An easy apple cake with caramel icing

I don’t make a lot of sheet cakes because I love the drama of a tiered cake but for this I make an exception. I bake this cake every fall and start looking forward to it on Independence Day! If you’ve never made an apple cake before, you’re in for a treat. It’s like magic! The batter looks so thick and stiff and you think, how on earth is this going to work? Then you beat in fresh apples and voila, the apples have enough moisture to turn the mixture into cake batter. It’s the coolest thing.

The icing is very rich, even for me, but man is it good. Sometime I’m going to try this with my rum caramel frosting from my Bananas Foster Cake. Wouldn’t the the grand? I also don’t see why this couldn’t count as a coffee cake with a dusting of powdered sugar instead of the icing. This would also be divine crumbled up and layered with maple whipped cream for a fall trifle. There’s really so many things you could do with this cake.

Photography by The Darling Photographer

I like it garnished with just a couple of cinnamon sticks and the icing spread in dramatic swoops for my Fall Dinner at the Farm. The icing was smooshed in transit but it tasted just as delicious! My mom can attest to how pretty it looked before I packed up.

If you need any convincing whether or to bake this cake: my friend Joseph doesn’t really like dessert and he took one bite and said, “You’re going to turn me into a dessert lover. This is amazing.” So there you have it! Even non-dessert lovers love this cake.

Caramel Apple Cake
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 2/3 cups sugar
2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3 apples (I always use Honeycrisp)
1/2 cup unsalted buter, softened
2 large eggs
Caramel icing, recipe follows

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×13 pan.
2. Whisk together flour, sugar, soda, salt and cinnamon in stand mixer.
3. Add softened butter and eggs and mix well.
4. Peel, slice, and chop apples into cubes.
5. Add apples and beat in on the lowest setting until apples release some of their moisture and turn the mixture into a batter.
6. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until cake springs back when touched.
7. Cool completely on a wire rack.  Frost with caramel icing.

Caramel Icing
1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
Dash of salt
3 Tbsp milk
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/4 tsp vanilla

1. Melt butter in saucepan over low heat. Add brown sugar and a dash of salt and cooked until sugar has melted. Add milk and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and cool in a mixing bowl for ten minutes. Beat in powdered sugar and vanilla. Spread warm icing on cake.

Enjoy the season,

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