Old Fashioned Fresh Apple Cake

This old-fashioned fresh apple cake recipe is crammed full of fresh apples and walnuts.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time: 20

Cook Time: 45

Total Time: 1 5

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: autumn cake, bundt cake, thanksgiving dessert

Servings: Slices

Calories: 893kcal

Author: Jana Dziak

Equipment

9 or 12-Cip Bundt Pan or baking dish
Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer

Ingredients

For The Cake

3 cups packed fresh grated apple
3 cups all-purpose flour sifted
3 large eggs room temperature
2 cups roughly chopped walnuts or pecans
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup white cane sugar
1 cup butter browned
1 tablespoon cinnamon or pumpkin spice, levelled
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt

Dulce De Leche Topping

½ cup dulce de leche or caramel sauce
¼ cup crushed walnuts

Maple Glaze Topping

1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons butter
¼ cup pure maple syrup
¼ cup crushed walnuts

Instructions

Browned Butter

Brown butter first. Measure out 1 cup of unsalted butter into a pan on medium-low heat.
As the butter melts, swirl it around the pan. Butter goes from brown to burnt very quickly, so stay by and watch. The butter may foam, this is fine.
Just keep swirling the butter over the heat until it is light brown in color and smells nutty and toasted. This will happen in mere minutes.
Remove from heat and let it come to room temperature on the counter or put it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before using as you move on with the next steps of this recipe.
Do not add any additional water to the browned butter make up for the water evaporated during cooking.

Make The Cake Batter

Wash and peel your apples. Grate them down to the core until you have three packed cups of apples.
Grease your bundt pan (if using) LIBERALLY with butter (or lard) and then sprinkle the buttered pan thoroughly with a thick layer of plain white cane sugar. Turn the pan upside down over the sink to get rid of excess sugar.
Add all of the dry ingredients (sifted flour, cinnamon, salt) except for the baking soda and baking powder into a bowl and sift them thoroughly to combine.
Using a hand-mixer or stand-mixer mix your eggs and browned butter thoroughly for a couple minutes until the mixture is light, fluffy, and pale.
Add your vanilla extract, white sugar, and brown sugar and keep mixing for a couple more minutes. Set aside and move on to the next step.
Take your grated apples and using your hands thoroughly coat and mix them into your flour mixture. You will have a rough, shaggy dough. Once the apples and flour is completely combined, add the baking soda and baking powder and briefly mix them into the dry batter too.
Add the egg-sugar-butter wet ingredients into the flour-apple mixture along with your chopped walnuts and stir quickly (a silicone spatula is best) to combine.
Pour the apple cake batter into your greased up bundt pan or cake pan and place it into the oven.
Check after 45 minutes for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the deepest part. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is ready. This cake typically takes around 50 minutes to bake completely, sometimes a bit more.
If ready, place the bundt pan down on a heat-safe surface for 10 minutes before flipping it over onto a plate and then transferring the hot cake to a wire rack to cool completely.
Once completely cool, top with dulce de leche and crushed walnuts or keep reading to make a great maple glaze.

Make The Maple Glaze

Make the glaze by whisking butter and maple syrup over medium heat before adding powdered sugar and whisking until desired consistency is achieved. Pour over cooled cake. Add some chopped walnuts.

Notes

Your cake should come out cleanly in one piece. You may need to gently pry the edges away from the sides (including the middle) of the bundt pan with a knife first. Don't leave the cake in the bundt pan for much longer the 10 minutes or it may stick.
Thoroughly mixing the ingredients without over-mixing them is the key to the texture of this fresh apple cake turning out moist and with a perfect crumb instead of dry uneven lumps inside.
Make sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature for the best results.

Storage & Freezing

This cake can be stored on your countertop safely for 2-3 days as long as it's wrapped or stored on a cake stand underneath a dome cover.

The cake can also be baked ahead and frozen for up to 3 months without any noticeable change in taste, texture, or quality. As long as it is securely and thoroughly wrapped. This would be a great way to get ahead of your Thanksgiving or Christmas baking as the glaze topping comes together in minutes.

Substitutions & Variations

Sugar: Due to the nature of this batter, you should not use maple syrup or honey. You can use maple sugar =, coconut sugar, or other granulated sugars.

Gluten-Free: You can easily swap the wheat flour out for your favourite gluten-free flour mix instead. I'm talking about commercial gluten-free flour mixes sold fort his purpose, not your own blends, those are used at your own trial and error.

Flour: This cake has been successfully tested with all-purpose flour, bread-flour, einkorn flour, and gluten-free flour. It has never been tested with freshly milled flour or whole wheat flours.

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!