I’m doing apple two weeks in a row here because I just feel wrong doing anything else at this point. It feels like fall, it’s starting to look like fall (yayy foliage), and of course it smells a lot like fall in my kitchen too. I actually made this cake a few months ago with peaches instead of apples and it was excellent, but somehow the photos got deleted from my memory card and I never got to share the recipe. So I’ve adapted it for the current seasonal produce with an extra dose of spices to give it that autumnal kick. And of course I doubled the streusel from the original recipe because there can never be too much streusel!
I love this cake because it’s not overdone and has a rustic quality to it that seems perfectly suited for the season. I guess you can consider the glaze a bit fancy, but really this cake screams genuinely homemade with love. Plus it smells so good as it bakes that it totally puts you in the mood for the season. With a 2-month old puppy at home now, I don’t have much time for frills and intricate baking, so this type of dessert is perfect for my lifestyle these days. Our furry Bernese Mountain Dog baby is named Piper, she’s the cutest thing in the whole world, and while she does take plenty of naps, overall she requires A LOT of attention. I never knew raising a puppy was this hard! I certainly don’t have time to fuss over baking when my full time job seems to be making sure she doesn’t pee in the kitchen. It was a miracle that I even pulled off these photos with her nipping at my feet!
Ryan and I brought Piper to a nearby park for her first official outing and of course I took the opportunity to have a little photoshoot. She’s going to gain about 70 more pounds in the next year, so I want to make sure I capture all of her adorable littleness while it still lasts! She still doesn’t really get the concept of a leash and wasn’t quite as thrilled about the park as we expected, but we’re taking baby steps and soaking up her puppy quirks in the meantime. I can already feel myself morphing into an annoyingly proud and obsessed puppy mom, so of course I’m sharing some pics that weirdly coordinate with the photos of the apple cake :) And if you want more Piper photos, make sure you’re following me on Instagram!
This recipe is kind of like the Apple Cinnamon Crumb Bars I already have on the blog, but in cake form. They’re similar in that they have the flavors of apple pie without too many gooey warm apples since the apples are thinly sliced. For those of us who don’t like pie, it’s a great alternative to still get a chance to bake with the over abundance of apples. Plus, streusel beats pie crust in my opinion any day, especially when it’s piled so high on top of the tart apples and moist spice cake. The glaze on top adds an extra dose of sweetness, and makes it look pretty special in my opinion too! Between cakes and puppies here at Sweet Tooth headquarters, fall has been quite sweet :)
Apple Streusel Cake
Recipe adapted from Inside BruCrew Life
Ingredients:
for the cake:
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
2 cups thinly sliced apples (I used Granny Smith)
for the streusel:
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup quick oats
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold
for the glaze:
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon water
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9" springform pan with non-stick spray, set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar for 2-3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the applesauce, yogurt, and vanilla and beat again for another 2 minutes.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients until just combined. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan with an offset spatula. Lay the apple slices on top of the batter in an even layer.
In another bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, and cinnamon for the streusel. Cut up the butter into small cubes and use your fingers, 2 forks, or a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until large crumbs form. Sprinkle streusel over the apples and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Allow cake to cool completely in the the pan, then remove the sides.
For the glaze, whisk together the water and powdered sugar and drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake. Cut and serve, or cover and store at room temperature for up to 2-3 days.
Can you use rolled oats?