Moist Apple Cake with Cinnamon Crumble – Easy Fall Recipe

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When the first apples are ripe in late summer and fall, there’s hardly anything my Minis and I enjoy more than baking a delicious apple cake together and start the cosy season with it. And this moist apple cake with cinnamon crumble is definitely one of our favorite fall recipes!

Underneath the crunchy crumble topping, with its wonderful cinnamon aroma, you’ll find plenty of juicy apples and a simple, fluffy cake batter. It’s a combination that tastes wonderfully like fall – and in our house, it usually disappears faster than I’d like.

This recipe is also perfect for baking with kids. My Minis can weigh the ingredients, prepare the batter, arrange the apples and, of course, take care of the best part: making the cinnamon crumble with their hands and sprinkling it all over the cake.

An easy apple cake for cozy fall afternoons, Sunday coffee and cake, or simply whenever your fruit bowl is overflowing with apples.

Why We Love Our Apple Cake with Cinnamon Crumble

There are countless apple cake recipes out there. Ours is one of those wonderfully simple versions that is also perfect for baking together with kids.

The base is made from a simple cake batter. It’s topped with apples mixed with cinnamon and a little lemon juice, followed by a generous layer of crunchy cinnamon crumble.

What do we particularly love about this apple cake?

• simple cake batter without any complicated steps
• lots and lots of apples
• crunchy cinnamon crumble
• wonderfully moist
• easy to bake with kids
• perfect for apple season in late summer and fall

And while the cake is baking, the whole kitchen fills with the wonderful smell of apples and cinnamon. For me, that scent is simply part of fall!

Which Apples Are Best for Apple Cake?

For a delicious apple cake, I prefer apples that don’t completely fall apart during baking and have enough flavor to provide a nice contrast to the sweet cake batter and crumble.

Slightly tart apple varieties like Boskoop and Elster work particularly well.

However, you definitely don’t need to buy a specific type of apple for this recipe. Especially when baking with kids, I love recipes that let us use ingredients we already have at home.

So, if you have a few apples sitting in your fruit bowl waiting to be eaten, simply turn them into this delicious apple cake with cinnamon crumble.

Recipe for Our Apple Cake with Cinnamon Crumble

Our apple cake with cinnamon crumble consists of three delicious layers: a fluffy cake base, a fruity apple layer and crunchy cinnamon crumble.

The recipe is designed for a 26 cm / 10-inch springform pan.

 

Ingredients

For the Cake Batter

• 125 g butter
• 100 g sugar
• 1 packet vanilla sugar
• 2 medium eggs
• 180 g (spelled) flour
• ½ packet baking powder
• 1 pinch of salt
• 50 ml milk

For the Filling

• 800 g apples
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tsp lemon juice

For the Cinnamon Crumble

• 125 g butter, at room temperature
• 60 g brown sugar
• 20 g white sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 200 g (spelled) flour
• 1 pinch of salt

Baking accessories

Kitchen scales, mixing bowl, small bowl, hand mixer, 26 cm / 10-inch springform pan, spatula, vegetable peeler, cutting board, knife, baking parchment, wooden spoon and cooling rack.

Preparation

• Before you start baking, preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F conventional heat.
• Line the bottom of the springform pan with baking parchment. Lightly grease the sides with butter and dust with a little flour.
• Slowly melt the butter for the crumble.
• Mix the brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon and salt. Add the melted butter and stir everything together with a wooden spoon.
• Finally, stir the flour into the butter and sugar mixture. Your Minis can also use their hands to knead everything together into crumbles. We won’t need the crumble again until later, so set the bowl aside for now.
• Next, prepare the cake batter. Beat the butter and sugar with a hand mixer for 2–3 minutes until creamy.
• Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
• Briefly combine the dry ingredients – flour, baking powder and salt – in a small bowl. Add them to the batter alternately with the milk and mix briefly until combined.
• Spread the cake batter evenly in the prepared springform pan.
• Peel and core the apples and cut them into wedges or cubes. An apple slicer* can be particularly useful for little bakers. Place the chopped apples in a bowl and mix them with the lemon juice and cinnamon.
• Spread the apple pieces evenly over the cake batter and cover them with the cinnamon crumble.
• Bake the apple cake with cinnamon crumble on the middle rack for approximately 50–55 minutes. To make sure the cake is baked through, insert a wooden skewer into the cake batter. If it comes out clean without any raw batter sticking to it, the cake is ready. If the cake still needs more time but the crumble is becoming too dark, loosely cover the springform pan with a sheet of aluminum foil.
• Allow the cake to cool completely on a cooling rack. While it is still warm, it may fall apart when sliced because it is still too soft. So be patient and wait until it has cooled completely before digging in!

