Move over apple pie, you've got competition now!
I love apple pie. And I love cake. So why have I not ever thought of making an apple cake?! Well I have now! I took a simple cake recipe and added fresh apples and cinnamon and bam! It's delicious. Moist, light, and has that slight crunch from the apples. Trust, you'll want to make this every weekend! I know I do!
Here's how to make it:
Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 TSP baking powder
1/4 TSP fine sea or kosher salt
3 TSP ground cinnamon
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, room temp
2/3 cup + 1 TBS granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 TSP vanilla extract (I love using Madagascar or Mexican vanilla)
2 medium (about 3 1/2 cups chopped) Honeycrisp or Fuji apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-inch cubes NOTE: be sure to use these apples listed or any other baking apple. Otherwise the apples will get mushy.
Baking spray (I use Pam non-stick baking spray)
Powdered sugar
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F and put the oven rack in the middle position.
Grease a 9" cake pan (sides and bottom) with the baking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper (use the pan as a guide to cut a circle to fit the bottom of the pan).
Spray the parchment with more baking spray.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
Using either a stand mixer (use paddle attachment) or handheld, cream the butter and granulated sugar on medium for 3 minutes. This helps to get that super light and fluffy texture for the cake..
Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue mixing. You may need to scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
Add the vanilla extract.
Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined.
Gently fold in the chopped apples using a spatula.
Use the spatula to transfer the batter to your cake pan.
Combine 1 TSP of granulated sugar and 1 TSP ground cinnamon.
Sprinkle the sugar/cinnamon mixture evenly over the cake batter.
Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Let the cake to cool on a cooling rack in the pan. Once cooled, run a knife around the edges of the cake to loosen.
Carefully invert the cake onto the rack, remove the parchment paper, then gently flip the cake over and place right-side-up on a platter or plate.
Use a sieve to dust the top of the cake with the powdered sugar (make sure the cake is cooled before you do this).
Serve the cake at room temp or warm, and enjoy!
Did you make it? Share pics in the comments!