Get ready to enjoy a piece of this melt-in-your-mouth French Apple Cake. It's so good and step-by-step photos teach you how to bake this delicious cake recipe. The custardy cake is filled with slices of apples for a dessert you'll keep going back for more!
I love a dessert that is a mash-up of sorts. This French apple cake is a combination of custard and cake, you may be intrigued the first time you try it but you'll keep going back for more, trust me!
Another reason to adore this apple dessert recipe is that it does not require a stand mixer, you can easily mix this by hand in about 10 minutes!
The apples are baked to perfection in between layers of the custardy cake, it's seriously a dream to bite into. My sister loves it cold from the fridge, but I like to enjoy a slice more at room temperature. You could serve a little bit of whipped cream on top or a scoop of vanilla ice cream, but the cake doesn't need it!
Let's get to the recipe
Ingredients
For this cake you'll need:
- Granulated Sugar. The sugar provides majority of the sweetness of the cake (you get some from the apples too) but it also helps with the structure of the cake.
- Whole Milk. Make sure your milk is at room temperature. You could use 2% but your custard and cake will have a slightly different texture due to the milk fat reduction.
- Butter. The butter contributes to the flavor of this cake, it is not hidden by something overpowering like chocolate, so I urge you to use good-quality butter, I used Kerry Gold European Style Butter.
- Large Eggs. Make sure your eggs are at room temperature so they can evenly incorporate into the rest of the batter.
- Pure Vanilla Extract. Just like the butter plays into the flavor profile so does the vanilla so I highly suggest using good-quality vanilla NOT imitation vanilla extract.
- All-Purpose Flour. This cake has a special texture like a custardy cake so making sure you measure the correct amount of flour is important. I tried it with 1 ¼ cups of flour and it was ruined. For this reason, I suggest weighing your flour with a scale.
Baking is a science and to really achieve the best results I highly recommend investing in a kitchen scale. This OXO Kitchen Scale is the one I use and is also the number one recommended kitchen scale by Cook's Illustrated. Think about it -what one person scoops into a "cup" is completely different from what someone else scoops!
- Salt. Just a bit will help bring out all of the other ingredients' flavor profiles.
- Baking Powder. This chemical leavening agent gives the batter its ability to rise while baking.
- Cooking Apples. Medium-Large cut into thin slices. I prefer Granny Smith but some like to do a combination of pink lady, Jonagold, and granny smith. You'll need a lot of apples, so weigh them to make sure you have enough! Other cooking apples include: Granny Smith, Honey Crisp, Fuji, Gala, Braeburn, Cortland
- Turbinado Sugar. I like to add a thick sprinkling of sugar on top before the cake bakes.
- Confectioner's Sugar. We will sprinkle this on top with a fine-mesh sieve.
I personally don't use any spices like cinnamon or nutmeg, but you could add ¼ teaspoon to ½ teaspoon to the dry ingredients if you like it spicy. I like the simple custard flavor.
For ingredient quantities please reference the recipe card below. On the recipe card there is a button for US or M (Metric) measurements.
How to Make a French Apple Cake
Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C and grease a 9-inch springform cake pan with non-stick baking spray, I like Baker's Joy. I have never lined my pan with parchment paper and I've made this five times now with no issues of it sticking.
In a large bowl whisk together some all-purpose flour salt and baking powder just until combined then set aside.
In a new large bowl whisk together the granulated sugar, whole milk, cooled melted butter, eggs, egg yolk, and vanilla extract. Make sure you whisk it well enough so there’s no trace of egg yolk left behind.
Add the flour mixture to the wet and gently fold until just combined.
Then start peeling, coring, and slicing your apples, I use an apple slicer but then I cut the apple thinner you’re looking for about ⅛" thickness on the apple slices. If they're too thick they wont cook up properly.
Add all of the apples immediately to the cake batter and gently fold until combined. I like to use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl to ensure all of the apples are coated with the batter. Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle the top with coarse sugar.
Place the pan in the oven to bake for one hour to an hour and 10 minutes until the top is golden brown and set. Let cool completely on a wire rack. I use a large cake spatula to help move the cake from the pan to a serving plate. Dust with a confectioner's sugar right before serving.
I like to use a serrated knife to cut this French Apple Cake I feel like it helps get cleaner slices with the slices of apples moving around.
Because of the moisture in the apples, the confectioner's sugar will melt into them quite quickly. Store leftovers in an airtight container or wrapped well with plastic wrap, at room temperature for up to two days or in the refrigerator for up to five days.
How to freeze
Because of the custard-style texture of this cake I would not suggest freezing it.
More apple recipes
This caramel apple cheesecake is a show-stopper, seriously so good.
Try this apple bundt cake, it's so moist!
For a super easy recipe try this caramel apple dump cake.
My friend Kat makes this scrumptious Apple Crumble Cake, you gotta check it out!
★★★★★ Please let me know if you make this recipe by leaving a star rating and comment below!
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PrintRecipe Card
French Apple Cake
Get ready to enjoy a piece of this melt-in-your-mouth French Apple Cake. It's so good and step-by-step photos teach you how to bake this delicious cake recipe.
