French Apple Cake
A soft, fluffy, buttery sponge with a slightly crispy, meringue like top layer, laden with sweet chunks of soft, cooked apple, this classic, French Apple Cake is as perfect for afternoon tea, as it is when served warm with some crème fraîche or ice cream for dessert. Should you have any leftovers, it makes a fabulous breakfast and, of course, it packs up really well for a picnic.
Huge thanks to Pierre, Finale and Camelia Lequeux for being my official French testers for this recipe!
The ingredients for the sponge element of this French Apple Cake are almost identical to a traditional British Victoria sponge cake. The method varies however. Rather than beating the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, the butter is melted and the sugar is whipped with the eggs until they are light and creamy. The melted butter is then folded into the batter, along with the flour. Both methods give you beautiful, soft, fluffy, buttery cakes, but whipping the sugar and eggs, in the French method, also ensures you have a light and crispy layer on top.
How to make French Apple Cake
Collect all your ingredients together:
- unsalted butter
- plain/all-purpose flour
- baking powder
- fine salt
- eggs
- caster sugar
- vanilla extract
- dark rum (or replace with milk)
- medium eating apples, peeled, core removed and cubed
- extra caster sugar
How to make this fabulous cake:
- Melt the butter, either over a moderate heat in a saucepan, or in a microwave safe bowl or dish in the microwave, and set aside to cool.
- Into a small mixing bowl, weigh the flour, baking powder and salt, stir to mix and set aside.
- Weigh the sugar and add the eggs to a larger mixing bowl and use an electric whisk to beat until light and fluffy. This will take around 5 minutes.
- Whisk in the rum and vanilla extract.
- Next whisk in half the flour mixture. Put the whisk away and then fold in half the melted butter.
- Now fold in the remaining flour, and then the remaining butter.
- Peel and core the apples and chop into chunks, roughly 1 – 2 cms in size.
- Gently fold the chopped apple into the cake batter and transfer to the greased and lined cake tin.
- Level the surface and sprinkle over the caster sugar
- Bake in the centre of a preheated oven for 45 minutes or until the cake is golden, cooked through and with a light, crispy surface.
- Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes and then very carefully transfer to a cooling rack. Sprinkle with extra caster sugar.
- Serve warm, or at room temperature. Delicious served as is, with a cup of tea, or serve for dessert with some cream or ice cream. Should you have any leftovers of this wonderful cake, it makes a fabulous breakfast or addition to a packed lunch.
Ingredients 
1,2 Melt butter, mix flour, bp, salt 
3 Eggs, sugar 
4 Rum, vanilla 
5 ½ flour and then 
½ butter 
6 Remaining flour 
Remaining butter 
7 Peel, core, chop apples 
8 Fold in 
9 Cake tin, sprinkle sugar 
10 Bake 
11 Sprinkle with extra caster sugar.
Made this recipe?
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French Apple Cake
A soft, fluffy, buttery sponge with a slightly crispy, meringue like top layer, laden with sweet chunks of soft, cooked apple, this classic, French Apple Cake is as perfect for afternoon tea, as it is when served warm with some crème fraîche or ice cream for dessert.
Serves 8 – 10
Ingredients
- 130g unsalted butter
- 130g plain/all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 130g caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons/45ml dark rum (or replace with milk)
- 3 – 4 medium eating apples, peeled, core removed and cubed – around 350g prepared apple
- extra caster sugar, to sprinkle on the cake before and after cooking
To serve:
- cream, crème fraîche or ice cream
- Salted Caramel Sauce
Instructions
-
Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.
-
Preheat oven to fan oven 160°C/180°C/350°F/Gas 4.
-
Grease and line a 20cm/8in deep, round cake tin with baking parchment, or insert a cake tin liner.
-
Melt the butter, either over a moderate heat in a saucepan, or in a microwave safe bowl or dish in the microwave, and set aside to cool.
-
Into a small mixing bowl, weigh the flour, baking powder and salt, stir to mix and set aside.
-
Weigh the sugar and add the eggs to a larger mixing bowl and use an electric whisk to beat until light and fluffy. This will take around 5 minutes.
-
Whisk in the rum and vanilla extract.
-
Next, whisk in half the flour mixture. Put the whisk away and then fold in half the melted butter.
-
Now, fold in the remaining flour, and then the remaining butter.
-
Peel and core the apples and chop into chunks, roughly 1 – 2 cms in size.
-
Gently fold the chopped apple into the cake batter and transfer to the greased and lined cake tin.
-
Level the surface and sprinkle over 1 – 2 tablespoons caster sugar
-
Bake in the centre of a preheated oven for 45 minutes or until the cake is golden, cooked through and has a light, crispy surface.
-
Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes and then, very carefully, transfer to a cooling rack. Sprinkle with an extra 1 – 2 tablespoons caster sugar.
-
Serve warm, or at room temperature. Delicious served as is, with a cup of tea, or serve for dessert with some crème fraîche, cream or ice cream. You could even add some salted caramel sauce. Should you have any leftovers, it makes a fabulous breakfast or addition to a packed lunch.
Recipe Notes
Equipment:
- kitchen scales and measuring spoons
- small saucepan or mixing bowl/jug
- small mixing bowl
- electric whisk and mixing bowl
- chopping board and knife
- 20cm/8in deep round baking tin greased and lined with baking parchment or a cake tin liner
The ingredients for the sponge element of this French Apple Cake are almost identical to a traditional British Victoria sponge cake. The method varies however. Rather than beating the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, the butter is melted and the sugar is whipped with the eggs until they are light and creamy. The melted butter is then folded into the batter, along with the flour. Both methods give you beautiful, soft, fluffy, buttery cakes, but whipping the sugar and eggs, in the French method, also ensures you have a light and crispy layer on top.
