Apple Tea Cake

Why To Make This Apple Tea Cake

Mum got this cake recipe from her friend at work, so it is a tried and tested cake recipe you will enjoy too. And there are many reasons why I think you will love this homemade apple cake just like I do. If you need more convincing, here they are:

• This apple sponge cake recipe is super simple – the prep takes only 10 minutes, plus an hour in the oven, yet it’s full of flavour and beautifully moist.
• It is made from basic baking ingredients, no fancy equipment is needed either!
• This recipe is budget-friendly and works in many cake forms (tins) – from round pie ones to square brownie ones (I used a pie tin with 28 cm diameter).
• You can switch the apples for other fruit like pears, apricots, plums, cherries or berries of your choice – the dough will still work nicely (I tested it with blueberries and plums), and you can make it seasonal depending on the time of year.

Key Ingredients

Here is the list of the main ingredients needed for this delicious apple tea cake recipe. For substitutes, please check out the section below.

• Apples – any variety of apples will work here. Add more sugar to the dough if using sour apples or sprinkle the cake with a sugar and cinnamon mixture after baking. Use fresh apples, or drained canned apple slices. Core and cut the apples thin for best results.
• Self-raising flour – makes the base of this homemade apple cake mix, sift it through a sieve for a fluffy and soft cake dough.
• An extra spoon of baking powder is added for the dough to rise more.
• Sugar – granulated, golden caster sugar or brown sugar will work here just great, use whichever one you have on hand.
• Ground cinnamon and ground nutmeg give the cake a wonderful fragrance and taste, and pair wonderfully with the apples.
• Pinch of salt
• Vanilla extract gives the cake mixture a bit of a sweet aroma.
• Free-range egg helps bind all of the dry and wet ingredients together. This is a one egg cake recipe – perfect when you’re running low or want to keep the cost down too.
• Greek yogurt – is my secret ingredient in this recipe. Not only it provides the cake with fat and moisture, but it is also high in protein which makes the cake more filling.
• Sunflower, or vegetable oil is added to make this cake super moist and fluffy. If you prefer to use butter, see recipe notes or the following section.
• To make your cake tin non-stick, you will need unsalted butter and semolina, or all-purpose (plain) flour.
• Crumble top is completely optional. I like to add it for a wow-factor when we have visitors. You can make it by mixing flour with butter and icing sugar.

Substitutes & Variations

Missing any of the above ingredients? Don’t worry, here are some ideas on how to swap things around and still make the recipe work:

• Homemade self-raising flour: mix 200g of all-purpose (plain) flour and 1 teaspoon of baking powder. Stir this mix well before adding to the recipe. Add another teaspoon of baking powder later as the recipe says.
• Plain natural yogurt, or single cream instead of Greek yogurt.
• Softened unsalted butter can replace sunflower oil.

Variations of This Apple Tea Cake

Use a variety of fruit depending on what is currently in season. This recipe will work with ripe pears, peaches, plums, apricots, cherries and/or berries (fresh, frozen, or canned).

Always drain any canned fruit before topping the cake batter with it. Slice the fruit if you can.

How To Make Apple Tea Cake

Like I said, this easy cake with apples and cinnamon is ready in almost no time. All you need to do is slice the apples and prepare the cake dough. If you want, you can also make the crumbly top. Here is the summary of the steps, for more details, see the recipe card at the end of this post:

1. Preheat the oven and prepare the apples.
2. Make the cake mix and the crumble (this is optional).
3. Prepare the baking tin (make it non-stick by rubbing butter around all of the insides and sprinkling it with semolina or all-purpose flour.
4. Pour the cake mix into the baking tin, and top it with sliced apples (and crumble).
5. Bake for 1 hour at the lower third of your oven until golden and baked-through.

Top Tips

Here are my tips on how to make this cake perfect every time:

• Always start with preheating the oven first, then prepare your ingredients and follow the recipe closely.
• For the best flavour, use fruit that is fully ripen.
• Some fruit (especially berries) can be quite sour. Add more sugar to the cake mix to balance this better, or sprinkle the finished cake with some sugar and cinnamon mix.
• In a hurry? You can skip adding the crumble on top – the cake will be just fine like that too, only you won’t get the nice crunch.
• Did the top get too dark? Dark brown colour is ok (but black means it’s burnt!), if you want your cake to look paler, dust it with some icing sugar (use a sieve for even results).

Storage & Reheating

This sponge cake with apples will keep fresh for up to 2 days. Let it to cool down after baking and store it covered at room temperature. The cover will prevent it from going dry.

You can serve this cake hot or cold (at room temperature).

If you want to reheat an individual portion or two, put it for 5 minutes in an oven preheated to 180C/ 160C fan / 320F. Extend the time for another 5 minutes if you’re reheating more than 2 portions. Keep it at the bottom third of your oven so that the top doesn’t burn.

Freezing Apple Tea Cake

This apple sponge cake is suitable for freezing. Let it cool down completely and wrap in a cling film or freezer bag, seal and freeze for up to 3 months.

For easy defrosting, cut the cake into individual portions – that way you will be able to only take out as many slices as you need.

Defrost it overnight in the fridge and serve cold or warm (reheating instructions are above).

FAQs

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