This cozy apple spice cake recipe has the perfect blend of warm spices and a gorgeous super-moist texture, thanks to a double dose of apple goodness!
Our Fan-Favorite Apple Spice Cake Recipe Is A Fall Dream Come True
Seriously. This apple cake recipe has been served at Thanksgiving, birthdays, Christmas Eve, ladies’ luncheons, and even made for weddings by professionals with rave reviews! It’s SUPER moist, deliciously spiced, and full of flavor.
🥣 EASE: This easy spiced apple cake is made in a sheet pan, which means it’s about as low-fuss as it gets! The recipe is made from simple ingredients, and the only skills you need are grating, stirring, and mixing.
🍎 FLAVORS: Warm spices and apple are the stars of the show here! Paired with our suggested buttermilk syrup (or some caramel sauce!), the flavors are next-level amazing.
🍰 TOP TIPS: For the best apple cake, I highly recommend weighing the dry ingredients where possible! Also: try the buttermilk syrup!!!
Happy baking! xo, Emily
Gather Your Ingredients
One thing readers LOVE about this easy recipe? The simple ingredients list! Let’s take a look:
The Best Apples For Apple Cake
Not all fresh apples bake the same, and some hold their shape better than others. Our two favorite kinds of apples for apple spice cake are sweet, tart apples, like Honeycrisp apples and Granny Smith apples.
Both have great balanced flavor that works well with the spices, and they won’t get mushy or mealy when baked. (Braeburn & Pink Lady are two other nice choices!)
How To Make Apple Spice Cake, Step By Step
As always, you can find the full recipe with ingredient amounts, detailed instructions, and tips in the recipe card below.
- Preheat & Prep. To start, preheat oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9×13″ metal pan with butter or spray or line with parchment paper.
- Combine Dry Ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- Cream Butter & Sugar. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar with a hand mixer or paddle attachment for 2-3 minutes, until light, fluffy, and well combined.
- Finish Wet Ingredients. Mix in eggs, one at a time till well incorporated, then stir in applesauce.
- Add Dry Ingredients, Then The Apples. Then, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and gently stir or mix just until the dry ingredients are mixed in. Next, add the grated apples and stir until evenly distributed.
- Bake. Pour cake batter into the prepared pan and smooth into an even layer. Bake in preheated oven 30-40 minutes or till a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. (This cake will bake to a deep brown, but if your cake seems to be getting too dark, feel free to loosely tent the pan with foil for the last few minutes of baking. Cool cake on a wire rack.
- Serve & Store. Cut cake into slices and top individual slices with buttermilk syrup, caramel sauce, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. (Or, frost with your favorite cream cheese frosting!) Store leftover cake covered in the fridge 2-3 days for best results, or 1-2 days at room temperature.
Serving Suggestions & Toppings To Try
This gluten-free apple cake recipe is packed with flavor, but I do recommend adding at least one little topping for serving. Here are my favorites:
- Buttermilk Syrup or Caramel Sauce. My FAVORITE way to serve this old-fashioned apple spice cake is with a generous drizzle of Buttermilk Syrup or Caramel Sauce.
- Ice Cream. A slice of slightly warm cake with a scoop of cold ice cream (and maybe some caramel sauce!) is one of the best fall desserts around.
- Whipped Cream. A dollop of fluffy whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon on top of the cake is light and lovely!
- Cream Cheese Frosting. A classic cream cheese frosting is DELICIOUS with the spices in this cake! (If you plan to frost the cake, make sure to let cake cool completely before frosting or the frosting will melt!)
- Sautéed Apples. If you want to play up the apple flavors in this cake even MORE, you can top each slice with some cinnamon apples and a little scoop of ice cream or a bit of whipped cream.
FAQ + Tips And Tricks For The Best Apple Spice Cake
Measure Your Flour Carefully! To avoid a dense or gummy cake, take care to measure the flour properly. I recommend weighing the flour when possible, but at least use the scoop and level method if you don’t have a scale!
