Apple Spice Cake
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Apple Spice Cake – This delicious apple spice cake has the perfect blend of warm spices and a gorgeous texture, thanks to a double-dose of apple goodness.
Every so often, I post a recipe here that I just can’t seem to find the words to describe.
This is one of those recipes.
Please, may I beg you, implore you, beseech you, dear reader, to try this apple spice cake!!!
This isn’t your average apple cake. It isn’t your average spice cake. It is the heavenly best of both worlds.
3 Reasons To Love This Cake Recipe:
- It’s Got THE BEST Texture. This is the most moist cake I have ever EVER made. Thanks to the applesauce, butter, and sugar, it’s got a gorgeous texture you’ll fall hard for.
- It’s Perfectly Spiced. The spice amounts may seem like a lot, but when you bake it, everything blends together in the most beautiful synergistic way, and the end flavor is incredible.
- It’s Got A Double Dose Of Apple. The combination of grated fresh apple and applesauce really help the apple flavor shine.
BONUS REASON: I may also point out, that this cake is the PERFECT pair with my buttermilk syrup or some easy caramel sauce. Caramel apple vibes, anyone? Just saying.
Tips & Tricks For This Apple Spice Cake Recipe:
The Best Apples For Apple Cake. Not all 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 go totally mushy or mealy when baked. (Braeburn & Pink Lady are two other nice choices!)
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, 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 Gluten-Free? Yes! It should work. Or, you can make this gluten-free apple spice bundt cake I shared over at Sweets & Thank You.
More Yummy Desserts To Love:
- Gluten-Free Apple Spice Bundt Cake – Sweets & Thank You (Our Sister Site!)
- Almond Flour Pumpkin Cake With Cinnamon Frosting
- Gluten-Free Lemon Cake
- Almond Flour Banana Cake With Chocolate Ganache
Apple Spice Cake
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 1 (9×13) cake 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This delicious apple spice cake recipe has the perfect blend of warm spices and a gorgeous texture, thanks to a double-dose of apple goodness.
Ingredients
For The Wet Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup butter, softened (8 Tablespoons)
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup applesauce (I prefer unsweetened)
- 2 apples, peeled, cored, and grated (I like Honeycrisp or granny smith apples)
For The Dry Ingredients:
- 2 1/4 cups (270 grams) flour
- 2–3 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon cloves
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9×13″ metal pan with butter or spray.
- In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Whisk together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar with a hand mixer or spatula 2-3 minutes, until light, fluffy, and well combined.
- Mix in eggs, one at a time till well incorporated.
- Stir in applesauce and apples.
- Add the dry ingredients mixture and gently stir or mix till all dry ingredients are just mixed in. Don’t over-mix.
- Pour cake batter into the prepared baking dish..
- Bake at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
- Serve with buttermilk syrup, caramel sauce, or vanilla ice cream.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 35
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
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!
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.
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
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.
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!
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!
This is literally the beat thing I’ve ever made in my entire life. It is a million times tastier than I ever could have imagined! I can’t wait to make this every fall. Thank you for sharing!
Karen – BEST REVIEW EVER!!! Thank you so much for sharing this!
if you dont have those individual spices can you use all spice instead and how much would you use?
Allspice is actually not a mixture of spices, it’s an individual spice, so I would not recommend it as a substitute here. If you have something like pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice, you might be able to get away with that; otherwise, I’d recommend waiting until you can get the spices called for since they’re really what makes this cake so special. I’m sorry!
So delicious! I made this for the first time last year at Thanksgiving and it was requested so many times that its making a comeback to this (2020) Thanksgiving menu!
I’m so glad to hear that Dana!!! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review–it helps so much! 🙂
Amazing. Exactly like you would hope for. Moist.
I’m so glad you loved it!
Out of this world, my husband said when this cake is gone hurry and make another right away. The buttermilk caramel sauce was a must with it. Best cake ever!
I’m so glad you loved it! It’s one of my all time FAVORITE desserts!
My cake is currently in the oven. I have a question about the buttermilk syrup. Can that be used like a frosting on the entire cake or should it be spooned on individual servings?
It should be spooned onto individual servings 🙂 Hope you love the cake!
No recipe for the butter milk or caramel syrup
Victor – Sorry you had trouble finding it! It’s actually linked in the post with a blue highlight over the words. Here it is again. 🙂
Really easy to make. Moist, flavourful, and very delicious!
I’m so glad you loved it Victoria! Thank you so much for leaving a review!
This cake was absolutely amazing. I tweaked it a bit, cut the apples into chunks instead of grating and sprinkled toffee chips on top before baking. I make my own applesauce with a tad of sugar but I add spiced rum to cook down w/the apples.
This has to be the best apple spice cake i have ever made. My husband does not eat much cake but he sure finished this one off and asked me to make it again.
I’m so glad you loved it Janice! It’s my FAVORITE!