Jewish Apple Cake Recipe
This traditional Jewish Apple Cake is a dense, moist, and dairy-free dessert that perfectly blends the best parts of a coffee cake and a pound cake. Packed with fresh apples and swirled with warm cinnamon sugar, it's an irresistible from-scratch treat that only gets better the longer it sits!
Equipment
- 2 part Bundt pan (well greased)
- cutting board
- paring knife
- plastic wrap
- large mixing bowl
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Ingredients
- 3 medium apples peeled, cored, and sliced into ⅛ - ¼ inch thick slices; Granny Smith or Honey Crisp preferred
- 3 cups all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- ⅓ cup orange juice
- 2 & ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon pure almond extract
- 4 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 & ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 tablespoon granulated sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉. Adjust oven rack to lower third.
- Peel and core apples. Slice into ⅛ - ¼ inch thickness. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, 2 c. sugar, and baking powder.
- Pour in vegetable oil, orange juice, and extracts. Stir until just combined (mixture will be thick and lumpy).
- Add room temperature eggs, one at a time, using hand mixer on its lowest setting to incorporate. Continue to beat on low until mixture is smooth.
- Give the cake batter a quick stir with a spatula. Then add half of the batter to the bottom of a well-greased 2-part Bundt/tube pan.
- Arrange apple slices over cake batter, but do not press in. Apples will overlap a few times and that's okay.
- Sprinkle cinnamon and 3 T. sugar over apples. Then spoon remaining cake batter on top, taking time to make sure all apples are covered.
- Bake for 70 - 85 minutes, or until cake tester inserted all the way down to the bottom comes out clean. (Ovens vary; check every 5 minutes for doneness.)
- Allow cake to cool for 30 minutes. Run a non-scratch knife along cake's outer edges, then lift cake up and out of outer pan by grasping the inner pan/tube. Cool cake completely (at least 2 hours) while still sitting on the inner tube pan. Then run a knife along bottom of the cake, as well as the inner ring. Use clean hands to lift the cake off of the inner pan. Slice and serve, or tightly wrap whole cake in plastic wrap for later.
Notes
Choose firm apples like Granny Smith (tart) or Honeycrisp (sweet) for this recipe, since they hold their shape and add the perfect balance to the cake's sweetness. Peel, core, and slice the apples into thin and even slices (⅛ - ¼ inch thickness) so they bake through without leaving large, undercooked chunks.
Because this is such a dense, fruit-heavy cake, it takes a famously long time to bake--usually between 1 hour and 15 minutes to 1 hour and 30 minutes. You'll know it's done when the top is a deep, crusty golden brown and a long wooden skewer or cake tester inserted all the way into the cake comes out completely clean.
Keep the cake tightly wrapped or in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4-5 days, as it continues to get more moist and flavorful with time. Can also be frozen; see above post for details.
Nutrition
Serving: 1sliceCalories: 469kcalCarbohydrates: 68gProtein: 6gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 11gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 62mgSodium: 131mgPotassium: 123mgFiber: 2gSugar: 42gVitamin A: 130IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 79mgIron: 2mg
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