This spiced apple cake is incredibly moist and full of warm cosy spices. It’s made up of soft apple cake layers packed with fresh apples, a tangy apple filling, and a smooth cinnamon cream cheese frosting. Literally the best apple cake I’ve ever had!
Why You’ll Love This Apple Cake Recipe
When I say this spiced apple cake is on another level, I honestly mean it! Here are a few reasons why I think you’re going to LOVE this apple layer cake recipe 🙂
Full of flavor: This apple cake is packed with flavor. The cake layers are full of cosy spices (cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg) and have heaps of apple in them too. The tart apple filling is flavored with apples, lemon juice and cinnamon and the cinnamon cream cheese frosting is based off my 5 star rated cream cheese frosting recipe — so you know it’s going to be good!
Made with real apples: This recipe is packed with heaps of fresh red apples to really give it that apple flavor. The cake layers have two whole cups of finely shredded apple in them, and the apple filling has an additional cup of shredded apple (which adds great texture to the cake too). Red baking apples will be the best apples to use for this recipe, such as Royal Gala apples, Jazz, Honeycrisp apples, etc.
Soft & Moist: Yes, my favorite word to use when it comes to cake recipes is ‘soft & moist’ 😂 and this recipe is no exception. The cake layers are oiled based (adapted from my spice cake recipe) so you know they’re going to stay moist for days!
Looking for something a bit more simple? Check out my single layer apple crumb cake recipe.
How to Make Apple Cake
You can find the full list of ingredients in the recipe card at the end of the post (for easy navigation, hit the ‘jump to recipe’ button at the top of the blog post). Here is just a quick visual breakdown of the recipe (recipe video is also provided in the recipe card below).
Apple Cake
Preheat oven to 180 °C/350°F conventional (if using a convection oven with a fan, lower the temperature to 160°C/320°F) and grease two 8×3 inch cake pans (I use my homemade cake release). You can line the bottoms with parchment paper too, but I found the cake release was sufficient for this recipe.
In a bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg. Using a whisk, mix until well combined. Set aside.
Finely grate two apples (minus the core – see video for how I do this) and measure the grated apple out so you have two cups (300g). Set aside.
In a large bowl combine light brown sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, milk, vanilla and shredded apple from previous step. Using a whisk, mix until well combined and smooth.
Pour your dry ingredients into your wet mixture and using a rubber spatula, gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix the batter.
Distribute the batter evenly into the two 8 inch cake tins, and bake for 30-33 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
Once baked, allow the cakes to cool in the cake tins for 20 minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack. While cooling, prepare the apple filling and cream cheese frosting.
Apple Filling
Add all the ingredients to a saucepan. Place the saucepan over a medium heat and cook until the butter and sugar are completely melted, making sure to stir continuously.
Cook for another few minutes until the filling is thick. Once ready, place into a bowl to cool.
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
To a large bowl add in unsalted butter and using an electric mixer (see note 5 if using a stand mixer) cream for a few minutes on a medium high speed until light and fluffy.
Add in the powdered sugar in 3 batches while mixing on low. Ensure that each batch of powdered sugar is mixed into the butter well before adding in the next batch.
Next add in cold cream cheese, vanilla, fresh lemon juice and cinnamon and mix on a medium speed just until the frosting is smooth. Avoid over-mixing as the more you mix the softer the frosting will become.
Assembly (see video for demonstration)
Using a serrated knife, level the tops of the cake layers so they’re nice and flat.
Place the first cake layer onto your cake stand and place a generous amount of the cream cheese buttercream on top and smooth it out with an offset spatula.
Using a 1M piping tip, pipe a dam of frosting around the edges of the cake layer. Fill the middle with the apple filling (make sure the filling isn’t warm otherwise it will melt the frosting).
Place your next cake layer on top and cover the top and sides with more buttercream. I like to use a cake scraper to smooth out the sides.
Using the same 1M piping tip, pipe some swirls on the top of the cake and you can use the extra frosting to do additional piping too 🙂
How to Store Apple Cake
This apple cake can be left at room temperature for the day, however overnight it will need to be placed in the refrigerator due to the cream cheese in the frosting. The fat and sugar in the frosting will prevent the cream cheese frosting from going off immediately, which is why you can keep it out at room temperature for an extended period of time.
