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As seen on Next Level Baker! This is what I whipped up for the judges from the doldrums of the basement kitchen. It’s a tender cake chock-full of apples, topped with warmly spiced stewed apples and a crunchy almond crumble, finished with a decadent and cozy mulled wine sauce. This cake has serious character—flavor, texture, and depth. It’s not every day that Carla Hall calls your cake “Something amazing!”, and Gordon Ramsay and Candace Nelson go back in for a second bite!
This recipe is the combination of a few very simple recipes that add up to much more than the sum of the parts. So, despite sounding complex, this all comes together in just over an hour! I mean, if I can prepare this in an hour in the basement kitchen, it’s certain to be a piece of cake (see what I did there) for you from the comfort of your home kitchen! And, best of all, it uses ingredients you probably already have in your pantry.
So, crack open a bottle of wine (or even a fine boxed wine, if you must), and get started! You can use some for the recipe, and some to sip as you go. Served as slices, this cake also makes a perfect dinner party plated dessert!
Why You’ll LOVE This Apple Crumble Cake
Here’s what you’ll need:
Apple Crumble Cake Tips
Prepare apples with care. The size of the dice (1/2in here) is important, as a dice that is too small or big will affect the finish and may result in over- or under-baked apples, which will have poor texture.
Taste as you go. One of my favorite aspects of this recipe is that it is modular. So, you will make each component separately and be able to taste test everything along the way to make sure it is to your liking before assembly! Take full advantage of that, and make adjustments to spice levels, lemon juice quantities, etc. along the way if you’d like.
Wine sauce. The wine sauce can become a wine caramel if you reduce it down too far (still tasty, but not what we’re looking for here)! While reducing it over heat, look for it to thicken slightly and appear syrupy. It will thicken further as it cools. If you are unsure, place a few small spoons in the fridge before you start. Dip a cold spoon into the sauce and pull it out for a quick look at how the sauce’s consistency will be once cooled. If the sauce appears too thick after cooling, warm it gently before serving.
How to make this apple crumble cake:
- Make the apple cake: Preheat the oven to 375°F. Prepare a 6″ cake pan. Whisk your dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside. Cream the butter and sugar, and then mix in the egg, vanilla, and lemon juice. Add the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Fold in the diced apples. Pour into cake pan, spread evenly, and bake until golden brown around the outside and a toothpick comes out clean, approximately 25-30 minutes. Cool in pan for 15 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to continue.
- Make the almond crumble: Whisk together flour, almond flour, and salt, and set aside. Cream butter and sugar, then add almond extract, and then add the flour mixture, mixing until just combined. Crumble onto a small sheet pan lined with parchment and bake at 375°F until golden brown, approximately 15-17 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
- Make the stewed apples: Melt butter in a medium pot over medium heat. Add apples and toss to coat. Add cinnamon, sugar, and salt. Continue cooking until apples are slightly softened, approximately 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Make mulled wine sauce: Add all ingredients except lemon juice to a medium pot over medium heat. Mix together and reduce by about half, until slightly thickened and syrup-y, approximately 5-8 minutes. Remove from heat, add lemon juice, and strain.
- Assembly: Gently re-warm stewed apples and/or wine sauce if either have cooled too much. Add stewed apples and almond crumble to the top of the cake. Dust with powdered sugar if desired. Pour or spoon mulled wine sauce over top. Serve warm.
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“Something amazing.” – Carla Hall
Double Apple Crumble Cake With Mulled Wine Sauce
Ingredients
Apple Cake
- 85 grams all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- 60 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
- 65 grams granulated sugar
- 50 grams whole egg (approx. 1 large egg)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 150 grams apple, peeled, diced (approx. 1 medium apple, 1/2in diced)
Almond Crumble
- 55 grams all-purpose flour
- 10 grams almond flour
- Pinch of salt
- 40 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
- 25 grams granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
Stewed Apples
- 14 grams unsalted butter (approx. 1 tbsp)
- 150 grams apple, peeled, diced (approx. 1 medium apple, 1/2in diced)
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
Mulled Wine Sauce
- 160 grams red wine (approx. 160ml)
- 250 grams light brown sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 8 whole cloves
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
Optional
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
Apple Cake
- Preheat oven to 375°F and prepare a 6" cake pan by greasing and lining with parchment.
- In a small bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, and ground cinnamon and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together unsalted butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until pale in color and fluffy, approximately 3-5 minutes.
- To the butter and sugar, add the egg, vanilla extract, and lemon juice, and mix to combine on medium speed. Then, add flour mixture and mix on low speed until just combined. Fold in diced apple with a stiff rubber spatula or wooden spoon. Pour batter into prepared cake pan, and use a spoon or offset spatula to spread it evenly.
- Bake until golden brown around the edges and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, approximately 25-30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, and let cool in the pan for 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to continue cooling.
Almond Crumble
- While apple cake is baking, prepare the almond crumble. The oven will stay at 375°F. Prepare a quarter sheet pan with a piece of parchment and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, almond flour, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together unsalted butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until pale in color and fluffy, approximately 3-5 minutes. Add almond extract, and mix to combine. Add flour mixture, and mix until just combined.
- Crumble into small pieces on the prepared sheet pan, and bake until golden brown, approximately 15-17 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
Stewed Apples
- In a medium pot over medium heat, add butter and melt. Once melted, add diced apples and toss to coat in butter.
- Add ground cinnamon, granulated sugar, and salt, and mix to evenly distribute.
- Continue cooking until apples are slightly softened, approximately 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
Mulled Wine Sauce
- Add everything except the lemon juice to a medium pot over medium heat, mix together, and reduce by approximately half, until slightly thickened and syrup-y, approximately 5-8 minutes.
- Off heat, add lemon juice. Then, strain through a fine mesh sieve into a heat-proof container (yields ~1 cup of sauce). Set aside.
Assembly
- You may wish to re-heat the stewed apples or wine sauce if either have cooled too much. Add stewed apples and almond crumble to the top of the apple cake. Optional: Dust generously with powdered sugar. Pour or spoon mulled wine sauce over top. Serve apple cake warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if preferred. Enjoy!
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
I’d love to see! Follow and tag @pastrychefjeff on Instagram!
