If you’re craving something cosy, then imagine sinking your fork into a slice of this Easy Apple Cake. It absolutely delivers! It’s soft and moist in the centre, loaded with apple slices, and topped with a golden brown sugar cinnamon crust that makes the entire kitchen smell like fall. Whether you’re serving it with coffee, tea, or just a fork straight from the pan, this is one of those simple bakes that hits every single time.
After my Nonna passed away, my Grandpa started spending more time in the kitchen, trying to recreate her recipes from memory. He made her pasta, bread, pizza, and baked goods. One of them being this apple cake. It’s moist, flavourful, and tastes like fall in every bite. We asked him to make it again and again, and it quickly became one of those recipes that felt even more special to our family.
If you love this one, be sure to check out my Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread and my Apple Cinnamon Rolls.
😍 Why You’ll Love This Easy Apple Cake
Easy to make: no layers, no frosting; just mix, bake, and slice.
Perfect for fall: cozy spices and apples make it feel like a hug in cake form.
Feeds a crowd: perfect for holidays, potlucks, or when you just want leftovers.
Freezer-friendly: make it ahead, freeze it, and enjoy a slice whenever the craving hits.
🍏 Ingredients You’ll Need To Make This Moist Apple Cake
Apples: I use a combination of Granny Smith and Red Gala peeled and sliced for a sweet-tart balance that keeps the cake moist and flavourful throughout.
Butter: creamed with sugar to create a rich, tender base; use at room temp for best results.
Eggs: bind the batter together and help give the cake structure and richness.
White sugar: sweetens the batter and caramelizes slightly as the cake bakes.
Brown sugar: sprinkled on top for a crackly, golden crust with that delicious note of molasses.
Milk: adds moisture and richness to the batter.
Vanilla: enhances the apple flavour and adds a warm, sweet aroma.
All-purpose flour: gives the cake structure and a soft crumb.
Baking soda: helps the cake rise and adds a tender texture.
Baking powder: works with the baking soda to boost lift and fluffiness.
Cinnamon: mixed with brown sugar for a classic, cozy spiced topping.
✔ How To Make This Easy Apple Cake Recipe
To start, preheat your oven to 350°F and grease a 10×14 baking pan. This is a big-batch recipe, so make sure your pan has at least 1 ½ inches of space at the top to let the cake rise. If you have extra batter, don’t overfill; just use a second pan or discard the rest.
Next, prep your apples. Peel, core, and thinly slice them. Set them aside while you make the batter; no need to toss with lemon juice.
In a large bowl or stand mixer, cream together the butter and white sugar until smooth and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each so the batter stays silky.
Sprinkle in the baking soda, baking powder, and vanilla, and mix just until combined. Then pour in the milk, one cup at a time, mixing on low to keep it smooth. Finally, add the flour gradually and mix until your batter is thick but spreadable.
🤝 Sammy’s Tip for Easy Apple Cake
- At the 20-25 minute mark, check the edges. If they’re browning too quickly, loosely cover the cake with foil to prevent burning.
Now it’s time to assemble! Pour half of the batter into the prepared baking pan and spread it evenly. Layer all of hte apple slices over the batter. It’ll look like a lot, but trust the process. Spoon the remaining batter over the top and gently smooth it out with a spatula.
In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle it evenly across the top for that golden crust.
Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Let the cake cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing.
🗒 Variations
Love a little texture? Add some chopped walnuts or pecans for crunch.
Want it sweeter? Toss in a handful of raisins.
Add more spice. Add a pinch of nutmeg or cloves to the batter.
🗒 Substitutions
Apples: Use any variety you’ve got on hand. I do prefer to use firm apples and my preference is always to mix a few varieties (granny smith and red gala apples). I find that by mixing sweet and tart apples adds a beautiful depth of flavour.
Butter: Use a vegan butter if needed.
Milk: While I haven’t tried this recipe with other milk varieties, I imagine any milk will do; dairy or plant-based like oat, almond, or soy. Keep in mind the more fat content the milk has, the richer the cake will be. This is why we always make the cake using whole milk.
🤔 FAQ’S
Can I bake this in a different size pan?
Yes, just make sure to leave room at the top for the cake to rise. If using smaller pans, keep an eye on the bake time and adjust as needed.
What’s the best way to slice the apples?
Thin slices work best so they soften nicely while baking. You don’t need to be super precise, just try to keep the slices fairly even.
Can I use oil instead of butter?