Can I Make This As An Apple Bundt Cake? If you’d like to make this in a bundt pan, I honestly recommend making this apple bundt cake recipe. If you choose to make a bundt with THIS recipe, make sure you grease the bundt pan properly first, as it’s a very moist cake and is more likely to stick. (I recommend adding sugar to the pan after greasing, which can help the cake come out.) Also follow these guidelines for converting cake recipes to fit different cake pans. It’ll take 50-60 minutes or so in a 10-12 inch bundt pan.
Can I Make This Cake Dairy-Free? Yes! Just use vegan butter (like Earth Balance). Then, top with a vegan caramel sauce or dairy-free vanilla ice cream instead of our buttermilk syrup.
Did You Make This Recipe?
Tell me all about it! Leave a star rating below when you try our Gluten-Free Apple Spice Cake recipe. I can’t wait to hear how it goes!
Apple Spice Cake
Ingredients
For The Wet Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup butter, softened (113 grams/8 Tablespoons)
- 1 3/4 cups sugar (350 grams)
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup applesauce (I prefer unsweetened)
- 2 cups peeled & grated or finely diced apples (I like Honeycrisp or granny smith apples)
For The Dry Ingredients:
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour or gluten-free flour* (270 grams)
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon cloves
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
To Serve (Choose 1-2)
- Buttermilk Syrup (or Caramel Sauce)
- Whipped Cream
- Vanilla Ice Cream
Instructions
- Preheat & Prep. To start, preheat oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9×13" metal pan with butter or spray or line with parchment paper.
- Combine Dry Ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- Cream Butter & Sugar. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar with a hand mixer or paddle attachment for 2-3 minutes, until light, fluffy, and well combined.
- Finish Wet Ingredients. Mix in eggs, one at a time till well incorporated, then stir in applesauce.
- Add Dry Ingredients, Then The Apples. Then, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and gently stir or mix just until the dry ingredients are mixed in. Next, add the grated apples and stir until evenly distributed.
- Bake. Pour cake batter into the prepared pan and smooth into an even layer. Bake in preheated oven 35-40 minutes or till a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. (This cake will bake to a deep brown, but if your cake seems to be getting too dark, feel free to loosely tent the pan with foil for the last few minutes of baking. Cool cake on a wire rack.
- Serve & Store. Cut cake into slices and top individual slices with buttermilk syrup, caramel sauce, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. (Or, frost with your favorite cream cheese frosting!) Store leftover cake covered in the fridge 2-3 days for best results, or 1-2 days at room temperature.
Notes
- Flour. This recipe was developed years before we went gluten-free and works great with regular white flour (all-purpose flour). Now that we’re gluten-free, we use King Arthur Measure-For-Measure Gluten-Free Flour. If you use another gluten-free flour blend, be sure it contains xanthan gum, or the cake will not turn out properly. (Do NOT substitute coconut flour or almond flour in this recipe.)
- Other Toppings. If you prefer, you can frost this cake with Classic Cream Cheese Frosting!
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition facts are an estimate only and will vary based on brands and amounts used.
Find it Online:
https://www.onelovelylife.com/apple-spice-cake/PS. This was one of the first recipes I developed for my site, way back in November 2008 before I’d learned a thing about photography. Here’s our original photos: (We’ve come a long way!😂)
I made this as cupcakes (baked for 20 mins) and topped with cream cheese frosting and they are excellent! Thank you for the recipe 🙂
That sounds scrumptious! I’m so glad you loved them!
I’m enjoying a lovely Fall day and your delicious cake recipe. When I felt the cool, crisp air outdoors, this kind of cake came to mind and I’m very happy that I made it. Important: there is one problem with the published recipe instructions. One line reads “Stir in applesauce, apples and spices” and the next line says “Stir in cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, salt and flour”
Ack! You’re right! I’ve corrected it so they’re not listed twice in the instructions. thank you for catching my mistake!