(*The links marked with an asterisk (*) are affiliate links. I can recommend suitable products that do not cost you more and I receive a small commission that helps me finance my blog. Thank you!)

Preparation in pictures

How to Make the Cinnamon Crumble Perfectly Crunchy

The yummy cinnamon crumble is definitely one of the best parts of a cake for my Minis and me! There are a few simple tricks to make sure it turns out wonderfully crunchy:

• The ratio of butter, sugar and flour is particularly important. In our recipe, the brown sugar also adds a delicious flavor that pairs perfectly with apples and cinnamon.
• When shaping the crumble, don’t make the pieces too small. A mixture of smaller and larger crumbles gives the finished cake a lovely texture.

Mini-Tip A few extra-large crumble pieces are definitely encouraged in our house!

How to Keep Your Apple Cake Moist

The most important ingredient for a wonderfully moist apple cake is already in the name: the apples!

Our recipe uses a generous 800 g of apples on top of the cake batter. This creates a lovely fruity layer and keeps the cake wonderfully moist. Don’t cut the apples into pieces that are too large, so they have enough time to soften while the cake is baking.

Mini-Tip Don’t bake the cake any longer than necessary. As soon as the cake batter passes the skewer test, our apple cake is ready to come out of the oven.

Baking Apple Cake with Kids

This easy apple cake with cinnamon crumble is a wonderful recipe for baking with kids in the fall because there are so many different tasks little hands can help with.

Younger Minis can, for example:

• weigh the ingredients
• add sugar and flour to the bowl
• stir ingredients together
• knead the crumble with their hands
• arrange the apple pieces on the cake batter
• sprinkle the cinnamon crumble over the cake

Older children can gradually take over more of the preparation themselves, depending on their experience and, of course, with appropriate supervision.

I especially love making crumble with kids because nothing has to look perfect. Small crumbles, big crumbles, round ones or funny-shaped ones – they all taste delicious in the end!

Can I Make the Apple Cake with Cinnamon Crumble Ahead of Time?

Yes, absolutely!

Our apple cake with cinnamon crumble can easily be baked the day before. This makes it especially convenient if you’re expecting guests or want to bring the cake to a family gathering. After baking, allow the cake to cool completely and then store it well covered. Personally, though, I especially love it when it’s really fresh and the crumble is wonderfully crunchy.

How to Serve Apple Cake with Cinnamon Crumble

Our apple cake is already delicious all on its own.

If you want to make it feel even more cozy and autumnal, serve it with a dollop of whipped cream. And if the cake is still just slightly warm, a scoop of vanilla ice cream is, of course, a wonderful addition.

But for us, this apple cake with cinnamon crumble really doesn’t need much else: apples, cinnamon and crunchy crumble – it’s hard to fit more fall onto a cake plate!

Frequently Asked Questions About Apple Cake with Cinnamon Crumble

Which Apples Are Best for Apple Cake?

Slightly tart apples, such as Boskoop or Elstar, are particularly delicious because they provide a lovely contrast to the sweet cake batter and crumble. However, this is a wonderfully uncomplicated recipe, so you can also simply use whatever apples you already have at home.

Do I Need to Peel the Apples for This Cake?

We peel the apples for this recipe. This makes the apple layer particularly soft and pleasant to eat.

Can I Bake the Apple Cake the Day Before?

Yes. This apple cake is easy to prepare ahead of time and can be baked the day before you plan to serve it.

How Do I Know When the Apple Cake with Cinnamon Crumble Is Done?

After about 50–55 minutes, insert a wooden skewer into the cake batter. If no raw batter sticks to it, the cake is done.

Why Should I Let the Apple Cake Cool Before Slicing It?

Straight from the oven, the cake is still very soft and can fall apart more easily when sliced. Allowing it to cool completely gives the cake time to become firmer, making it much easier to cut into neat slices.

Our Verdict: An Easy Apple Cake for Cozy Fall Days

For my Minis and me, apples and cinnamon belong to fall just as much as colorful leaves, chestnuts and cozy afternoons at home.

Our moist apple cake with cinnamon crumble is exactly the kind of recipe we love for those days: simple, fruity, wonderfully cinnamon-y and topped with a thick layer of crunchy crumble.

And because there are so many easy little tasks for small hands to help with, this cake is also perfect for baking with kids in the fall.

My Minis and I hope you and your Minis have lots of fun baking together – and, of course, enjoying our apple cake with cinnamon crumble!

Yours, Lia

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