Easy Apple Cake

On those crisp autumn days when you're craving something sweet, this apple cake really hits the spot! It's the perfect combination of crispy crust on the outside and soft, moist cake on the inside!

If you like apple cider, you'll love this apple cake! It's a delicious blend of apple and cinnamon flavors complemented by crunchy ground almonds.

This apple cake is so simple to make. You don't even need to cream butter and sugar!  (Which I love, because I'm a bit of a lazy baker. )

Simply mix everything together into a cake batter, and then slice a large apple and arrange it on top, along with some sugar.  

It couldn't be easier.  

In fact, it's a great cake to make with kids. The steps are easy and it doesn't require a long attention span. Maybe great for husbands too. 😉

When it comes out of the oven, it'll be slightly crisp on the outside but softer on the inside. The tender apples make each bite deliciously rewarding.

If you want to experiment a bit, you can pick choose another fruit besides apples to top off your cake. The only thing you should keep in mind is that the heavier the fruit, the more likely it is that it will sink into the cake during baking. 

Some great combinations to try are blueberry, pear, fig, peach and raspberry.  You could try individual fruits or a combination. The choice is yours!

Where is Apple Cake From?

Traditionally, apple cake comes from England, where there are three traditional types: Dorset, Devon, and Somerset.

It's made with a plain cake topped with apples. Why apples though? The apples help the cake stay moist and delicious.

No one wants a brick-hard cake!

Traditionally, the cake uses crushed nuts. In this recipe, we use almonds, but feel free to branch out and try your own favorite nuts!

How Much Cinnamon is in Apple Cake

It may be a simple question, but it makes all the difference! Have you ever had an apple cake without the cinnamon? You'll just know it's missing something.

Cinnamon gives it that extra kick it needs to have a well rounded out flavor. It's not fall without apple and cinnamon after all.

This recipe only calls for one teaspoon. Because cinnamon is so strong, you don't need to add a lot of it to get the flavor you desire.

Healthy Apple Cake Substitute Ingredients

Cake, healthy? Can you get away with making a cake and calling it healthy? Maybe not, but there are things you can do to make your cake just a little healthier and make you feel just a little less guilty.

You may not have used demerara sugar before, but I highly recommend it! I'm always trying to branch out and find ways to make delicious desserts just a little bit healthier, and demerara sugar is one way to do that.

It's a little healthier than white sugar because it retains some of the vitamins and minerals that white sugar loses in its processing. It has calcium, iron, magnesium, and a couple B vitamins.

Don't go too crazy though! It's not that healthy. But if it helps you eat this cake guilt-free, all the better!

Instead of using eggs, you could use applesauce, mashed banana or even tofu! These healthier apple cake substitute ingredients may change the flavor or texture of the cake, so just be aware of that.

Applesauce is also a great substitute for butter! If you're vegan, you may want to try these butter substitutes: vegetable oil, avocado, pumpkin puree, coconut oil, or prune puree.

And if vegan baking is you're thing, make sure you grab a copy of this free vegan baking cheat sheet too!

How to Make Apple Cake

First, preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (160 degrees Celsius).

Then, grab your 8" springform cake tin and prepare it with butter or lightly flour.

Set up your electric mixer with the paddle attachment. Add the flour, ground almonds, caster sugar, butter, eggs, buttermilk, cinnamon, and vanilla extract to the bowl.

Let it mix until all the ingredients are combined, then pour the mixture into the springform tin.

Then lay out the sliced apples on top and sprinkle the sugar over the apples.

You can play around with different fruits and designs, but remember that the cake has cinnamon in it. While one teaspoon isn't much, it will still add that hint of cinnamon flavor.

Personally, I don't think cinnamon pairs with all fruits. So, you may just want to take the cinnamon into account when you decide what type of fruit to put on top of the cake.

Finally, bake the cake for 45 minutes or until it is cooked through.

This recipe is quick and easy and will leave your guests filled to the brim with fruity goodness!

Let me know what other types of fruit combinations you tried and how they turned out!