Delicious and unique creamy apple crumb cake, with layers of apple and cream, encased in a lovely crust and with a wonderful crumb topping. Great enjoyed as an apple dessert cake or as an apple coffee cake.
Why you’ll love this apple crumb cake
This delicious apple cake is unlike any other cake I’ve made and is one of my favourite ways to bake with apples. With a shortbread crust, a creamy custard filling, lots of apples and a generous, crispy crumble topping!
This is a cake to bake and share or bake and take when you need to bring a dessert to an event. You can bake it up in the morning and enjoy it later in the day.
As this cake is also lightly sweet, it’s also nice to enjoy as an apple coffee cake.
Ingredient Notes
Apples – use any apple that you’d use for an apple pie. I’ve used Pink Lady here, but Spy, Honeycrisp, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith etc. also work well.
Heavy Cream – aka whipping cream (35% b.f.) Heavy cream will give you the creamiest results, though you can use a lighter cream, such as 18% table cream or 10% half and half cream, if you like.
Sour Cream – a full-fat sour cream or Greek Yogurt is recommended, for best texture of the apple filling. I haven’t tested this recipe with low or no-fat sour cream or yogurt.
Step-by-Step Photos
This is a visual summary of the steps to make this cake. Always refer to the complete instructions in the Recipe Card below when making the recipe, as not all steps may be illustrated here.
1. Start by making the shortbread crust by mixing together the flour, sugar and butter in a food processor until you have a sandy mixture. (You can simply cut the butter in with a pastry cutter if you don’t have a food processor.). Add 3/4 of the crumb mixture to the springform pan and press lightly into the bottom and up the sides slightly. Add the prepared apples, then scatter the remaining crumb mixture over top. Bake for 20 minutes.
2. While base and apples are baking, prepare the creamy filling. When the base has cooked, remove from the oven and pour the creamy filling mixture over-top. Return to the oven for another 20 minutes.
3. While the filling is baking with the apples, prepare the crumble mixture and pop into the freezer until needed. When filling has set, remove from oven and scatter the crumble mixture over top. Return to the oven for a further 20-30 minutes, or until set and lightly golden.
Cook’s Notes
- If you want to be able to transfer your baked cake to a serving platter, be sure to line the bottom of the springform pan with a round of parchment paper.
- This cake is best enjoyed on the day it is baked, to really enjoy the crumble topping. It will keep well for several days, though the crumble may soften the longer it sits. I like to cover well and refrigerate the left-overs after the first day.
- This cake should freeze well.
How to make a crispy, crumbly crumble
Freeze it! Be sure not to skip the short trip to the freezer after you mix the crumb topping. It’s the secret to a crispy and crumble crumble.
Get the Recipe: Apple Crumb Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and levelled
- 3/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 7 Tablespoons unsalted butter , cold, cut into 6-8 pieces
- 3 medium apples, peeled, cored and cut into thin slices
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream, or table cream (18%) or half and half cream (10%)
- 1/2 cup sour cream, full-fat, or plain full-fat yogurt
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
For the crumble topping:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2/3 cup white sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch salt
- 5 1/2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (or salted butter and omit the pinch of salt)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. and grease an 8-inch springform pan. *A parchment round on the bottom of the pan is recommended if you plan on removing the cake to a serving platter. Set the springform pan on a baking sheet and set aside. *Note: if you are using a dark springform pan, reduce temperature to 340F.
- Make the cake: In a food processor, add the flour, sugar and baking powder. Pulse a couple of times to combine. Add the cold butter and pulse until the butter is combined with the flour. You'll end up with a very dry mixture, like sand almost.
- Sprinkle about 3/4 of this mixture over the bottom of the prepared springform pan. Using the back of a spoon, spread the crumbs into an even layer on the bottom of the pan and up the side just a bit. You don't want to compress the crumb mixture too much. Scatter the prepared apple slices over the crumbs (avoiding placing the apples right up agains the side of the pan), then sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture evenly over the top. Again, do not press down. Leave it as is. Place the springform pan on top of a baking sheet (to catch any liquid from the apples that might leak from the pan!). Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, sour cream, brown sugar, vanilla and a pinch of salt. Set aside.
