Irish Apple Cake

This Irish Apple Cake is a tender cinnamon-spiced cake with baked apples and a crisp streusel top. This cake is the perfect balance of sweet and tart, and a lovely treat for Fall, St. Patrick's Day, or anytime you're craving an apple treat! If you'd like, you can serve it with my Whiskey Caramel Sauce!

Course Dessert

Cuisine Cakes

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 55

Total Time 1 20

Servings slices

Calories 469kcal

Author Amee

Equipment

Ingredients

Streusel

¾ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup old-fashioned oats
pinch salt
½ cup unsalted butter, cold and diced

Apple Cake

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon salt
½ cup unsalted butter, softened
½ cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature (I used large eggs)
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (see note)
3 Tablespoons milk, at room temperature (I used whole milk)
2 medium apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced (about 12 ounces whole apples; I used granny smith)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For Streusel

Combine all streusel ingredients except butter in a large bowl. Whisk to combine.
¾ cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup old-fashioned oats, pinch salt
Add cold, diced butter and, using a pastry blender (see note) or fork, cut in the butter until crumbly. The pieces of butter should be pea-sized and smaller. Place the streusel in the refrigerator to chill as you make the cake batter.
½ cup unsalted butter, cold and diced

For Cake

Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease an 8-inch cake pan (see note), line with parchment (see note), and set aside.
Combine the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, ⅛ teaspoon salt
In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
½ cup unsalted butter, softened, ½ cup granulated sugar
Add the eggs one at a time, allowing the first egg to incorporate before adding the second. Add vanilla bean paste (see note) and mix to combine. The mixture may look curdled at this point, which is just fine!
2 eggs, at room temperature, 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
Gradually add half the dry ingredients, followed by the milk, then the remaining dry ingredients. Mix until just incorporated.
3 Tablespoons milk, at room temperature
Spread the cake batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top (an offset spatula works well for this). Top the batter with the apple slices, then top the apple slices with the streusel.
2 medium apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
Bake 55-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs attached. I turn the pan around in the oven halfway through baking to help ensure an even bake.
Cool the cake completely in the pan. You can serve directly from the pan, or turn the cake out onto a serving plate (just note that inverting the cake to do so is a bit messy with the streusel, but doable).
The cake can be served plain or with a dusting or powdered sugar. Irish Apple Cake is traditionally served with a custard sauce. If you'd prefer, you can serve the cake with my Whiskey Caramel Sauce.
The cake can be stored, covered at room temperature, for up to three days without compromising the cake's flavor or texture.
If you prefer to store the cake in the refrigerator, make sure it is completely cooled before wrapping it well and placing in the refrigerator. You'll want to set the cake out at room temperature for about an hour before serving for best texture.
For longer storage, the completely cooled cake can be wrapped well and frozen for up to three months. The texture of the cake will be better if you thaw the cake in the refrigerator overnight, and then set out at room temperature about an hour before serving.
Enjoy!

Notes

Note on pastry blender - I prefer to use a pastry blender to cut the butter in to the other streusel ingredients, finding it faster and easier that way. That said, a fork will do the same job.

Note on parchment - I used nonstick parchment in the bottom of my cake pan to ensure the cake would release easily.

Note on cake pan - I used an 8-inch round cake pan for this recipe. The pan should be at least 3 inches tall to ensure it doesn't overflow in the oven. If you want to risk it with a shorter pan, definitely place a sheet pan on the rack beneath the cake to catch any potential overflow.

Note on vanilla bean paste - I love using vanilla bean paste both for the fantastic flavor and the lovely black flecks of vanilla beans. If you prefer to substitute, you can use an equal measure of vanilla extract.

Nutrition