Apple Loaf Cake with Applesauce

This Spiced Apple Loaf Cake with Applesauce makes the most delicious Autumn and Winter dessert. The Applesauce Bread is packed with chunks of Apples and Spices; perfect to enjoy with your afternoon tea!

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This apple bread with applesauce and apples chunks is probably one of my favourite winter dessert ever. Just like my French Apple Cake, this dessert is super easy and quick to make. It brings you these warm, comforting sweet flavours you often crave when the temperatures drop!

The use of applesauce in the batter gives this cake an incredibly moist texture that is perfectly balanced by the chunky pieces of fresh apple. If you love spices and apples together, you will love this recipe!

Ingredients

To make this Spiced Apple Cake, you will need (scroll down to recipe card for all quantities):

• Brown Sugar
• Eggs
• Canola Oil
• Applesauce – preferably homemade
• Plain / All-Purpose Flour
• Baking Powder
• Baking Soda
• Salt
• Spices: I used Cinnamon, Ginger, Allspice
• Apple
• Optional: flaked almonds

Ingredient Substitution

• Canola Oil: can be replaced by any neutral flavoured vegetable oil – or melted butter

• Applesauce: I used a Smooth Applesauce, but you could also use a Chunky Applesauce if preferred – though it will change the texture of the cake. I also highly recommend using a applesauce that is low in sugar or made without added sugar to control the sweetness of the cake.

• Spices: I used a mix of Cinnamon, Ginger and Allspice – but you can absolutely add other spices you like or replace them with your favourite spices.

Apple Variety

The type of fruit you use to make this cake will have an impact on its taste. You can go for a sweeter apple if you have a sweet tooth, or alternatively choose a more crisp and tart apple variety.

Here are a few varieties of apples that bake very well in cakes:

• Sweet: Golden Delicious or Jazz
• Crisp: Granny Smith, Honeycrisp or Braeburn
• Sweet and Tart: Fuji, Pink Lady or Jonagold

I personally used some Pink Lady Apples for this cake. They have a delicious crunchy texture that is both sweet and crisp.

You can read more about picking the right apples for baking in this article!

How to make Apple Bread with Applesauce

This cake is very simple and quick to make. No need for fancy utensils or a mixer here – it is all made by hand with a whisk and a couple of mixing bowls!

• First, pre-heat your oven on 180’C/350’F and prepare your Loaf Pan (I used a 25 cm/10inch Loaf Pan) by greasing and flouring it (*).

• Before starting to make the cake batter, prepare the Apple Chunks: peal, core then slice the apple into small cubes and set aside.

• For the cake batter: whisk the Eggs and Brown Sugar in a large mixing bowl until bubbly – about 2 minutes.

• Add the Canola Oil and Applesauce and whisk until combined.

(*) I used an Oil Spray to grease the whole pan, then dusted it with flour. When the pan is fully covered in flour, flip it and tap it against your kitchen bench to remove any flour excess.

The second step is adding all of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients:

• Mix together all of the dry ingredients in a separate bowl (*): Flour, Baking Powder, Baking Soda, Salt and Spices

• Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk until fully combined and no lumps remain – but try not to overwork the batter to get a fluffy cake texture.

• Lastly, fold in the chunks of Apples until evenly distributed in the batter. You can also save a few chunks to add over the batter in the loaf pan to get some caramelised apple chunks sticking out.

• Optional: sprinkle some Flaked Almonds over the cake before baking it.

• Pour the batter into the Loaf Pan and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until a skewer poked into the cake comes out clean.

Tip: to get an even crack in the centre of the cake, take it out of the oven after 10 minutes and slash it with a sharp knife.

(*) I like to mix all of the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl to insure they will be evenly mixed with the wet ingredients. This is the best way to insure the cake bakes evenly, but is optional if you want to skip this step.

How to keep this cake

This Apple Spice Loaf Cake can be kept at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. You can keep it in the loaf pan covered with plastic wrap or aluminium foil (once completely cool) or transfer it into an air-tight container.

Alternatively, this apple tea cake can be kept in the fridge for an extra day or two – but it will become drier. If you keep it in the fridge, I highly recommend warming up individual slices before eating them.

Individual slice can be toasted (preferably on a lower heat / short time) to lightly caramelise the apples and warm up the cake.

Can I freeze this Apple Bread?

Yes, this applesauce Loaf can be frozen for up to 3 months. You can freeze it whole but I personally prefer to freeze individual slices as they are easier to thaw.

Before freezing, make sure to let the cake cool down completely. Wrap the cake or individual slices with wrap and/or foil, or keep in an freezer friendly container / freezing bag.

If freezing individual slices together, separate each slice with some baking paper.

More Apple Recipes:

• Apple Fritter Breakfast Cake from Courtney’s Sweets
• Apple Dumplings from Kylee Cooks
• French Apple Tart with Applesauce
• Apple Upside-Down Cake
• Easy Apple Galette
• Apple Streusel Muffins
• Pear and Apple Crumble