- When cake base has baked 20 minutes, remove from oven and carefully pour the egg mixture over the top. REDUCE THE OVEN TEMPERATURE TO 325F (or 315F for a dark pan and return the cake to oven and cook for a further 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the crumble topping. In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Add melted butter to the mixture, just until the dry ingredients are moistened and the mixture comes together in large clumps. Place the bowl into the freezer until needed.
- When the cake has baked for 20 minutes, remove from oven. (The egg mixture should have set somewhat so that the crumbs won't sink into the cake. If it is quite liquid still, return to the oven for a few more minutes.) Evenly sprinkle the crumb mixture over the top. Return to the oven and bake a further 20 - 30 minutes or until the edges are pulled away from the sides of the pan, the top crumbles are light golden and the centre is set. As long as it's not too jiggly and a tester inserted in the centre comes out with just crumbs (not liquid), it's ready to take out of the oven. It should have bake about 60-65 total, including all 3 steps.
- Allow to cool in the pan, on a cooling rack, for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the outside and carefully remove the outer ring of the springform pan. Allow to cool more before removing from the base.
- Dust with powdered/icing sugar, if desired.
Notes
More Apple Cake Recipes to Love!
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
Why 7 tablespoons of butter which is such an important ingredient…can it not be given in cups or by weight…sorry  I have to be critical but a block of cold butter cannot be measured in tablespoonsÂ
Well, it is what it is Shalini. Lots of people, myself included, use stick of butter that are marked along the length in Tablespoons, so you just need to cut the stick in the right place. Failing that, the amount can’t be expressed in cups, because it is between 1/3 cup and 1/2 cup. Since you asked about weight, you obviously have a scale, so it should be quite easy to for you to calculate (google!) the weight of 7 Tablespoons and just weigh it out (it’s 100g, btw).
Looks delicious, I have to try this.
Would add another apple but delishious!
So glad you enjoyed it, Lauren :) Thanks so much!
I made this delicious Apple Crumb Cake for the first night of the New Year. We all enjoyed it so much! Great, easy to follow recipe. I may try to make a larger cake next time. It was that good!
So glad you enjoyed it, Bern :) It’s one of my favourite apple cakes. Thanks!
I just made this for Thanksgiving, it was a huge hit! Thank you :)
So glad! It’s one of my favourite little apple cakes :) Thanks so much :)
This cake is the trifecta! Delish, for any time of day. And easy to prepare.
So glad you enjoyed it :) Thanks for coming back to let me know!
This is the best apple crumb cake that I have ever had! Don’t tell my grandmother that I said that. It was so good that my family devoured it quickly. I was left with only a small piece…. lol. After I made it for everyone they said that I should absolutely make it again. This is bakery and farmers market worthy for sure :-)
So glad to hear, Wendy! It is one of my favourite apple cakes and I have made it dozens of times for various occasions. Always perfect and everyone enjoys it :) Thanks!
This cake was delicious. I used a 9″ springform pan as my 8″ one has seen better days. The baking time was approximately the same and the cake did not sink in the middle. I used a little more apple than called for because the apples I had on hand were on the larger side and because it was a larger pan I ignored the scant measurement and used a full cup of cream and two full cups of flour. Thank you for the great recipe and I am looking forward to trying more of the fall apple recipes.
So glad you enjoyed it, Maria! It is such a unique cake, isn’t it? Do enjoy your Fall apple baking :)
Hi! This sounds like a lovely cake. I would just like to ask if I were to make a mini crumble cake version (such as one in a large ramekin), would it be possible? How would you adjust the measurements of the ingredients? I want to make a mini version, if possible, but I’m afraid of messing up the ratios
Hi Sophie, I’m not sure this dessert is really suited for individual/mini versions. The cake, as is, is quite small (8-inches) and freezes well, if you’re worried about having too much.
Hey! You say it freezes well. Are you freezing it uncooked or baking first and then freezing? Â I have a TON of apples and am looking for desserts I can stick in the freezer.
Hi Anne, I freeze it after baking. As it bakes in stages, it’s not a good cake to freeze unbaked.