I haven’t tested this recipe with oil, but butter gives it that rich, classic flavour. If you try it with oil, let me know how it goes!
How do I know when it’s done baking?
Insert a toothpick into the centre of the cake; if it comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs, it’s ready. The top should be golden and the edges slightly pulling away from the pan.
What should I serve it with?
It’s perfect on its own, but you can dress it up with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a dollop of whipped cream, or a drizzle of caramel sauce.
🍴 Leftovers? Lucky you.
Store leftover apple cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Want to freeze it? Let the cake cool for at least an hour, then wrap it tightly and freeze for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to enjoy, thaw overnight in the fridge and bring to room temp before slicing and serving.
👩🏻🍳 Hungry For More?
If you enjoyed my Easy Apple Cake, take a peek at a few of my personal favourite desserts down below you’ll likely love:
- Chocolate Zucchini Bread
- Blueberry Lemon Muffins
- Morning Glory Muffins
- Raspberry Lemon Loaf
- Pumpkin Banana Bread
💌 Let’s Stay Connected
Keep in touch with me on Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest! If you do make this recipe (or any recipe of mine) don’t forget to leave a review.
Easy Apple Cake
Equipment
- 1 9×13 deep baking dish
- 1 stand mixer or hand blender
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, salted, room temperature
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 2 cups red apples, peeled & sliced
- 1 cup whole milk (3.25%), room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 3 tbsp brown sugar, to sprinkle on top
- 1 tsp cinnamon, to sprinkle on top
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 °F and grease a 9×13 deep baking pan with a neutral cooking oil spray.
- Begin by preparing the apples. Peel the skins, remove the core, slice thinly and set aside until ready to use.
- To a large bowl or stand mixer, begin by creaming together the butter and granulated sugar until smooth.
- Slowly add in one egg at a time until well incorporated.
- Add the baking soda, baking powder, vanilla, and mix on low until just combined.
- Slowly add in the milk and continue to mix until combined.Don't be concerned if the batter looks separated; the flour will bring it all together.
- Slowly add in the flour and mix until smooth.
- To your prepared baking dish, add half of the batter, followed by all of the sliced apples, and top with the remaining batter.
- In a small box mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon and gently dust over the entire cake.
- Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the centre of the cake.Sammy's tip: if the edges appear to be burning at the 20-25 minute mark, you can loosely tent the cake with aluminium foil and continue to bake.
- Slice and serve.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I’ve been looking for Apple cake and this one looks amazing I’ll surely will try it. Just one question the mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon I didn’t see the measurements
Hi Rachel – it’s in the ingredient list:) It’s 1/4 cup of brown sugar and 2 tsp of cinnamon! Hope this helps – sammy xo
I’m planning to make this tomorrow. It sounds so good! I had a question–The recipe says to use 3 T of brown sugar and 1 t of cinnamon for the topping but the comment above says to use 1/4 c of brown sugar and 2 t of cinnamon. Will you clarify which is correct? For such a big cake surface, neither seems like it would provide enough topping to cover. Wanted to make sure I had correct measurements. Thank you!
Has anyone tried it with gluten free flour?
I have made it twice now with Bob’s 1:1 Gluten free flour and it comes about amazing!!
Thank you for this comment!
I am swimming in apples, so this is on my to-do list. I personally use King Arthur’s Measure for Measure GF flour, but Bob’s is great too! Do you need to bake it longer?
Hi! Saw your cake on Instagram– and just read the recipe- seems like a large batter- wondering if it could go into a Tube Pan (hole in middle) ? That pan is great for a thicker batter.
Going to try soon! Thanks
Hi Connie! Yes, this is a larger cake. You can likely use a 9×13 baking pan, two 9 inch round baking pans, or a large bundt pan.I use a 10×14. As long as you have about an inch at the top to allow the cake to rise – it should work! Hope this helps. -Sammy
Hi! If I make this cake today, how should I reheat it 2 days from now ? Is it better at room temperature or warm?
Thank you!!
