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.
Heather says
I made this without alterations. Super easy, super delicious! An instant family favourite. Thank you!
Jessica Holmes says
Amazing! Love hearing that Heather!!
JudithL says
I made this lovely cake with gluten-free flour, regular yogurt and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. I also added about 1/2 tsp cinnamon to the cake batter. The texture was very light and a little grainy but not so much that it detracted from them overall goodness of the cake.. Next time I’ll add some walnuts..
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Judith, I’m glad you liked this cake! Using gluten free flour would definitely change the texture of the cake, but I’m glad it was still enjoyable!
Jas says
Hi, was wondering if i could use agave syrup instead of sugar? If i can how much?
Thanks.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Jas, I haven’t tested this recipe with agave syrup so I can’t say – sorry.
Jas says
Thanks Jess. Do you have any recipes that would use Agave syrup?
Jessica Holmes says
I don’t sorry! It’s not something I bake with regularly.
Patrizia says
This is absolutely delicious. The house smelled heavenly while baking. I doubled the recipe and will one pan put in freezer for company and I also substituted vanilla yogurt and sour cream in place of Greek yogurt and turned out moist. Thanks for a great recipe!!
Jessica Holmes says
Wonderful!! So glad you enjoyed it Patrizia! Thanks for the lovely feedback!
Teddie says
Could you use coconut oil instead of regular oil
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Teddie, I haven’t tried this myself so I can’t say. If you do try it, let me know how you go!
Demetra Gerontaki says
Thank you very much! It was so easy and fast to make! Delicious!
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed it!!
lee says
Hi, looks delicious! Wondering about using coconut oil as the vege oil? What do you think? Cheers, Lee.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Lee, I haven’t tried this myself so I can’t say for sure – my guess is it would be ok. If you do try it, please let us know how you go!
Teresa says
So good! I subbed the veggie oil for coconut oil and baked it in a Bundt pan. Cut down the sugar in the cake to 1/2 cup. And I added the remaining chopped apple in the topping and put it in the button of the Bundt pan (like an upside down cake). Came out amazing!!!
Jessica Holmes says
That sounds epic Teresa! Thank you for sharing with us!
Philippa says
Hi will this cake work okay as cupcakes? Is there anything I’d need to change?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Philippa! Yes they would work as cupcakes! Just adjust the cooking time – maybe to 16-18 mins? X
Henrikas says
hello, im planning to make this awesome looking cake, but i don’t have greek yoghurt, would it be okay without it? don’t have sour cream or regular yoghurt 😞
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Henrikas, I really recommend using yoghurt or sour cream if you can! It’s what helps give the cake it’s lovely soft texture.
Nadia says
Love this cake! I’ve used buttermilk instead of yoghurt and works well. Also added lemon zest to cake and used lemon juice instead of milk in frosting. Was lovely. Thanks for recipe x
Jessica Holmes says
Sounds delicious! So glad you enjoyed it Nadia!
Tanya says
Hi I am planning to make this cake Friday evening to take to a family gathering Saturday afternoon. Is it best to leave the cake out or fridge it or freeze it?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Tanya, this cake is still lovely and moist the next day. I’d cover it well with plastic wrap once completely cooled and leave it out at room temperature. Drizzle with icing just before serving!
Tanya says
Wow thanks for this quick response. I will leave it out. I am excited to try this as my family just love apple cake and I hope to impress!
Jessica Holmes says
I hope they love it!
Ada says
Hi, i don’t have greek yogurt at home but I do have normal yogurt. Will it work?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Ada, it should work ok, but I do recommend using Greek yogurt or sour cream if you can.
Johanne Atkins says
Absolutely love this cake and the family is hooked! I’ll be baking this in all sorts of variations; rhubarb, blackberries, blueberries etc. Lovely recipe! Thank you xxx
Johanne Atkins says
Btw I doubled the recipe and used a bigger oven tray and it still worked a treat x
Jessica Holmes says
Love this! ☺️ And I love the idea of trying it with different fruits – delish!
Tricia says
I’m planning on using some of my just harvested Jonagold apples to bake this tomorrow but I don’t have any yoghurt. I’m going to use either quark, which is fat free, or cream cheese. Which do you think would work best please?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Tricia, excited you are going to try this cake! I’ve never used quark in my baking before in my baking so I’m unsure, but if it’s a yogurt substitute it may work. Let me know how you go.
Tricia says
It didn’t really work as I’d hoped! Although the cake tastes good, the texture is not right – too greasy and dense. Love the crunchy topping☺.
Tricia
Jessica Holmes says
Aw sorry to hear that Tricia! Was that using the quark?
Tricia says
Yes, l shall freeze this first effort in portions and use warm with custard as a dessert. Next time I will stick to the recipe because it’s just so simple to make,
Kathy says
I need for this to be a bigger cake. Could I double it and put in a bundt or tube pan?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Kathy, yes I think you should be able to double this recipe!
Anas says
How much time would be needed for baking? If the recipe is doubled.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Anas, it depends on the size of the baking pan you use. You’ll just have to monitor it. When a skewer inserted comes out clean, you are good to go.