Bready or Not: Irish Apple Cake
I’ve posted many different recipes for apple cake. This Irish Apple Cake uses a 9-inch round cake pan with layers of cake, apple, and streusel.
This isn’t a light, airy cake. It’s dense and moist. It’s a cake that is ideally paired with tea, coffee, or hot cider.
It’s not heavily sweet, either, but the sweetness that is there arises from the apple and that wonderful crumble topping.
The big thing that sets this cake apart from other recipes is that you do experience the textural variations between the layers. It really reminds me of my family favorite Caramel Apple Pie in that regard.
This cake is best eaten fresh, but fear not! If you freeze it when it’s fresh, it will be wonderfully preserved for later on. Just eat it right after it’s thawed.
Modified from a Gemma Stafford recipe in Food Network Magazine, March 2021.
Bready or Not: Irish Apple Cake
Equipment
- 9-inch cake pan
Ingredients
Streusel
- 6 Tablespoons cold butter
- 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- pinch salt
Cake
- 1/2 cup salted butter 1 stick
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- pinch salt
- 3 Tablespoons milk
- 3 medium baking apples such as Fuji or Granny Smith, peeled and thinly sliced
- confectioners' sugar for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a 9-inch cake pan with foil and apply nonstick spray or butter.
- Make the streusel first. Dice up the butter in a medium bowl. Add the flour, oats, sugar, and salt. Using fingers, compress and break apart the butter into small crumbs distributed throughout the dry mix. Set the bowl in fridge to chill while assembling the cake.
- Cream the butter and white sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and eggs.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually fold the dry ingredients into the wet along with the milk. Once everything is just mixed, pour it into the prepared pan. Place the apple slices one at a time to form an even layer. Sprinkle the streusel on top and even it out.
- Bake the cake until the top is golden, about 60 to 70 minutes. The middle should pass the toothpick test. Let cool at room temperature, eventually placing in fridge to speed the process, if desired.
- Cut into 1/8ths. Top pieces with sprinkled confectioners’ sugar to make it even more pretty. The cake is best eaten fresh, but pieces can also be individually frozen the day of baking for a delicious treat later.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Apple-Almond Olive Oil Cake
This Apple-Almond Cake is an absolute showstopper of a cake, and it’s not difficult to make!
Really, I found cutting the apple into thin, mostly-equal pieces and placing them on the cake to be the most piddly part of the whole process. However, it was all well worth the effort!
The taste of the cake isn’t super-sweet. The cake really tastes of lemon and almond, a fabulous pairing, with the apple providing a touch of flavor and sweetness.
It’s not a thick or heavy cake, either. This would be fantastic to serve for a breakfast, brunch, or dessert–it can really do all the things!
I modified this recipe greatly from one that was in Bake from Scratch’s September-October 2020 issue, which used a pear instead of an apple. It’s a fantastic issue–you’ll see my takes on several other recipes in the future!
Bready or Not Original: Apple-Almond Olive Oil Cake
Equipment
- 9-inch springform pan
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2/3 cup almond flour sifted to remove clumps
- 1/3 cup half & half or milk
- 1 lemon zested and juiced
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 large Pink Lady apple or other firm baking apple
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Cut parchment paper to fit the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Apply nonstick spray to pan; place parchment round inside, then spray to coat that as well.
- In a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. whip the eggs at high speed until they are foamy, about a minute. Reduce the speed to medium to add the white sugar. Continue to beat until it becomes thick and pale, about 2 minutes.
- With the mixer going, pour in olive oil. Pause to scrape sides of bowl. Add the almond flour, half & half, all of the lemon zest, and both extracts, mixing until combined.
- In another bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold the dry ingredients into the moist mix. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
- Prep the apple. Core it, leaving the peel intact. Cut into thin slices of equal size. Pour reserved lemon juice over the apples, tossing them to coat.
- Place apple slices on top of batter in fanned-out groups of about five, having them face different angles all around the top. NOTE: as the batter is very sticky, the apples will be nigh impossible to move after they are placed, so make careful decisions. Sprinkle the sliced almonds around the edges and in the gaps between the apples.
- Bake for about 50 minutes, until the middle passes the toothpick test. Set on rack for 15 minutes before removing the ring from the pan. Serve warm, or cool completely, keeping the cake on the round base. When slicing the cake, be aware that the peel is pretty but may resist the blade–it’s easier to snip through with a pair of kitchen shears.
- Cake can be sliced and frozen for later, but it will taste best at room temperature or warmed.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Caramel Apple Pie
Bready or Not has featured many kinds of apple pie and cake over the years, but this is the recipe that I have made most often across my twenty years of marriage: Caramel Apple Pie.
I was shocked to realize I hadn’t featured it on Bready or Not since I started it on my domain site in 2014. I posted an earlier version on my LiveJournal, back in the day.
The base recipe came from Mr. Food. Who else remembers the Mr. Food spots on TV? He used to be on Channel 30’s midday news in Fresno. I was newly engaged when I saw him demonstrate this on his five-minute TV spot, and I mailed to the TV station with a SASE to get a print copy of the recipe.
