This buttery, spiced Apple Coffee Cake Recipe with a brown sugar crumb topping really shines when apples are in season. You’ll find yourself craving this coffee cake that is positively packed with sweet chunks of tender, fragrant apple, all year long!
Apple Coffee Cake Recipe
I’ve never been a huge fan of towering cakes loaded with frosting, but moist, spiced coffee cakes are definitely my thing. I’m especially devoted to coffee cakes that are bursting with pieces of fruit. Today’s recipe is outrageously full of actual, juicy, tender pieces of sweet apple.
Make no mistake, this is a cake recipe by and for apple lovers. If it had lungs, it would scream “Autumn!” at the top of them. It’s a cake that makes me want to curl up on the couch under a blanket with a cup of tea and a good book.
This cake isn’t some weak-sauce snack. It will sustain you.
Oh sure, it’s made with loads of real fruit, but it’s also made with Greek yogurt and eggs. This is practically breakfast all by itself!
Because I like a big old slice of coffee cake with my afternoon tea, I cut the cake into 9 generous squares. If you prefer more demure serving sizes, you can certainly cut the cake into 12 smaller squares.
Apple Coffee Cake
We couldn’t get enough of this coffee cake recipe with apples. My husband went bonkers for it. He kept finding reasons to go back into the kitchen and grab a little piece from the cake tin.
Thankfully, it’s a very easy recipe to throw together. Because it’s a hearty sized cake, it takes around 45 minutes in the oven, but you can do whatever you want while it bakes and it pulls together in a flash.
An added bonus is that this cake is good at room temperature for about 3 days. If you want to store it longer, it is good for a week in the refrigerator.
Do you need to keep it longer than that? Wrap it tightly in two layers of plastic wrap and stash it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Future you will be extra pleased with yourself if you divide it into single serving portion sizes before wrapping and freezing it.
A note about nuts: I’m not nutty for nuts in my coffee cake, but it’s a very easy thing to add if you prefer them! Simply add 3/4 of a cup of chopped walnuts or pecans when you fold in the apples.
Coffee Cake with Apples Recipe
When apples are the feature , as they are here, it’s worth it to pick the right ones for the recipe. The best apple varieties for baking are tart and firm. Tartness converts to sweetness and firmness allows the apple to retain its shape when baked.
The most commonly available apples that are best for baking are Granny Smith, Honey Crisp, Pink Lady, Crispin, Jazz, Jonagold, and Ida Red. You can use any combination of those you’d like for the recipe here today.
How Many Apples Do I Need?
If you’re wondering how many apples to rustle up for your coffee cake, I can help! 2 cups of apples is roughly equivalent to 3 medium apples, or 1 pound.
If you have different sized apples, 2 large or 4 small will yield about the same as 3 medium apples. In other words, for this recipe, you want about 5 to 6 medium apples, or 4 large apples, or 8 small apples.
Apple Coffee Cake
Rate RecipeEquipment
- mixing bowl
- medium sized bowl
- hand mixer or stand mixer
- 8-inch square baking pan
- silicone scraper or rubber spatula
Ingredients
- butter and all purpose flour for the pan
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom optional but tasty
- 1 1/3 cups brown sugar
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup Greek yogurt preferably whole milk yogurt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 4 cups peeled diced apple
- 3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts optional but tasty
For the Crumb Topping:
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup butter cut into small pieces
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF. Grease and generously flour a square baking pan or spray. Set this aside.
- In a bowl, use a whisk to combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl or a stand mixer fitted with a badder blade, beat the brown sugar and butter together until fluffy and lightened in colour. Mix in the egg until evenly combined. Beat in the yogurt and vanilla extract until well mixed.
- Add the flour gradually, mixing gently. Fold in the apples. Scrape this into the prepared pan.
Make the Crumb Topping:
- Use a fork to combine the brown sugar, flour, butter, and cinnamon until it is crumbly. Scatter this evenly over the top of the cake batter.
To Bake the Apple Coffee Cake:
- Bake the coffee cake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a cooling rack.
- Store leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Anything that would not be eaten past that time should be cut into individual portion sizes, wrapped with plastic wrap, and frozen for up to 3 months.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
did you make this recipe?
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