Hi Melissa! I leave mine on the counter for up to 4 days, but it’s usually gone within 2 days lol. If you are looking to re-heat it, you can microwave for 30-45 seconds or serve at room temperature. My favourite is to eat this cake at room temperature! Hope this helps. -Sammy
Hi there – can the recipe be made into metric measurements please? Thank you. Wyn
• 1/2 cup butter → 115 g (salted, room temperature)
• 2 eggs → 2 large eggs (~100 g total, room temperature)
• 2 cups red apples, peeled & sliced → 240 g apples (about 2 medium apples)
• 1 cup whole milk (3.25%) → 240 ml whole milk (room temperature)
• 2 tsp vanilla → 10 ml vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour → 250 g flour
• 1½ cups granulated sugar → 300 g sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda → 5 g baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder → 8 g baking powder
• 3 tbsp brown sugar (for sprinkling) → 40 g brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon (for sprinkling) → 3 g cinnamon
I don’t know why anyone uses imperial, being from the UK it’s actually mad.
Not good for diabetes.To much sugar
Hi Bert – that’s probably true. -Sammy
Hello. Just made the cake and its in the oven decided to put the 9×13 pan on a cookie sheet and glad I did the cake is overflowing. What did I do wrong?
Thank you
Hi Gilberte, the recipe calls for a 10×13 baking pan. If you used a 9×13 you needed to leave at least 1.5 inches on the top, or use 2, 9 inch rough cake pans.
Just popped this in the oven – already smelling sooo delish! Used whipping cream instead of milk LOL it’s all I had on hand. I bet it’ll be extra rich and perfect with my cup of coffee in the morning 🫶
i baked the cake for 45 mins then ch3ckec every 5 mins for 15 more mins
cake was delicious but the ceter was raw
Hi Susan, what size baking pan did you use?
You may need to cook it longer than 45 minutes, depending on your oven.
Lovely and warm straight out of the oven.
Hi Anna! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. If you could leave me a star rating I would appreciate it! – warmest, Sammy
Hi,all the way from Australia
Going to make next week,good to here the comments.
Ok so I haven’t tried the baked cake yet because it’s in the oven and I’m still licking the bowl and beaters but I made a little boo boo. Totally my misread but I saw: ‘cream butter and sugarS until smooth’ so I added both the white AND brown sugar to the butter. Wondered for a minute why it wasn’t creaming together but carried on. I thought the batter would be super sweet but I can attest, that after licking the bowl and mixers clean, it is PERFECT! Cannot wait to eat this cake 😋
Hi Sandie! This is amazing! I hope you ate every last bit! If you don’t mind, please leave the recipe a star rating. All the best! – Sammy
Just made the cake and it turned out perfectly! Easy to follow instructions and excellent quality. I added a touch of cinnamon to the batter to make it a little more spiced for the season. Love it! Thank you for the excellent recipe!
Apple Cake is definitely delicious ,instructions easy to follow 🍀🍀🍀
Hi Brenda! Thank you for this comment! If you could leave me a star rating that would be amazing! All the best – Sammy
Hello Sandie,
Can you please give the recipe in grams?
I only have unsalted butter. How much salt should I add to the recipe? Thank you!
I would say about 1/4 tsp should do the trick!
The apple cake looks absolutely delicious.
Can I freeze it?
You sure can!
Yummy! Next time would use less sugar
Good size apple cake!
Great recipe, this has become one of my fall favorites. It will be in the rotation, and yes its a large recipe all the better for sharing and leftovers, Thank you
Hi Karen – so happy you enjoyed this one! It’s one of my favs 🙂 – Sammy
This cake is so good that I am trying not to sit down with a fork and eat it straight from the baking pan. HIGHLY RECOMMEND MAKING THIS!
HI Courtney! I LOVE IT! Thanks for the awesome review! – Sammy
I really want to make this recipe but I’m having such a hard time finding a 10×14 baking pan. Where did you buy yours? Or can I use a 13×9?
Hi Paulina! Mine is old for my Nonna, but they have tons of Amazon. Just type in 10×14 baking dish and lots will come up. You can certainly use a 13×9 just make sure you leave about an inch of room on the top to allow the cake to rise. Also, put the baking dish on a baking sheet in case any spills over. Hope this helps!
This was so delicious!!! I have to stop myself from eating it all.. gonna serve warm with vanilla ice cream… wondering Sam if you have tried to replace apples with peaches?
Hi Suvarna! Thank you for this review. I haven’t done peaches, but you totally can! My grandpa would make this exact recipe with pears too (which was so good) – so there is no reason you couldn’t use peaches. Hope this helps. -Sammy
Hi can you please give the recipe in grams?
1cup og butter will be?
Thanks
1 cup of butter is about 227 grams. Hope this helps – Sammy
Sammy was right, this only last 48 hours!
