German Almond-Apple Butter Cake

This gooey cake with just a hint of almond is layered with tart apple slices for an autumn confection. Back in the mid-2000s, just down the street from my high school there was an upscale restaurant called Metropolitan that we used to frequent. It was a nice spot for an after-school snack.

They served individual apple cakes topped with caramel ice cream for dessert, and though the restaurant is sadly now shuttered I still couldn’t get the dessert out of my head. It was so simple, but so moist and served warm so the ice cream melted into the cake. My version is baked in a larger pan so you can see the layers of apples in each cut slice.

German Almond-Apple Butter Cake

Key Ingredients in This Recipe

• Apples – For this cake I use Envy apples, a variety that lends itself well to baking. If Envy apples can’t be found, substitute other baking apples like Honeycrisp, Jonagolds, Winesap or Braeburns. Look for sweet-tart apples that have thicker skin, as these hold up well to heat so that they don’t turn to mush.
• Demerara sugar – This cane sugar with coarse crystals is used as a garnish. Since it is decorative it can be omitted if needed. The crystallized, unrefined sugar is also known as “sugar in the raw” and can be found in the baking aisle of most grocery stores. 

How to Make German Almond-Apple Butter Cake

1. Heat oven. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
2. Mix the dry ingredients. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
3. Cream the butter and sugr. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whisk together the butter and sugar until creamed, about 2 minutes.
4. Add the eggs. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Next, add the almond extract and cream, beating just until combined.
5. Add flour and apples. Slowly add the flour mixture until just incorporated. Stir in the apples with a wooden spatula. Butter and flour a 10” round cake pan and line with a piece of parchment paper. Evenly spread the batter in the pan, so there are flat layer of apples sticking out the top.
6. Bake. Sprinkle with the demerara sugar and bake until golden brown on top and a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 1 hour.
7. Serve. Let cool for about 10 minutes then serve warm topped with caramel ice cream.

Tips and Tricks for This Recipe

• If nut allergies prevent use of almond extract then substitute vanilla extract.

Other Recipes to Try

If you enjoy this recipe, I recommend checking out some of these:

German Almond-Apple Butter Cake

Print Pin

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Serves 9

US Customary – Metric

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• 6 medium envy apples, peeled cored and thinly sliced (about 2 pounds)
• 2 tablespoons demerara sugar
• Caramel ice cream, for serving

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
• In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whisk together the butter and sugar until creamed, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Next, add the almond extract and cream, beating just until combined.
• Slowly add the flour mixture until just incorporated. Stir in the apples with a wooden spatula. Butter and flour a 10” round cake pan and line with a piece of parchment paper. Evenly spread the batter in the pan, so there are flat layer of apples sticking out the top.
• Sprinkle with the demerara sugar and bake until golden brown on top and a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 1 hour. Let cool for about 10 minutes then serve warm topped with caramel ice cream.

DID YOU MAKE THIS?

TAG ME ON INSTAGRAM TO BE FEATURED ON MY STORIES! @cookingwithcocktailrings