This is an incredibly easy French apple cake that is great served any time of day. My mum used to make it all the time – she still does. I especially love it served warm with vanilla ice cream or cream. Let’s go!
Nagi's Notes
For years I’ve been loyal to this Spiced Apple Cake. Then JB made his mum’s Apple Cake, and it completely won me over with its simplicity and the way it lets the apples truly shine. It’s unfussy, and just so damn lovely, I completely understand why it’s been a favourite in JB’s family for so long. I feel very honoured that his mother has allowed us to share it with the world. Thank you Madame Alexandre!
French Apple Cake
I have very good memories from my childhood of this Apple Cake (gâteau aux pommes). The area where I grew up was known for its apple trees, we would often come home from the local market with fresh apples just so we could bake one! You’ll find this cake all over France and everyone has their own version. This one is very close to my mum’s recipe, with a few little tweaks from me along the way (sorry, Mum!).
French Apple Cakes are all about letting the main character shine – the apples! They are less sugary and not loaded with cinnamon and other spices that dominate the flavour. Typically, the cake is not very tall, and the crumb is soft and buttery. It’s a rustic cake, simple to make and perfect to serve at an afternoon tea with family or friends.
Ingredients
We only use a few ingredients here with the apples being the stars. You can really use any apples, so this is a great recipe to make when you have a few sitting in the fruit bowl needing to be used up ☺️.
Apples – For best flavour I prefer sweet-tart apples like Pink Lady, Fuji or Jazz; Honey Crisp or Braeburn (US/UK) are also great. Personally, I don’t use Granny Smith here as I find they can be a little too tart, but they will still work if that’s what you have.
Pears will also work great here, as long as they are not overly ripe.
Butter – You need unsalted butter here, softened to room temperature.
Sugar – I use caster sugar / superfine sugar for the cake. You could use regular white sugar / granulated sugar, but I prefer the fine grains of caster sugar for baking, as they dissolve more easily.
Eggs – This cake uses “large eggs” – 50–55 g / 2 oz is the industry standard of sizes sold as “large eggs”. The eggs need to be room temperature else they will not incorporate smoothly into the batter. If your eggs are cold, you can easily bring them to room temp by placing them in a large bowl, covering them with warm (not hot) tap water and leaving for 5 minutes.
Vanilla extract – For best flavour, I like to use natural vanilla extract / pure vanilla extract.
Flour – Just plain flour / all-purpose flour.
Baking powder – Makes the batter rise and the crumb light. If your baking powder has been sitting in the pantry for a while, it’s best to check that it’s still active (it might be dead, even if it’s within use-by date!). Find out how to check it here.
Salt – Just a small amount, 1/4 teaspoon. This brings out the flavours in the cake.
How To Make French Apple Cake
This traditional French cake is easy-to-make and ideal for even beginner cooks. One thing that may surprise you is the thickness of the batter. It’s quite thick once everything is mixed together, especially after adding all the apples, but this is completely normal. As the cake bakes, the apples release moisture into the batter which creates that beautifully soft and tender texture.
Whisk dry ingredients – Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a medium mixing bowl.
Cream butter and sugar – In a larger mixing bowl, using a handheld electric beaters (or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment), beat the butter for about 1 minute on medium speed until creamy. Add the sugar and beat the mixture for another minute until fluffy and pale yellow.
Add eggs and vanilla – Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat to combine.
Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients – Add the flour mixture to the bowl and beat on low speed for about 30 seconds or until you can no longer see any bits of dry flour, then stop beating – don’t overmix.
Add apple – Add the diced apple and stir it evenly into the mixture using a spatula. The batter will be quite thick and not pourable.
Add batter to pan – Scoop the batter into a 23cm/9” lined cake pan, then level the surface.
Bake – Bake on the middle shelf of the oven at 180°C / 350°F (160°C fan-forced) for 35 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Cool and serve – The top of the cake should be a nice golden brown colour. Let the cake cool for 5 minutes in the pan before turning it out onto a wire rack. Cool for 10 minutes if serving warm or let it cool completely. Dust with icing / powdered sugar (optional) and enjoy!
How to Serve French Apple Cake
My favourite way to serve French Apple Cake is warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side – très bon! But you can also serve it at room temperature. It’s just as good for afternoon tea as it is as the final sweet course to follow a simple French meal like Poulet rôti or Chicken Chasseur.
This cake is very close to my heart. I can’t wait for you to try it and hear what you think. Bon appétit! – JB
FAQ – French Apple Cake
I haven’t tried a gluten free version of this cake, so I can’t say for sure how it will turn out. Because this cake has very little batter and lots of apples, I think it should work quite well with a good quality 1:1 gluten free flour blend, but the texture may be slightly different. If you try it, I’d love to hear how it goes!
