Spiced Apple Cake
Easy Spiced apple cake perfect for any occasion.
Servings 8 portions
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2 (2) apples - grated, skin on - note 1
- 250 g (2 cups) flour - all purpose - note 2
- 12 g (3 teaspoon) baking powder
- 4 g (1 teaspoon) baking soda
- 2 g (1 teaspoon) cinnamon - powder
- 2 g (1 teaspoon) nutmeg - powder - note 3
- 2 g (½ teaspoon) salt - fine
- 100 g (¾ cups) flaked almonds - note 4
- 120 g (½ cups) oil - note 5
- 200 g (4 whole) eggs - 4 large eggs - note 6
- 225 g (1 cups) brown sugar - note 7
- 100 g (⅖ cups) apple sauce - note 8
For the apple srup
- 250 grams (1 cups) apple juice
- 25 grams (1 ½ tablespoon) lemon juice
- 26 grams (2 tablespoon) brown sugar
Instructions
Making the Cake
- Prepare the oven and tin — Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F). Lightly butter a 20–22cm springform cake tin and line the base with parchment paper.
- Dry ingredients — Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Sift together plain flour, baking powder, and baking soda to keep the crumb light and even.
- Wet ingredients — Add the wet ingredients: Stir in the sugar, applesauce, and oil until just combined, no need to overmix. Fold in the grated fresh apples last.
- Bake the cake — Pour the batter into the prepared tin, level the top, and bake for around 45–50 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Adding the syrup
- Make the syrup — In a small saucepan, gently heat the sugar, apple juice and lemon juice until the sugar has fully dissolved. Let it simmer for a minute, then remove from the heat.
- Poke holes in the cake — While the cake is still warm in the tin, use a skewer or toothpick to poke small holes all over the top. This helps the syrup soak in evenly.
- Pour over the syrup — Slowly spoon or pour the warm syrup over the cake, letting it seep into the sponge. It should absorb fully without pooling.
- Cool and finish — Let the cake cool completely in the tin before releasing it. Once cool, dust lightly with icing sugar just before serving.
Notes
- You can peel the apple if you want, or cut it with a knife into chunkier slices. Cubes or wedges won't work, as it's too heavy for the cake batter to hold. You can also substitute the apple for pear, carrot, pumpkin, or beetroot to name a few.
- You can use gluten-free cake flour instead, or substitute it for almond flour to make the cake gluten-free.
- Freshly grated nutmeg will have more flavor than pre-ground packaged nutmeg.
- You can add any other nut or seed instead of almonds. Walnuts, pumpkin seeds, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds and pistachios all work well. With the nuts, make sure to chop them roughly into smaller pieces.
- You can use any fat. Oil gives the fluffiest texture, while butter makes it richer but slightly more crumbly in texture. You can use any oil. Neutral like sunflower or extra virgin for an interesting taste.
- Most baking recipes call for large eggs. This recipe uses whole eggs. An egg yolk weighs 20 grams and the white 30 grams. If using pasteurized whole egg, use the gram measurements of 50 grams per egg. 200 grams egg = 4 whole eggs.
- I use brown sugar because it helps keep the cake moister and also adds some warming molasses notes that pair well with the spices. Feel free to use regular white sugar instead. You can also make it sugar-free by using your preferred sweetener instead. Just make sure to add it to taste.
- Applesauce keeps the cake moist and boosts the apple flavor. Feel free to substitute for yogurt, sour cream, or any other fruit or vegetable purée.
- Store airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days. For longer storage, this cake can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Serving: 130g Calories: 492kcal Carbohydrates: 63g Protein: 9g Fat: 24g Saturated Fat: 2g Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g Monounsaturated Fat: 14g Trans Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 93mg Sodium: 438mg Potassium: 254mg Fiber: 4g Sugar: 34g Vitamin A: 164IU Vitamin C: 2mg Calcium: 169mg Iron: 3mg
Keywords:apple cake with oil, spiced apple cake
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