The Best Spiced Apple Cake
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Spice Cake
- 2¼ cups (270 g) all purpose flour - plain flour in the UK
- ¼ cup (30 g) cornstarch
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1½ tsp ground ginger - powdered not fresh
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- 2 cups (300 g) finely shredded apples - about two medium to large apples. Any red baking apple will work (Royal Gala, Jazz, Honey Crisp, etc.)
- 1½ cups (300 g) soft light brown sugar - firmly packed (see note 1)
- 3 large eggs - room temperature
- 1 cup (210 g) unflavoured vegetable oil - I use canola
- ¼ cup (60 g) whole milk - room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla essence/extract
Apple Filling
- 1 cup (150 g) finely shredded apple - about 1 medium to large sized apple
- ¼ cup (50 g) soft light brown sugar
- 2 tbsp water
- 2 tsps cornstarch
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 3 tsps lemon juice - freshly squeezed
- ¼ cup (56 g) unsalted butter
Cream Cheese Buttercream
- 1 cup (225 g) unsalted butter - room temperature
- 4½ cups (570 g) powdered sugar - also known as confectioners/icing sugar
- 1½ cups (335 g) cream cheese - cold, firm type (see note 2)
- 1½ tsp vanilla extract/essence
- 1½ tbsp lemon juice - freshly squeezed
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 °C (350°F) conventional (see note 3 if using a convection oven with a fan) and grease two 8x3 inch cake tins (I use my homemade cake release).
- In a bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg. Using a whisk, mix until well combined. Set aside.
- Finely grate two apples (minus the core - see video for how I do this) and measure the grated apple out so you have two cups (300g). Set aside.
- In a large bowl combine light brown sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, milk, vanilla and shredded apple from previous step. Using a whisk, mix until well combined and smooth.
- Pour your dry ingredients into your wet ingredients and using a spatula, gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix the batter (see note 4).
- Distribute the batter evenly into the two 8 inch cake tins, and bake for 30-33 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
- Once baked, allow the cakes to cool in the cake tins for 20 minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack. While cooling, prepare the apple filling and cream cheese frosting.
Apple Filling
- Add all the ingredients to a saucepan. Place the saucepan over a medium heat and cook until the butter and sugar are completely melted, making sure to stir continuously.
- Cook for another few minutes until the filling is thick. Once ready, place into a bowl to cool.
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- To a large bowl add in unsalted butter and using an electric mixer (see note 5 if using a stand mixer) cream for a few minutes on a medium high speed until light and fluffy.
- Add in the powdered sugar in 3 batches while mixing on low. Ensure that each batch of powdered sugar is mixed into the butter well before adding in the next batch.
- Next add in cold cream cheese, vanilla, fresh lemon juice and cinnamon and mix on a medium speed just until the frosting is smooth. Avoid over-mixing as the more you mix the softer the frosting will become.
Assembly (see video for demonstration)
- Using a serrated knife, level the tops of the cake layers so they're nice and flat.
- Place the first cake layer onto your cake stand and place a generous amount of the cream cheese buttercream on top and smooth it out with an offset spatula.
- Using a 1M piping tip, pipe a dam of frosting around the edges of the cake layer. Fill the middle with the apple filling (make sure the filling isn't warm otherwise it will melt the frosting).
- Place your next cake layer on top and cover the top and sides with more buttercream. I like to use a cake scraper to smooth out the sides.
- Using the same 1M piping tip, pipe some swirls on the top of the cake and you can use the extra frosting to do additional piping too 🙂
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
58 Comments
Hi,
What is the best substitute for nutmeg h
Hi Alison! 🙂 You could substitute nutmeg with all spice, or simply leave it out 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Can I make the apple filling 1 day in advance
Hi Lisa! Yes you can totally do that. Just store in the fridge overnight 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hello. thank you for this recipe – it looks really yummy! I’m wondering if i could make cupcakes with this recipe? if yes, would would be the measurements and cooking time? and would I do anything else differently? Thank you!