You can really use any apples for this cake as they won’t get overly soft. I like to use sweet-tart apples that hold their shape when baked so you still get lovely soft chunks inside the cake. In Australia, Pink Lady, Fuji and Jazz are great. In the US, Honeycrisp and Braeburn work very well too. I personally avoid Granny Smith because they are too tart but feel free to use them.
Absolutely. Pears work beautifully in this cake. Use ripe but still a little firm pears so they don’t fall apart while baking.
Watch How To Make It
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French Apple Cake
Ingredients
- 3 red apples – I like Pink Lady , peeled and diced into 1.5cm/0.6" cubes (~ 3 1/2 cups) (Note 1 for other varieties)
- 100g(7 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 cup caster sugar / superfine sugar (Note 2)
- 3 large eggs , at room temperature (55g/2oz each in shell)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract , natural / pure
- 1 1/3 cups plain flour / all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
For serving:
- Icing sugar / powdered sugar , for dusting
- Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, optional for serving
Instructions
ABBREVIATED RECIPE
- Cream butter then sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time, then vanilla. Beat in dry ingredients, stir through apple. Bake in 23cm/9″ pan at 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) for 30 minutes.
FULL RECIPE
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan-forced).
- Cake pan – Butter a 23cm/9" round cake pan and line the base with baking paper / parchment paper. No need to line the sides.
- Dry ingredients – In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
- Cream butter and sugar – Using a handheld beater or stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute on medium until creamed. Add the sugar and beat on medium for 1 minute until fluffy and becomes a paler yellow.
- Eggs and vanilla – Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract.
- Add the flour mixture into the bowl and beat on low until you can no longer see dry flour, then stop beating. You don't want to overmix.
- Apples – Stir through the diced apples using a spatula. The batter will be quite thick, it's not pourable.
- Bake – Spread the batter evenly into the prepared cake pan. Bake for 35 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean (because the batter is quite thick and if your oven runs a bit cool, it could take up to 45 minutes). (Note 3)
- Rest and serve – Let the cake rest for 5 minutes in the pan before removing. Cool for a further 10 minutes then serve warm or let it cool completely on a wire rack. Dust with icing sugar, if desired. If serving warm, it's especially lovely with a scoop of ice cream.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
In Memory Of Dozer
And finally, Dozer ☺️ These photos were taken at the RecipeTin Meals kitchen before a TV shoot while we were both getting ready. As you can see, Dozer is enjoying the full hair and make-up treatment by Kristy Orr who did an amazing job that day! Two good boys getting pampered… though I think one of us was having a really good hair day 🐾🐾🐾
Sometimes I come hier to look for recipe in your tin (never failed) and sometimes just to see Dozer’s fotos…
Hi Anja, did you do both this time? I hope you did 🙂
Hi Chef JB! I made Nagi’s apple cake some time back and I’m looking forward to trying yours. Do you think it might work as cupcakes! Also, loves the hair pictures. Dozer looked far more relaxed in his! 🤣
Hi Maura, yes, I think they would work nicely as cupcakes. They’ll be softer and more moist than regular cupcakes because of all the fruit. Just fill the tins quite full and reduce the bake time a bit.
Maura, sorry for butting in, I have turned Nagi’s Recipe into cupcakes a number of times and have turned out beautifully and moist…
This recipe is sooooo good! Made exactly as the recipe says (I used Honeycrisp apples), and it’s perfect. I’m not even a good baker, lol. Highly recommend. Thank you from Canada 🙂
Thank you Emily, so happy you loved it!
Can I use rhubarb instead of apples please?
Tried rhubarb instead of apple. Worked well. I cut the rhubarb and sprinkled it with a couple tablespoons of sugar, and let it macerate in the fridge for a minimum of an hour… before adding it to the batter..nice tartness of the rhubarb with sweetness of the cake.
Thank Wendy for your feedback on the rhubarb version. ♥️
Thank you Wendy O! Is rhubarb season in the UK and it’s great to use it fresh!
The apple cake looks delicious! Dozer apparently really liked being pampered! I doubt my dog would let anyone with a blow dryer get near him!
Hi Barb, Dozer was so patient! Thank you 🙂
Merci for sharing your moms recipe. The paper shows that it was used alot.
Braeburn, pink lady, honeycrisp 🍎..my fave.
Looks easy but yummy.
Merci Chef JB
Les photos di vous et Dozer sont isi mignon
Hi Lesley, thank you for you kind words. Yes she definitely baked it a lot. Even for our birthdays 🙂
Absolutely delicious & so simple.
I used a variety of apples I hadn’t tried before Apple Crisp.
Worked beautifully.
Love the trick about bringing eggs to room temp -I always forget to my eggs out of the fridge !
Thanks JB It’s now in my Tin too
This recipe looks amazing! However, I was wondering – since I live in a tropical country – can I switch the apples for pineapples?
