala apples (using a box grater) onto a work surface; then, take a handfuls of the grated apples, and squeeze as much of the juice out of them into one of the bowls as possible, and place the squeezed-out apples into the other bowl; repeat the process until all the grated apples have been squeezed of their juice, and set them aside for a moment.
-Strain the squeezed-out juice, and set it aside for a moment. (You will need a total of ¾ cup of juice for the recipe, so if your apples yield more than that, feel free to drink the rest!)
-In a bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and ground cinnamon, and whisk to aerate and blend; set aside for a moment.
-To a large bowl, add the 1 ¼ cups brown sugar, the granulated sugar, the eggs and the vanilla, and with a hand mixer, beat those ingredients on low for about 2 minutes until fluffy; next, add in the melted butter, and continue to mix for another 30 seconds or so, until incorporated.
-To the sugar/egg/butter mixture, add about ⅓ of the flour mixture, and carefully mix that until incorporated; add another ⅓, and mix to incorporate, then the final ⅓ and again mix to incorporate well.
-Finally, add the grated apples into the batter along with about 6 tablespoons (¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons) of the reserved apple juice squeezed from the grated apples, and fold that in with a spatula until well blended.
-Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan, and bake for about 50-55 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean; allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 5-10 minutes.
-While the cake bakes, prepare your sour cream drizzle: in a small bowl, carefully combine the sour cream and the powdered sugar with a whisk until smooth, adding 1-2 tablespoons of water to reach your desired consistency; keep in fridge until ready to glaze your cake.
-Prepare your apple “syrup”: combine the remainder of the reserved apple juice (roughly ½ cup) with the remaining 2 tablespoons of brown sugar in a small sauce pan, and allow it to very gently simmer for a few minutes until glossy and reduced by almost half.
-Once the cake is baked and has slightly cooled in the pan for about 15 minutes, carefully turn it out onto a wire rack, and poke a few holes with the wooden skewer into the top of it; pour the apple syrup/reduction over the turned-out cake very slowly, allowing it to absorb into the cake, but don't worry if it doesn't completely absorb—it will continue to do so as the cake cools.
-Once the cake is completely cooled, pour over the sour cream drizzle, allow to set, and serve!
Interested in more tasty cakes recipes? Check out this Chinese Five Spice Cake, this Lemon Bundt Cake, or this Cherry-Almond Winter Cake!
Cook’s Note: This post was originally published in 2013, and has been updated with even more love!
Liz
Thank you for the nice recipe.
Dina
looks like a perfect fall cake!
Meg
I made this last weekend and I have to tell you, it was absolutely delicious. And so pretty!! The recipe reminded me of my Great-Grandmother's Orange Torte (adding the glaze to the still-warm cake). Thank you!
The Cozy Apron
Meg, I'm thrilled to hear that! Isn't it just so comforting and fragrant for this time of year? Glad this recipe was enjoyed, and I appreciate you coming by to share that with me!
Ashlee
I just made this cake tonight as a birthday cake for my mother in law (she loves apple cider). Everyone loved it! This cake is absolutely amazing! Thank you so much for the delicious recipe!
The Cozy Apron
Ashlee, what a neat idea for a birthday cake! So glad you all enjoyed, and thanks for taking a moment to let me know how it turned out!
Beth
Is there apple cider in the recipe?
The Cozy Apron
Hi Beth! Yes, there is, but you're essentially making it (or "pressing" it) yourself. In the recipe instructions I call for squeezing out the grated apples of all their juice (or cider), and that is what is used both in the batter and after the cake is baked as a reduction that gets poured into it while still warm.
Cara
Would you be able to sub the pressed cider for store cider and just food process some apple if you still wanted the fresh apple bits?
Please advise
The Cozy Apron
Hi Cara, you could certainly use store bought cider, but my process just simply eliminates the need for it (for those who don't have any) since you just juice the apples already going into the cake. But certainly—you could easily do that, as well. Hope you enjoy!
sahla
I made this cake and it is absolutely amazing. Thank you. Do you know if I can freeze it?
The Cozy Apron
Hi Sahla, so glad you enjoyed this! Yes, you can freeze it; I often do that, myself, with left over cake (when there is some, that is! 🙂 ) Just wrap it well in plastic wrap, a couple of layers, and freeze. Thaw in fridge for a day or so when ready to enjoy again.