This is every bit as indescribably good as you said in the beginning of the blog for this recipe! Just.absolutely. heavenly. I made it for the first time (and it won’t be the last either!) to take for the dinner at a friend’s home 2 months ago and besides me finding it totally delish (and the texture was soo incredible! ooh la la!!) my friend’s mom and her daughter , both serious home bakers, were also there and they both liked it so much they wanted me to give them the recipe!! That is one awesome apple -spice cake!! Thank you for sharing it!
Nina – WOW! I’m so glad you loved it. It’s one of my all-time favorite cakes! It’s been a hit at family get-togethers, and caterers have even made it for weddings! 🙂
Totally forgot to do the rating so I’m catching up NOW…hee hee.
Thank you so much Nina!!!
You’re very welcome! But I have another cake related question (actually it’s the first question, not another…) I lovingly made this awesome apple cake yesterday as a birthday cake for a young friend who loves it. It turned out wonderful again and I added- for her benefit because her sweet tooth is off the charts!- an easy caramel frosting, though I made it seperately and didn’t actually frost the cake yet (her dad’s diabetic so I was gonna just do half frosted, half bare). Well guess what! Shani and family LEFT TOWN to visit a family member in Atlanta; they won’t be back until next WEEK. You can probably see what I’m going to ask here; HOW LONG can this cake survive on ‘refrigeration life support’? And no matter how long, will the very LOVELY moist texture be ruined in there?? Let me know please!
Nina – Thank you for your patience! I usually freeze cakes if they won’t’ be eaten within 2-3 days. In the freezer, the texture should be preserved well. In the fridge, it’ll start to dry out after 2-3 days.
how about adding cardamon to this like you had in pear cake?
I bet that would be delicious! 🙂
about how much cardamom?
Totally up to you, but I’d start with only 1/8-1/4 tsp in addition to the other spices. 🙂
Looks outrageous #eating withmyeyesfirst
Can u poke hole in cake and add buttermilk syrup or should it be added separately?
Cindi – If you poke holes in the cake and pour the syrup in, the cake will get pretty soggy. I’d recommend serving it on top for best results.
I have a question—the directions say to add the apples, applesauce and spices, and the next step says to add the flour, dry ingredients and all the spices. I assume it doesn’t matter. I combined the spices with the flour and added all together.
I do like the flavor of this cake but will probably increase the cinnamon next time. However, this cake was not particularly moist compared to applesauce cakes I’ve had in the past—not sure why?? I even sprinkled some sugar over the apples and sauce which generated some liquid. I will need to make your syrup or something to pour over.
Thanks for posting the recipe.
Lolly – My mistake! Yes, it doesn’t matter either way. Sorry for the confusion!
Hi Emily
The cake was an absolute hit! I used Fuji apples, which are my favourite for everything. Thank you very much for the recipe; it certainly won’t be the last time I make it.
YAY! I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks so much for sharing!
What kind of flour for this recipe?
Melissa – This is an old recipe from before I went gluten free, so it uses white flour (made from wheat). I have tried it once using a gluten free 1:1 flour (Bob’s Red Mill) and it was pretty good!
Hi Emily!
I made your Apple Spice Cake recipe for a wedding cake this weekend and it worked perfectly. I made a triple batch (twice!) in two 14”x14”x2” layer pans. My client loves this cake recipe and wanted me to make this for the bottom tier of her wedding cake. It was beautiful!
I took pictures if you’d like to see them. I don’t think it will let me attach them herenkn the comments.
WOW! That’s amazing!!! I’d LOVE to see them! Send the pics to [email protected]
I can’t wait!
I emailed you just now. 😉
Thank you! I can’t wait to see!
This is years later, but what kind of apples do you use?
Kota – Many varieties work, but honeycrisp and granny smith are my favorite for this 🙂