The air date on the sheet is October 8th, 1999. I would have been watching the news from my dorm room at Fresno Pacific University!
I’m pretty sure I made this recipe for my fiancé when he came to visit me that Christmas (and we hoped that the Y2K Disaster would happen so he didn’t have to fly back to the Navy on January 1st).
It seems only right to feature this recipe at holiday time all these years later. I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m asked to make this again in just a few weeks!
Greatly modified from Caramel Crunch Apple Pie from Mr. Food (rest in peace, good chef).
Bready or Not Original: Caramel Apple Pie
Ingredients
Pie filling:
- 1 deep-dish pie shell homemade dough or store-bought
- 5 medium apples mix of varieties best, including Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, etc
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
Topping:
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1 stick, cold
- 1 jar caramel drizzle as much as desired; most of the jar will be unused
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 375-degrees; set a baking sheet in the oven to heat up as well (this will reduce the likelihood of a pie with a soggy bottom). Press the pie dough into a deep dish pie pan, if not already formed. Stash it in the fridge while the filling is being prepared.
- Peel and core apples and slice into thin wedges. Toss them with the 2 Tablespoons flour to coat. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, and cinnamon. Dice up the butter and toss it in the mix. Use a pastry cutter or a fork to mash up the butter to make pea-sized and smaller pieces of various shapes. Set bowl in fridge briefly, and bring out the pie shell.
- Pour the apple slices into the pie shell and distribute them to make a nice mound. Drizzle jarred caramel over the top, to personal preference. Use a spoon to distribute crumb topping to cover apples, using butter lumps and powder to fill the nooks and crannies.
- Set pie on hot baking sheet. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until apples are tender when pierced by fork. Cool for at least 30 minutes before cutting in.
- Store pie covered by foil in fridge. Will keep for as long as a week. Great eaten cold or warmed up!
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Apple-Frangipane Galette
This Apple-Frangipane Galette is like a leaner apple pie. It’s the way to enjoy a sweet treat without going full overkill.
This recipe has a lot of ingredients and steps, but they can be spread out over a few days, if you want. The actual recipe is pretty straightforward!
I’ve been doing a number of recipes that use frangipane, and I get asked almost every time: “what is frangipane?”
To quote Wikipedia, it’s: “a sweet almond-flavored custard used in a variety of ways including cakes and… pastries. …Today it is normally made of butter, sugar, eggs, and ground almonds.”
In other words, it’s a spreadable, sweet, nutty layer of goodness. It acts as the perfect complement to apples in this recipe.
Do note that this is best enjoyed the day it is made. It’s fine, though, to freeze slices of it right away. When you thaw them later, enjoy the pieces that same day!
Bready or Not Original: Apple-Frangipane Galette
Equipment
- parchment paper
- food processor
- pastry brush
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 4 teaspoons white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 6 Tablespoons cold unsalted butter cut into small pieces
- 1 large egg
Frangipane:
- 2/3 cup almond flour sifted to remove lumps
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 large egg
- 1 Tablespoon apple brandy such as Calvados (optional)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice
- pinch salt
Apple filling:
- 2 medium apples such as Honeycrisp or Golden Delicious
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar packed
- 1 Tablespoon white sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon apple pie spice
- 1 large egg beaten
- turbinado or other coarse sugar
Glaze:
- 2 Tablespoons honey
- 2 teaspoons apple brandy such as Calvados
Instructions
Make the crust:
- In a food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the butter and chop until it’s pea-sized. Add the egg and pulse until it comes together; if it doesn’t, add tiny drizzles of water until it does–just make sure the dough ends up cohesive, not wet. Turn out the dough onto a big piece of plastic wrap and compress the dough to form a disc. Wrap it up and chill it in fridge for a few hours, minimum, or a few days.
Make the frangipane:
- Use a rubber spatula to combine the almond flour, sugar, flour, butter, egg, apple brandy, vanilla, pie spice and salt, making it smooth. Stash it in the fridge until ready to use.
Assembling the galette:
- Preheat oven at 400-degrees. Prepare a big cookie sheet with a piece of parchment. Bring out the dough to warm for a few minutes, then lightly flour a surface and roll it out to about a 12-inch round. Move it to the parchment paper.
- Spread the frangipane over the dough, leaving a blank 1 1/2-inch border. Set the baking sheet in the fridge while preparing the apples.
Prepare the apples:
- Peel the apples and slice to 1/4-inch thickness. In another bowl, stir together the brown sugar, sugar, lemon juice, and pie spice. Add this to the apples, and toss them to coat. Bring out the galette dough. Arrange the apples on the frangipane starting from the middle, spiraling them outward while slightly overlapping them. Fold the blank edge over the apples to form a thin, pleated crust. Brush the beaten egg over the crust, then sprinkle it with coarse sugar.
- Bake galette for 35 to 40 minutes. Apples in middle should be fork-tender when done. Cool for about 30 minutes.
Make the glaze:
- In a small saucepan on the stovetop or in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave, warm the honey and brandy until it is loose and spreadable. Using a clean pastry brush, brush glaze over the apples.