Gracias!
Hi Emma, you definitely can but pineapple is juicier than apples, so use a little less and pat it dry first or the cake may become too wet. Fresh pineapple is best. A little lime zest or dark rum would also be lovely with it!
You solved my dessert dilemma for tonight. We are having roast chicken and this is perfect. Merci JB!
P.S. Dozer does seem to be enjoying himself more🐾
Amazing! Sounds like a delicious dinner! Thank you Nancy 🙂
Could Rhubarb be substituted for apples ? It’s Rhubarb season in upper Midwest USA.
Could Rhubarb be substituted for apples ? It’s Rhubarb season in upper Midwest USA.
Hi Maggie, I haven’t tried it with rhubarb myself, but I do think it could work. Just keep in mind rhubarb releases more moisture and is much tarter than apples, so the cake might have a different texture and flavour. I would probably add a little extra sugar depending on how tart your rhubarb is. Please let know the result if you try 🙂
Can you please tell me why unsalted butter is used in recipes and then salt is an added ingredient wouldn’t it be easier just to use salted butter?????
Fabulous recipe JB only had granny smith’s so sprinkled them with 1/2 tspn cinnamon sugar. Just perfect husband downed 2 pieces while I got a small dollop of icecream. Absolute winner!!! Also did in smaller pan with a little longer cook time…perfect
Thank you for the feedback Signe! I’m glad it work out well for you ♥️
Hi JB,
Is it possible to sub flour for almond flour to make it gluten free?
Thanks and can’t wait to try it!
Myriam
Hi Myriam, I’ve including this in my FAQ. I haven’t tried a gluten free version of this cake, so I can’t say for sure how it will turn out. Because this cake has very little batter and lots of apples, I think it should work quite well with a good quality 1:1 gluten free flour blend, but the texture may be slightly different. If you try it, I’d love to hear how it goes! Hope this helps!
I just made it GF – with Coles brand ‘I’m Free From…’ plain flour, worked great! I’ve tried many of RTE baking recipes with GF flour (just substituting 1:1) & they’ve all come out perfect.
Keep in mind if it needs to be dairy free that the crumb won’t be as moist. Thankfully I can have dairy again & am loving butter in baking 😋
Made this for dessert tonight – quick, easy and delicious.
Perfect! I can’t ask for more, thank you Carol!
A beautiful rich but light apple cake. So quick and easy to make.
Thank you Jacinta!!
I have made this recipe for years. It’s a delightful, quick recipe that’s pretty much foolproof. The only difference between my recipe and this one, is I flavor mine with rum or spiced rum along with a decreased vanilla! That’s the way I learned it.
Hi DJ, it’s common to use rum in this recipe, I’ve tested it and I am about to update the post. I chose not to use it here but it definitely adds a lovely note. Thank you for your comment 🙂
I am a 65 French lady and I have the same hand-written recipe from my mum !!! It was called Tarte Suisse, Swiss tart… I don’t know why !
As in your mum’s recipe the apples were sliced.
I never thought of dicing the apples as in your own recipe 😅… !
The result is perfect this way! Thank you Chef !
Merci Adeline! That is so lovely to hear, I absolutely love how these kinds of recipes travelled through so many French families with slightly different names and little variations. And yes, my mum also sliced the apples originally. I changed them to diced apples because I personally love how they spread through the cake and give little soft bursts of apple in every bite. Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful memory!
Looks yummo!
I am goiny to try this as a gluten free, and dairy free (ekk, always a risk). 🤔 But I am confident it will be okay.
Hi Judy, thank you 🙂 PLease let me know how it turns out. I wanna know!
Nice recipe but it makes me crazy when there is a need for an appliance to cream the butter. I am sure millions of French (and other) “mamans” have made fabulous cakes using a little human energy. Keeps your arms toned!!!
Hi Lisa, I didn’t mention it in the recipe, but you absolutely can make this with a hand whisk or even just a wooden spoon and a little elbow grease, just like many mamans would have done for years. The electric mixer simply makes it quicker and easier.
Looks lovely!! Quick question – does the size of the apples matter? The apples I can get range in size and are often quite small.
Hi Kyla, thank you! If you are not sure, just use the cups measurement (3 1/2 cups cut). Hope that helps! 🙂
No fuss! No bother! Just a few good ingredients happy to be together to look like a million dollars without screaming that out! Am not a cake eater but ‘ounakook’ was always on in my childhood home and now I have your Mother’s tweaked recipe – thanks! Methinks that guy living upstairs these days liked the hair pampering more than you did . . . meanwhile here downstairs: do have a decent weekend . . .
Dear Eha, What a lovely message ❤️ “A few good ingredients happy to be together” is actually a very beautiful way to describe this cake. Thank you again, and I hope you have a lovely weekend too! – JB