Hi Aditi 🙂 Yes you could totally turn this recipe into cupcakes! If you wanted about 11-12 cupcakes then you would want to half the recipe, and the baking temp would stay the same but the cook time would need to be reduced (I would check around the 18 min mark for standard sized cupcakes and then bake more if needed). Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe 😀
Would it be possible to make this as a sheet poke cake with the apple filling then frost the top? I do not have round pans.
Hi Karen! Yes that may be possible if using a 9×13 inch sheet pan 🙂
You would likely just need to reduce the cook time slightly to ensure the cake doesn’t overbake. Hope you enjoy the recipe 😀
Can i do this without cornstarch/ cornflour??
Hi Sian! 🙂 You could substitute the cornstarch with flour, the cake may just be a little less soft, and just be sure not to overmix the batter at the end 🙂
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hi MK. Can your 2 layer cakes also be baked in a Bundt pan? If so what is the suggested cook temperature and time? Thanks.
Hi Yolanda! 🙂 I think it really depends on how much of a crust forms on the outer edge of the cake. E.g. with my red velvet cake it develops a decent crust on the edge so should be okay as a bundt cake (I have had some readers say they tried it as a bundt cake and it turned out well!), whereas other cakes that don’t have a good crust may not be ideal for a bundt pan because they may not release well. So sorry I couldn’t give a definitive answer as I haven’t tried them as bundt cakes myself, but I do hope to share more bundt cake recipes soon 😀
Thank you for this lovely recipe, I’ve just put the cakes in the oven to bake, and realised I’ve forgotten to add the milk !
Will it be awful without it ?
Hi Jude! 🙂 As the milk is only 60g (1/4 cup) and the recipe itself does have quite a bit of liquid/fat, it should be fine! It may just be a little less soft and may dry out a bit quicker (so just be sure to store it in an airtight container once sliced to prevent this from happening). Hope you enjoyed the recipe 😀
Can you freeze the cake and make the apple filling and cream cheese frosting later
Hi Laura! 🙂 I haven’t tried freezing the cake layers myself, but I think if they’re wrapped well in cling wrap and placed into an airtight container prior to freezing it should be fine!
Just pull it out the day before you’ll be making the other elements to give it ample time to thaw 🙂
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hey MK,
Can I use apple sauce instead and if so how much?
Hi Peggy! 🙂
I haven’t tried with apple sauce myself, but I think there may be a bit too much liquid in the batter if substituting the shredded apple with applesauce. It may work though, just not 100% sure sorry!
Would love to hear how it goes if you decide to try it out 🙂
When I saw this cake in your email newsletter, I knew I had to try it. This might be the best cake I’ve ever made. Excellent apple flavor, perfect amount of spice, cream cheese frosting is not too sweet, and it is super moist (like all your cakes are!). Thank you for this recipe.
Yay! So so happy to hear you loved the apple cake recipe and all the different elements in it 😀
Really appreciate the wonderful feedback 🙂
Hi
I was wondering if it would be okay to decrease the amount of sugar in the frosting to 2 cups, how would it turn out?
Hi Aiysha! 🙂 You could reduce the powdered sugar slightly, though down to 2 cups will probably be too much as it will leave the frosting quite soft and it may not be able to hold it’s shape well.
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe! 🙂
Hello MK,
Could this be turned into a sheet cake ? Can I use the same recipe in a 9*13 pan ? Thank you in advance 🙂
Hi Shanaz! 🙂 Yes you should be able to turn this into a 9×13 inch sheet cake using 1x the recipe, you may just need to reduce the cook time slightly 🙂
I would recommend halving the frosting for a 9x13inch sheet cake.
Hope you enjoy the recipe 😀
No idea what I’m doing wrong but it’s been 40min in the oven and still raw in the middle!?
Hi Gem! 🙂 Are the cakes in two 8 inch cake tins?? If the cake tins are smaller, or you’ve put all the batter into one 8 inch cake tin, then it will take longer to bake. Another reason could be that your oven is running a little cold, so it’s taking longer for the cakes to bake. Hope that helps!