Ingredients
- 200 grams (1 Cup) Granulated Sugar
- 8oz (1 Cup) Whole Milk, at room temperature
- 6oz (¾ Cup) Good Quality Butter, I prefer European Style Butter
- 2 Large Eggs + 1 Large Egg Yolk, at room temperature
- 2 Teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
- 125 grams (1 Cup) All-Purpose Flour
- ¼ Teaspoon Salt
- 1 ½ Teaspoons Baking Powder
- 1lb 12oz Peeled, Cored and Sliced Cooking Apples* (About 4 Large Cooking Apples, cut into thin slices (I prefer Granny Smith)
- Coarse Sugar for sprinkling on top
- Confectioner's Sugar for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C and grease a 9-inch springform pan and set it aside.
- In a large bowl whisk together some all-purpose flour salt and baking powder just until combined then set aside.
- In a new large bowl whisk together the granulated sugar, whole milk, cooled melted butter, egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract. Make sure you whisk it well enough so there’s no trace of egg yolk left behind.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and gently fold until just combined. Then start peeling, coring, and slicing your apples, I use an apple slicer but then it cut the apple thinner you’re looking for about ⅛" thickness on the apple slices.
- Add all of the apples immediately to the cake batter and gently fold until combined then pour the cake batter into the greased pan and sprinkle the top with coarse sugar.
- Place the pan in the oven to bake for one hour to an hour and 10 minutes until the top is golden brown and set. Let cool completely on a wire rack. I use a large cake spatula to help move the cake from the pan to a serving plate. Dust with a confectioner's sugar right before serving. Because of the moisture in the apples, the confectioner's sugar will melt into them quite quickly. Store leftovers at room temperature for up to two days or in the refrigerator for up to five days.
Notes
*Cooking Apples: Granny Smith, Honey Crisp, Fuji, Gala, Braeburn, Cortland
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Holly says
Lucky i had a tray under my spring form tin due to amount of butter that oozed out whilst cooking and not quite sure how your cake did not stick to the pan - i did line the base of the tin with baking paper which made it easy remove base but the sides did have some sticking issues even though I did grease them.
★★
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Holly, I am so sorry you didn't find success. I have made this cake numerous times and if I grease the pan before I have had no issues with it sticking to the pan nor had it leak out. I would double-check that your springform pan still fits snug, I know over time I have had to replace mine due to not closing as tightly. I use Bakers Joy to grease my cake pans and find it works the best. I hope that helps. Again, I am sorry you didn't get to enjoy this delicious cake. Let me know if I can help with anythinge else. XX Liz
Patricia Caputi says
Hi Holly, my pans sometimes leak as well — even when they were used for the first time. Now, I wrap a layer of thick tinfoil (or 2 layers of the regular foil around the outside of my pan making sure to make it as tight as possible around the bottom edges. And, I, too, use Bakers joy. Unlike other sprays, Bakers Joy has flour in the spray and works amazingly well. You can find it on Amazon. Good luck!
Elizabeth Waterson says
Yes, Bakers Joy is the best! Thanks for the tips, Patricia. Take care. XX Liz
joan says
Just came out of the oven, and the aroma is wonderful. I added golden raisins and cinnamon. I always put tin foil around the bottom of all my springform pans, it sugared just a little. Bringing it to a BBQ tonight. Will let you know tomorrow. Have a wondferul night.
★★★★★
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Joan, I hope you enjoyed the cake and loved it as much as we do, it's so unique!! Please let me know! Take care. XX Liz
Samantha C says
Hi, I wanted to make individual 3” cakes - can you advise how long I should bake them for. Thank you
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Samantha, I am so sorry I have never made these into small cakes, if I am taking a guess here I would start checking them at the 20/25 minute mark and go from there. Goodluck and please report back if you try them and how you get on! Take care. XX Liz
Dawn says
I made this for after dinner desert. I bought a spring pan to make it and it leaked butter all over my oven. It tasted very heavy and with the amount of butter and sugar that the recipe calls for. I’m very disappointed and not looking forward to cleaning my oven tomorrow.
★
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Dawn, I am so sorry you had an issue with the cake and had to clean your oven. I have made this cake at least 5 times and have not had this issue. 🙁
Wendy says
I made this tonight because I had apples lying around for a while. I added raisins to the batter.
This turned out so good!. I'm not a huge fan of cake but this one is so moist and custardy, I can't stop eating it. Definitely gonna remake it. Quick, easy & tasty!!
I used a regular aluminium pan lined with parchment paper, it turned out fine.
★★★★★
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Wendy, thank you so much for the lovely 5-star review. I am so pleased you enjoyed it, raisins sound like a great addition! Merry Christmas. XX Liz
Ava says
Just made this cake with the exact measurements, pan, and cook time as recommended in the recipe, yet it is extremely watery in the inside. It seems like it didnt even cook so I put it back in the oven and took it out 20 minutes later and it just got even more liquidy in the inside.
★
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Ava, I am so sorry you had issues with this recipe. XX Liz
Amanda Atwood says
French apple cakes typically have cooked apples added to the dough vs uncooked as your recipe is calling for. Do your apples come out “crunchier” than a typical French apple cake?
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Amanda, thanks for reaching out! I wouldn't say the apples come out crunchy per say, they arent soggy or musshy though. Hope that helps. Please let me know if you try the recipe! XX Liz