So easy, so good, a lot of cake batter but pure deliciousness!!
Hiiiii Christina! Ohhhh yes, only 48 hours sounds about right LOL! So happy you enjoyed! Thanks for leaving a review, I so appreciate it! – Sammy
I made this today for my family and they all loved it!!
Hi Melissa! YAY! That makes me SO happy!! Thanks for sharing! – Sammy
Very light and surprisingly not too sweet! Delicious right out of the oven this morning.
OMG, 😲 this cake was absolutely delicious, it was so moist and tasted divine!!! 😋 🍎🍏
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe……..I’ll definitely be making another one soon! 🤗
Thank you so much for this review. I am SO happy you enjoyed it! All the best, -Sammy
How many cups of batter does recipe make.
I am not sure how many cups the batter makes – sorry Linda. -Sammy
The only down side to this cake is that it doesn’t even last 24 hours!
Holy smokes is this THE best apple cake or what?! Definitely on repeat in my kitchen.
Thank you!!
Hiiii Christina! Awe – that makes me so happy. I agree, it’s SO good! In fact, I need to make another one soon lol. -Sammy
Hi Sammy, I’m just dying to try this cake especially after reading all the wonderful reviews. The problem is that I’m alone and would like to make a smaller portion. If I halved the recipe, do you think an 8 x 8 would be the proper pan to use? Thank you for posting this awesome recipe!
Hi Shelly! I think that should be fine. I recommend whichever pan you do end up using, just fill it a little over half full and it will work out! Hope this helps. -Sammy
I like everything with apples.Good one.
I’m pregnant and was craving cake lol, I basically had all of the ingredients to throw this together so decided to give it a try. OMG- so delicious and moist, I will be snacking on this for the next few days. I will definitely be coming back to this recipe if I’m hosting a larger crowd too!
Made this last year and just itching to make some this fall! It was so moist and delicious
So simple and delicious!! I love all your recipes. Thanks you!
Absolutely divine! This recipe is a hit. Thanks Sammy!
Sammy!!!! Omg this was the perfect dessert for a random Friday night family night. Everyone loved it! I mean everyone, which in my family is hard to do. I followed exactly as written. I even have two requests to bake this cake for future events. It was moist and full of flavor. Everyone loved the cinnamon brown sugar topping. My favorite review was from our elderly baker who said it tasted clean, yet elegant! Tough critic and this cake won him over. Thank you for posting this. Will definitely being trying more of your recipes
Delicious! Super fluffy and moist. Not too sweet. A definite make again on rotation. Thank you!
The family went apple picking today and this was the perfect recipe to try those apples! The cake is delicious!
Hello! I was wondering if you know of the high altitude alterations we would need to make? Thank you
This cake looks delicious can I use egg replacer Bob’sRED mill, I have a family member with egg allergies would you have any suggestions please thank-you
My family loved this!
Haven’t tried but want to make tomorrow—can I make these in muffin tins for individual portions?
I haven’t tried that but I can’t see why that wouldn’t work! I recommend just chopping the apples a bit smaller and just keep an eye on them – and if you do, let us know how they turn out. Cheers -Sammy
So, I made the recipe as cupcakes and they were delicious!! However, just like some who baked as a cake, the batter “grew” and cupcakes overflowed. They weren’t pretty but they were eaten. I will make it again, but now know if I want normal sized cupcakes, I would put less batter in each cup. I made 14- but think 24 would do the trick!
This worked exactly as written, thanks!
One of the best apple cake recipes I’ve ever made. Enough to feed my family, friends and students, the cake received rave reviews from all. This is a keeper!
My family loved this!
My niece and I always do some sort of cooking when we hang out. This time I had a ton of apples and decided we would try this.
Trust the process. Trust the instructions. There’s a reason that after adding things there’s a step that says don’t worry if it looks separated. Sammy already knows that you’ll worry because IT WILL HAPPEN.
Also, don’t skimp on the topping. It makes the whole cake sing.
My niece took a bite and melted into her chair – she said it was the most amazing cake she’s made!!
Definitely a keeper. Definitely making it again. And again. And again.
So glad we tried this one out.
Comes together easily. Nice and moist!
Hi! Made this for a family Christmas party, delicious and so moist! I have a question though…should the apples sink to the bottom of the cake while cooking? This cake will be a repeatable recipe for me, so good with a cup of coffee the morning after the party! Thank you!
Can I use a different pan for baking?