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.
Hend says
Thanks for the recipe!
As a full time student, I rarely have time to treat myself with a delicious sweet. Also I don’t always have a wide range of materials in my pantry to make complex recipes. So, for me, this was PERFECT! Easy, quick, on-budget and SUPER DELICIOUS!
I”ve just tried it with my friends while I’m writing this comment and they LOVED it!
Ps: I added a kick of crunch by adding almond flakes into the batter and it came out amazing.
Jessica Holmes says
Amazing! So glad you enjoyed it Hend! And love the idea of adding flaked almonds – delish!
Hilary says
Would it be ok to make 1 or 2 days ahead?
Jessica Holmes says
Absolutely!
Amali says
Absolutely lovely cake …. used your white chocolate buttercream frosting and it was smashing!
Jessica Holmes says
Amazing! Sounds delicious Amali!
Isi Slater says
Just perfect! Sweet, moist, fluffy, crunchy on the top, easy to make, you don’t have to be peeling hundreds of apples because you only need one AND I already had all the ingredients in my pantry. Seriously the definition of perfect!
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that! Thank you for the lovely feedback Isi! ❤️
Joanne Gauthier says
Well, I made it in the 8 x 8 glass baking dish and it came out perfectly! This is such an easy recipe and so good too.. I also only needed to use one apple which made for a fast prep. I will definitely be making this again. Thanks for the recipe.
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Joanne! Thank you for the lovely feedback!
Joanne Gauthier says
Can I use an 8 x 8 glass baking dish instead?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Joanne, absolutely!
Katia says
Hi Jessica
I made this cake and it is great. It came out light and smooth. I didn’t make the sugar glaze as didn’t have powdered sugar. Next time will try with it. Will share the pictures on instagram. Thanks for sharing the recipe
Jessica Holmes says
Amazing! So glad you enjoyed it Katia! ☺️
Jessica Rao says
Great recipe, thank you. What could i possibly use as substitute for the 2 eggs in the recipe? I’d like to try an eggless version.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Jessica, I haven’t tested this recipe with any egg substitutes so I can’t say – sorry!
Camii says
Tried this and it was perfect on first try! Im about to make it again right now actually and it’ll be written in my recipebook!
Jessica Holmes says
Amazing! So glad you enjoyed it Camii!!
babs wright says
Lovely cake. I served it warm with rum & raisin ice cream.
I also made a vegan version & replaced the eggs with vegan egg replacement stuff, vegan coconut yogurt and melted dairy free spread for topping.
Both cakes were fabulous.
Jessica Holmes says
Wow that’s amazing! Well done Babs!
Anne Wallace says
Stuck inside on a cold November day in France I slightly adapted your recipe as I had no butter, so no crumble topping but added “ quatre èpice “ ( bit like English mixed spice) to the dry ingredients.Worked well , delicious cake.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Anne, what a lovely picture of you baking in the cold weather! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake. Thank you for the feedback!
betchie joy yunson says
Hi, I made this cake and it was great the taste.
My husband love the cake.its was my first time i made the cake its turn out good.
Thank you 😊
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Betchie, I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake! Thank you so much for your lovely review!
Demetra says
Absolutely delicious and easy to make! This is the second time I made it and I’m making it a family traditional dessert! Thank you and I will share with everyone! 🙌
Jessica Holmes says
Aww Demetra! That is so lovely! Thank you so much!!
Yana says
Genius! The best apple cake I’ve ever ate. And it was so simple!
Jessica Holmes says
Yaay! So glad you loved it Yana!
Lynne Huet says
I made this cake today and it is just scrummy. It’s easy lpeasy to make . I used oil instead of butter as you suggested. It’s very moist and a great delight to have with a cuppa Irish tea! Thank you.
Jessica Holmes says
Amazing! So glad you enjoyed it Lynne!
Geeta Ram says
Super easy. Served hot with ice cream , family and friends loved it.
Jessica Holmes says
Awesome! Thanks for the lovely feedback Geeta!