- Let galette cool another 30 minutes, minimum, before cutting it–a pizza slicer is great for this. The galette is best eaten the day it is made, or promptly frozen in slices to be eaten soon after it thaws.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not: French Apple Cake in a Springform Pan
This French Apple Cake is thick with apples, not cake. There’s actually just enough batter to adhere everything together.
The apples are the star, so get good ones. I recommend doing about half Honeycrisp and Pink Ladies, but go for a combo of two good kinds of baking apples. (Not sure which ones are best for baking? Google has lots of recs!)
I’ve had a springform pan for years, but I’ve never used it like I did in 2020. That particular pan makes this cake extra good, too, because it creates a high cake with nicely browned edges.
One thing I’ve noticed about French and Irish apple cakes is that they really emphasize the fruit. American cakes and pies add a lot more spice. As much as I love loading on the cinnamon, it’s refreshing to do a take like this sometimes.
Let the fruit taste… well, fruity. Here, the addition of Calvados or another apple brandy brings that out even more. You don’t end up with an alcohol taste in the final result, but it does draw out more of the apple flavor.
This cake is a great one to slice up and freeze for later, too. Make the goodness last even longer!
Modified from Bake from Scratch September/October 2020 issue.
Bready or Not: French Apple Cake in a Springform Pan
Equipment
- 9-inch springform pan
- uneven spatula
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 8 large baking apples totaling about 800 grams mix of Honeycrisp and Pink Lady recommended
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 3 Tablespoons apple brandy use Calvados to make it especially French
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or substitute vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2/3 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 1 Tablespoon sparkling sugar
- Confectioners' sugar for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Prepare a 9-inch springform pan by cutting a piece of parchment to fit the base. Apple nonstick spray to the pan, then add the parchment, and spray it as well. In addition, tear a piece of aluminum foil to cup the bottom of the pan to catch any drips.
- Peel the apples and chop into 1-inch pieces. Toss with lemon juice. Set aside.
- In a big bowl, beat eggs until they are pale and foamy. Add the white sugar, apple brandy, and vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the big egg-sugar bowl along with the melted butter. Scrape the bowl as needed, stirring everything until just combined. Don’t expect a huge amount of batter–it’s there to act like delicious glue for all of the apple pieces!
- Reserve 1 heaping cup of the apple chunks. Fold the rest of the apples into the batter, coating them. Dump the mix into the prepared pan and even out with an uneven spatula. Arrange the remaining apples on top, pushing them into the batter and smoothing them out as much as possible.
- Bake for 20 minutes. Add sparkling sugar over the top. Bake another 20 minutes and check on the cake. It is done with apples in middle are tender and a digital thermometer plunged into the center reads at least 200-degrees. If needed, cook longer; if it’s browning too much, cover with foil.
- Let cake cool in pan for 15 minutes on a cooling rack. Carefully release the springform ring to let it completely cool for at least an hour; place in fridge to speed the chilling process, if desired.
- Slice into wedges. Enjoy cold, at room temperature, or warmed, with confectioners' sugar sprinkled over the top. Pieces can also be individually wrapped and frozen for later.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Slow Cooker Apple Steel Cut Oats
These Slow Cooker Apple Steel Cut Oats are not the most photogenic of foods, but they are delicious, healthy, and good, and probably one of the most convenient meals in my cooking repertoire.
I’ve been cooking this recipe for over five years now, tweaking it here and there, making it better. What I present here is really a foundation. This recipe can be customized all kinds of ways–either when the food is being assembled, by adding in different spices or apples, or by tweaking it at serving time.
I love using Gala, Honeycrisp, or Pink Lady apples, but go for any good baking-type apple or a variety thereof. You don’t want the apples to go to mush. Or maybe you do? That might not be a terrible thing here.
I typically use unsweetened vanilla almond milk or cashew milk, but any plain or vanilla nut, soy, or oat milks would work, or you can opt for dairy milk.
This isn’t an overnight slow cooker oats recipe. I’ve tried that. Even on low and warm settings, the oats just plain overcooked for my preference. The consistency goes brick-like and the pot requires some intense scraping if you don’t use a removable liner. I prefer to make this during the day, and then portion out the oats to go in the fridge and freezer. They reheat beautifully.
Bready or Not Original: Slow Cooker Apple Steel Cut Oats
Equipment
- large slow cooker
Ingredients
- 2 cups steel cut oats no substitutes
- 2 cups nut milk or oat milk, regular or vanilla, sweetened or unsweetened
- 2 cups water
- 2 medium apples peeled and chopped
- 1/4 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in slow cooker and stir to distribute. Place lid on pot and put heat level to LOW. Cook for 3 hours before lifting lid again. Stir and taste to test doneness. Continue to cook for 30 minutes to an hour more, dependent on the desired texture for the oats. The longer it cooks, the thicker it will be.
- Serve oats fresh, or stash in fridge to reheat in microwave over the next week. These oats are great to portion out and freeze for later. If desired, add more spices, fresh fruit, or extra milk when serving–the customization possibilities are endless!
