The best extra moist apple cake
Ah, apple cake! Often considered a rustic dessert, it remains one of the most delicious and beloved cakes. It’s also a classic grandma’s cake: simple, budget-friendly, and always a success, just like the yogurt cake. These are actually the first two cakes I learned to make at a very young age.
After several attempts, here is my best recipe for a moist and very tall apple cake. Each bite melts in your mouth, it’s easy to prepare, and perfect for any occasion.
The apple pieces, well distributed in the batter, not only add moisture but also give a texture reminiscent of an apple pie. The result is a generous, airy, and flavorful cake.
This melt-in-your-mouth apple cake is ideal for breakfast, a snack, or even dessert. Served with custard, it’s a real treat!
The amount of apples depends on your taste: I like to put enough so that there’s some in every slice, without overpowering the crumb. If you add more, the cake will be moister, but just as delicious.
Apple cake before baking
Table of Contents
Tips and Tricks for a Successful Apple Cake
1. For a very tall cake
The secret is simple: have the right recipe and use a small 7 inches × 4 inches (18 cm × 10 cm) cake pan. The size of the cake pan determines the height of the cake. If you pour the same amount of batter into a wider cake pan, the cake will inevitably be shorter.
Tip: the batter should always fill 3/4 of the cake pan before baking.
I often use a 9 inches × 3 inches (22 cm × 8 cm) cake pan, but for the Christmas season, I wanted to make this apple cake very tall, like a panettone.
2. For a very moist cake
I prefer to use oil, because even though butter adds flavor, it makes the crumb denser and solidifies as it cools. With oil, the cake is airier, stays moist longer, and keeps its soft, tender texture.
After comparing, especially with banana bread and yogurt cake, the result is clear: in addition to being moister, oil-based cakes rise better.
3. How to flavor it
You can replace vanilla sugar with vanilla extract.
Before baking, sprinkle the apples with brown sugar alone, or with a brown sugar + cinnamon mixture to caramelize them and enhance their flavor.
You can also replace all or part of the yogurt (125 ml / 4.4 oz) with orange juice or a little lemon juice.
If you like, add a pinch of gingerbread spices or some lemon or orange zest. A small amount is enough, as these flavors pair perfectly with apples.
Personally, I especially enjoy the combination of cinnamon and lemon with apples.
4. Achieving perfect baking
Apple cake, like most loaf cakes, is not as finicky as macarons and turns out perfectly every time. Baking proceeds normally, and there’s no need to worry about opening the oven to check.
The best way to tell if the cake is done is to wait until it has risen well and is golden brown on the outside, then insert a skewer into the center, it should come out clean. Unlike molly cake or genoise sponge, which require low-temperature baking at 150 °C (300 °F) for a long time if tall, apple cake bakes perfectly at 180 °C (350 °F), even when very tall.
Baking time will depend on the cake pan used. For a 7 inches × 4 inches (18 cm × 10 cm) pan, the cake will take approximately 1 hour 30 minutes. Check for doneness toward the end. The wider and shallower the pan, the shorter the baking time.
Video Recipe
Ingredients:
Note: Find the recipe card at the end of the article, which you can print.
You can use a round cake pan : 18 × 10 cm (7 × 4 in), 20 × 8 cm (8 × 3 in), 22 × 6 cm (9 × 2.5 in), or 24 cm (10 in) if you prefer a shorter cake.
- 5 large eggs (or 6 medium)
- 220 g granulated sugar (7.8 oz)
- 180 g sunflower oil (6.3 oz)
- 1 plain Greek yogurt (125 g pot / 4.4 oz)
- 300 g all-purpose flour (10.6 oz)
- 2 sachets vanilla sugar
- 10 g baking powder (0.35 oz)
- 3 1/2 medium Golden apples
Preparation Steps:
Preheat the oven to 180°C (static/conventional heat).
Grease the cake pan.
Whisk the eggs with the sugar for 5 to 8 minutes with an electric whisk until the mixture becomes frothy.
Add the oil while continuing to whisk, then incorporate the yogurt and mix well.
Add the sifted flour and baking powder, then mix until a homogeneous batter is obtained.
Peel the apples: cut one into large cubes and cut the rest as needed (about 3 and a half large apples).
Pour a quarter of the batter into the pan. Toss the apple cubes in a little flour, shake off the excess, and arrange them on the batter.
Cover with half of the remaining batter, add more floured apple cubes, then finish with the rest of the batter.
How to make apple cake – Preparation steps
Decorate the top of the cake with apple slices arranged in a rosette pattern. Sprinkle with brown sugar and dot with a few knobs of butter on top. You can mix a little cinnamon with the brown sugar before sprinkling it over the cake.
Bake for approximately 1 hour 30 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a skewer into the center: it should come out clean.
Unmold onto a wire rack and let cool. Optionally dust with a little powdered sugar once the cake has cooled, but it’s not essential.
Note: If you use a wider and shallower cake pan, check for doneness starting from 45 minutes.
Enjoy the apple cake warm or cold, optionally accompanied by vanilla custard.
Tall and moist apple cake
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- Tall and moist apple cake
I hope you will really like this apple cake and that it will make you want to bake it.
Extra Moist Apple Cake Recipe
INGREDIENTS
You can use a round cake pan : 18 × 10 cm (7 × 4 in), 20 × 8 cm (8 × 3 in), 22 × 6 cm (9 × 2.5 in), or 24 cm (10 in) if you prefer a shorter cake.
- 5 large eggs or 6 medium
- 220 g granulated sugar
- 180 g sunflower oil
- 1 plain Greek yogurt 125 g pot / 4.4 oz
- 300 g all-purpose flour
- 2 sachets vanilla sugar
- 10 g baking powder
- 3 1/2 medium Golden apples
PREPARATION
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (static/conventional heat).
- Grease the cake pan.
- Whisk the eggs with the sugar for 5 to 8 minutes with an electric whisk until the mixture becomes frothy.
- Add the oil while continuing to whisk, then incorporate the yogurt and mix well.
- Add the sifted flour and baking powder, then mix until a homogeneous batter is obtained.
- Peel the apples: cut one into large cubes and cut the rest as needed (about 3 and a half large apples).
- Pour a quarter of the batter into the mold. Toss the apple cubes in a little flour, shake off the excess, and arrange them on the batter.
- Cover with half of the remaining batter, add more floured apple cubes, then finish with the rest of the batter.
- Decorate the top of the cake with apple slices arranged in a rosette pattern. Sprinkle with brown sugar and dot with a few knobs of butter on top. You can mix a little cinnamon with the brown sugar before sprinkling it over the cake.
- Bake for approximately 1 hour 30 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a skewer into the center: it should come out clean.
- Unmold onto a wire rack and let cool. Optionally dust with a little powdered sugar once the cake has cooled, but it's not essential.
- Note: If you use a wider and shallower cake pan, check for doneness starting from 45 minutes.
- Enjoy the apple cake warm or cold, optionally accompanied by vanilla custard.
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