Emily
This cake looks amazing! Just wondering if it works well in 8" cake pans instead of the bundt pan? Please let me know asap. I need to make it today! Thanks so much!!
The Cozy Apron
Hi Emily, I haven't made it in the cake pans, but frankly, I don't see why you couldn't. (If you have the bundt pan, I think that's best because I don't use frosting, only a glaze drizzled over top.) But if you choose to use the pans, I would just cut the baking time in half (roughly), checking the centers with a toothpick. Hope you enjoy, either form you prepare them in!
Kelly
I have seen 2 different sizes of gala apples. I am wondering if you used the small galas or the larger ones? About how much apples should I have after they are grated? Looks delicious!!
The Cozy Apron
Hi Kelly! I used the galas that were medium size, not those huge, ginormous ones, lol! Just 7 medium sized ones. (Unfortunately, I don't know how much grated apple that would equate to—I just go by amount of apples.) Hope you try this recipe out, and enjoy! 😉
Carol Miller
Best cake I have ever tasted!! Made one last year for my brother's birthday. He loved it. I will surprise him in November & make another for his B.D. I am also making for a boyfriend I want to impress. My cake of choice!
Thanks so much for posting this recipe.
The Cozy Apron
Hi Carol, now you're even making me crave it, lol! 😉 So excited that you are enjoying this cake so much—I"m honored that you say it's the best cake you've ever tasted! My pleasure to share it with you, and thank you for your comments!
Molly
Can Cortlands be used instead of Gala apples?
The Cozy Apron
Hi Molly, you can certainly use whatever variety that you prefer—I like the Gala's since they're nice and naturally sweet, and very "apple-y".
Sue Basta
Hi, Ingrid-- OK, now I know autumn is truly coming. (And the Ohio apple harvest is almost here, too!) Out of curiosity, have you ever used a food procesdor to grate the apples? I guess that would be more like shredded than grated (using my attachment) so you probably would not get as much juice as using a hand grater? Thanks!
The Cozy Apron
Hi Sue,
I have not tried that, but I honestly don't see why you couldn't go that route.
As long as you can gather up those apples and be able to squeeze them out by hand of their juice, you should be fine. (It'll save you a bit of time, for sure.)
Because I haven't used this method, I'm not sure how "fine" the shred is with a processor—I tend to like a bit of texture on the apple because I can actually experience/taste it in the cake, so I like the larger holes on the box grater; but if the processor still allows for some texture in the shreds, that may be a good way to go.
Either way, I hope you enjoy the cake! 🙂
Erika
The cake is fantastic and just screams of fall and is a wonderful departure from the pumpkin spice everything that is the norm this time of year. I used McIntosh apples and added a little nutmeg and it came out beautifully. The only bad thing is that it is so good I get upset because I have to stop eating it! LOL! I seriously have to give it away or I will eat the entire thing. I goofed and added all of the brown sugar to the cake but it was no big deal. I also left the cake in the pan and poured the glaze in so as to reduce the chance for me to make a mess. I am kind of a hurricane in the kitchen and didn't want to chance having sticky syrup running all over my counter tops (and inevitable the floor) lol. We ate it with Dulce de Leche ice cream. Sinful!
The Cozy Apron
Hey Erika, thanks so much for sharing your experience!
I'm thrilled you enjoyed the cake so much—it's easily our favorite fall cake, and both my husband and I have to stop ourselves from eating the whole thing when it's just the two of us here at home. (Our trick is we end up freezing about half of it, but that doesn't always work, because we'll just gently "nuke" it in the microwave when we're wanting more, lol!)
Wonderful accompaniment, the Dulce de Leche ice cream...talk about sinful! 😉
Sue Basta
Ingrid-- I made this cake before I saw your reply to me here, so I had hand-grated the apples using the smaller holes on the grater over waxed paper. Needless to say, I couldn't squeeze out the juice by hand, but I just put all of the "gratings" in a fine sieve/strainer and pressed out the juice into a bowl with a spoon. Cake came out great (and just like your photo!), very moist, and we both loved it as our wedding anniversary dinner dessert. Now, the next time I make this I think I will use the larger grater holes just to compare the outcomes!
The Cozy Apron
Sue, thank you so much for commenting on your process & your experience with the cake!
So very happy that you enjoyed it, and found it to be moist and flavorful. (And I particularly appreciate that it was a little part of your special day, your anniversary! ♥️ )
Thank you so much for sharing!