A deliciously easy Cinnamon Apple Cake made from scratch. This soft and tender Apple Cake is packed with fresh apples and features a crunchy cinnamon topping and a drizzle of sweet frosting.
Apple-licious 🍎
Can we take a moment to talk about the match made in heaven that is apple and cinnamon? This terrifically tender Cinnamon Apple Cake is my new fave.
It’s soft, it’s sweet and it’s jam-packed with fresh, juicy apples. The final touch is a sprinkling of sugary cinnamon and a sweet milk glaze.
Can I just say that I never thought a Cinnamon Apple Cake could taste so good. I baked quite a few cakes to get this recipe JUST right and when I finally landed on the winning recipe, I was beyond excited.
One bite of this soft and fluffy masterpiece and I was fist-pumping the air. After many failed Apple Cinnamon Cakes, I instantly knew this one was the winner. Of course, I had to have a few more slices just to be oh-so-sure.
When I first attempted this cake, I started by using oil as the main fat. This is because oil tends to add moisture to baked goods, like in my Olive Oil Brownies or my Pistachio Cake. I love using oil in cakes.
The first cake was lovely and soft and the taste was on point. But the edges were a little dry for my liking. So I moved on to see if butter would work better, while also slightly altering the amount of flour and sugar.
Let’s just say, it didn’t. The first butter version used melted butter and the cake was heavy, dense and not great. To add lightness and get back closer to the original version, I tried creaming the butter and sugar, like I do in my Baked Cinnamon Sugar Donut recipe. It was better, but still nothing rivalled the oil version.
So finally, I returned to oil, but used a little less flour and added yoghurt to ensure the cake was soft, moist and never dry. It was crowned the WINNER.
What you have here is a melt-in-your-mouth cake that’s studded with fresh apples. It boasts a sugar cinnamon crumble, that once baked, becomes crisp and flavourful.
The cinnamon topping blends perfectly with the juicy, chunks of apple. Then, just because we can, we drizzle the entire cake with a two ingredient sweet sugar glaze. It’s pure perfection.
Tips for making Apple Cake
- This Cinnamon Apple Cake is incredibly easy to make. You only need a bowl and spoon – no need for an electric mixer.
- You can use any kind of apple you like, I use red Royal Gala apples. You’ll need to peel and then chop your apple into roughly 1/2 inch squares – discarding the core.
- Mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredient until combined – try not to over mix.
- The crumble is made using sugar and cinnamon. Mix together using melted butter until it clumps like sand. Sprinkle over the top of your cake batter – no need to be perfect here.
- Bake until golden and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- The final touch? Drizzle over the sweet sugar glaze and serve!
Watch how to make it
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Let’s Bake
Cinnamon Apple Cake
A tender Cinnamon Apple Cake drizzled with a milk glaze.
Ingredients
Apple cake
- 210 grams (1 and 1/2 cups) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 150 grams (3/4 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 1 cup (approximately 1 large) red apple, peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 120 ml (1/2 cup) vegetable oil
- 120 ml (1/2 cup) Greek yogurt
Cinnamon topping
- 50 grams (1/4 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
Sugar glaze
- 30 grams (1/4 cup) icing sugar or powdered sugar, sifted
- 1–2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Grease and line an 8-inch round cake pan with baking or parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Add chopped apple and stir briefly to combine.
- In a separate bowl, add eggs, vanilla, oil and yoghurt. Whisk briefly just to break up the egg yolks.
- Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and gently mix with a wooden spoon until combined – but be careful not to over mix. Spoon batter into prepared tin.
- To make cinnamon topping, combine cinnamon, sugar and butter. Mix together until lumpy and wet. Sprinkle over cake batter.
- Bake cake for approximately 30-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Transfer cake to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the glaze, mix together sugar and 1 tablespoon of milk. Stir until smooth. If the glaze is too thick, add an extra tablespoon of milk. Drizzle glaze all over the cake.
Julia Merkel says
Easy and delicious
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that!
Iman Helmy says
Thank you for the recipe.
I made it. It was very tasty but crumbled. Did I make something wrong?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Iman, do you mean the cake itself crumbled? It should have a lovely and light crumb. If you didn’t change any ingredients perhaps it was over baked?
Iman Helmy says
Will try again and make sure it’s not over cooked. Thanks a lot
Gail says
I LOVE THIS CINNAMON APPLE CAKE. I would like to know if I do this recipe with blueberries?
Jessica Holmes says
Yes you definitely could Gail!
Alissa says
AMAZING recipe!! I rebelled a bit and added a bit of flour to the topping to make it like streusel and it turned out perfect. I also added 1 more cup of apples since I had extra. The cake was moist, perfectly balanced and just delicious. Will definitely make again.
Jessica Holmes says
So good!!
Ramita says
Your recipes are always foolproof and a big hit with my friends and family.
Had a last minute dinner at home and made the cinnamon apple cake.
It was loved by all!
Thank you!
Jessica Holmes says
Yay! This makes me so happy!
Jeanne Ruoff says
I don’t have any yogurt. Can I use sour cream instead? If so, same measurements? Thanks!!
Jessica Holmes says
Yes you can! And same measurements will work fine!
Ana Gomea says
Hi Jessica,
I love this cake to the moon and back!❤️❤️❤️
Is there any way to replace the yoghurt on this recipe?
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so happy to hear that! Sour cream would be the next best thing!
David Martin says
Terrific. I am a clutz at cooking but this was dead easy and quick , instructions very clear and mechanics all so simple and easy to do. Mixed it all up and shoved it in the oven when it was on for someone else doing something else. Came out perfect. I must sign up for more of your recipes.
Jessica Holmes says
Yay! Love hearing that David!
Anne says
The best moist and soo yummy and easy to make , never fails
Jessica Holmes says
Yay!
Emilia says
Made this tonight and it was a huge hit! Super moist and a nice crunchy top. Will definitely be making again. Thanks for the recipe!
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that!
Carol says
I have made this recipe, 5 to 6 times. It is my favorite cake. Easy, delicious, always comes out the same. Everyone that tastes it, wants the recipe. Thank you so much for a dynamite cake.
Jessica Holmes says
Brilliant! Love hearing that Carol!
Izabel says
This is the best ever apple cake recipe. It’s easy to make and the texture and flavor is awesome. It’s perfect. Everyone loved it. I’ll make it again and again as this is the new favorite in our family. I have used medium eggs so I reduced the ingredients by 10-15% and used a 20cm round loose bottom cake tin.
Thank you for posting this recipe.
Jessica Holmes says
Yay! So happy to hear that Izabel!
Lara says
Made this . Very simple, from ingredients in the cupboard. Extremely moist and tasty! Worth a try 🙂
Jessica Holmes says
Thanks for the lovely feedback Lara!
Susan says
I loved this. Moist and yum!
Jessica Holmes says
Yay! So happy to hear that Susan!
Sara says
This is…fine? It’s really bland. I think cinnamon on the inside with the apples would go a really long way.
Jessica Holmes says
Thanks for your feedback Sara.
Claudette says
It came out perfect and what I did was put in 2 tsps Pumpkin Spice when mixing the batter… also a little french vanilla flavor. It was the best ever! I will surely make again.
Jessica Holmes says
That sounds amazing Claudette!