Apple Spice Cake
This soft, one layer Apple Spice Cake is loaded with fresh apples, fall spices, and is topped with the best cream cheese frosting.
EQUIPMENT
- cake pan - 8 inch
INGREDIENTS
Apple Spice Cake
- 1 Granny Smith apple - room temperature, peeled, half coarsely grated and half finely diced in 1/2 inch chunks
- 1 Honeycrisp apple - room temperature, peeled, half coarsely grated and half finely diced in 1/2 inch chunks
- 1 cup all-purpose flour - measure using spoon and level method
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ cup unsalted butter - melted, and slightly cooled
- 1 cup light brown sugar - very lightly packed
- 1 egg - room temperature
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese - full fat, softened to room temperature
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter - softened to room temperature
- 1½ cup powdered sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- dried apple slices - * optional garnish
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350 °F. Prepare an 8 inch cake pan with a round of parchment paper and non-stick cooking spray
- In a small bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and ground nutmeg. Set aside.
- Prepare the apples by washing and peeling them. Coarsely grate half of each apple, squeeze out excess juice and place in a bowl. Dice the remaining halves of each apple in 1/2 inch chunks and place in same bowl as the grated apple. Add 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour, toss together, and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the melted unsalted butter and brown sugar. Add the egg and whisk until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients, and fold a few times with a spatula. Pour in the flour-coated apples and fold together until just combined. Do not overmix the cake batter.
- Pour cake batter into the prepared 8 inch cake pan, and smooth out until distributed. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick test comes out with few crumbs.
- Allow the cake to cool for 20 minutes before inverting onto cake plate. Then allow it to cool completely before frosting and decorating.
- Using a whisk, beat together the softened cream cheese and unsalted butter until smooth and light in texture. Add the powdered sugar, salt, and continue beating until fully incorporated.
- Spread the cream cheese frosting over top of the completely cooled cake. and top with dried apple slices.
- Cut the Apple Spice Cake into 8 equal slices and serve!
RECIPE NOTES
TYPES OF APPLES TO USE - Firm apples are the best. Other sweet apples are Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, Fuji, and Jazz apples. The best tart apple is the Granny Smith Apple, so I do not recommend using a different variety.
DOUBLE THIS RECIPE TO MAKE A LAYER CAKE - For a larger cake, hit the 2x button above to automatically double or triple the measurements. Don't forget to prep two, 8 inch cake pans.
OTHER FUN TOPPINGS - Swap the cream cheese frosting for my 3 Ingredient Caramel Sauce, a dusting of powdered sugar, a dollop of whipped cream, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
STORING INFORMATION
- Room temperature, in an airtight container, for up to 3 days.
- Refrigerated, in an airtight container, for up to 7 days.
- Frozen, slices wrapped in plastic wrap and placed in a sealable plastic bag, for up to 3 months.
Metric conversions are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.
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