Description

This Apple Coffee Cake Bundt is a moist and flavorful autumn-inspired cake layered with tender shredded and chopped apples, warm spices, and a buttery crumb topping. Finished with a smooth vanilla glaze, it’s perfect for breakfast or dessert and serves 10 with a tender, dense crumb.

Ingredients

Scale

Crumb Cake Topping

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, cold and cubed
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Cinnamon Sugar Filling

2/3 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp cinnamon

Apple Cake Batter

3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground allspice
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup applesauce
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp orange zest (about the zest of 1 medium orange)
2 Tbsp orange juice
1 1/2 cups shredded apple (preferably Honeycrisp)
1 1/2 cups chopped apples

Vanilla Glaze

1 1/2 – 2 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
3–4 Tbsp heavy cream (or milk)
Pinch of salt

Instructions

Prepare Crumb Cake Topping: In a medium bowl, mix flour, cinnamon, and brown sugar. Add the cold cubed butter. Using a fork or pastry blender, combine until the mixture resembles wet sand. Pinch the mixture into crumbs of preferred size and refrigerate until needed.
Prepare Cinnamon Sugar Filling: Whisk together sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside for layering.
Preheat and Prep Pan: Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C). Generously grease a 12-cup bundt pan to prevent sticking.
Make Dry Batter Ingredients: In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice. Make a well in the center.
Add Wet Ingredients: Into the well, add canola oil and beaten eggs. Mix just until combined; the batter will be thick and dry, which is expected.
Incorporate More Wet Ingredients: Add sour cream or Greek yogurt, applesauce, orange juice, vanilla extract, and orange zest. Mix until smooth and evenly combined.
Fold in Apples: Gently mix in shredded and chopped apples until just incorporated to keep texture.
Assemble Cake Layers: Sprinkle crumb cake topping evenly in the bottom of the prepared bundt pan. Add half the batter and spread evenly. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar filling over the batter, then top with remaining batter and spread to an even layer. Tap the pan gently on the counter to remove air bubbles.
Bake: Place in preheated oven and bake for 55-65 minutes until a cake tester or toothpick inserted comes out clean. The cake took approximately 62 minutes in this recipe.
Cool Cake: Let the cake cool in the pan for 15-20 minutes. To remove, invert the pan onto a serving dish or cooling rack and gently lift the bundt pan off. Allow the cake to cool for an additional 15 minutes before glazing.
Prepare Vanilla Glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, vanilla extract, a pinch of salt, and 2-3 tablespoons of heavy cream or milk. Adjust consistency by adding remaining powdered sugar if too thin, or more cream if too thick.
Glaze and Serve: Drizzle the glaze over the warm cake. Let set for 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Drizzling while the cake is too hot may cause the glaze to slide off or soak in too much.

Notes

Make sure to thoroughly grease the bundt pan to prevent sticking, as bundt cakes are notorious for adhering to pans.
Use fresh, tart apples like Honeycrisp for the best texture and flavor contrast.
The batter will be thick and dry initially; do not overmix once wet ingredients are added.
Chilling the crumb topping helps it stay crumbly and not melt into the batter during baking.
You can substitute plain Greek yogurt for sour cream for a tangier flavor and a slight protein boost.
Adjust glaze thickness based on your preference; it should be pourable but not runny.
Allow the cake to cool slightly before glazing to maintain a nice glaze texture.

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Category: Dessert
Method: Baking
Cuisine: American

Keywords: Apple Coffee Cake, Bundt Cake, Autumn Dessert, Spiced Cake, Apple Cake, Coffee Cake