Apple Dapple Cake with Caramel Glaze, where have you been all my life? Never had this delicious cake and wondering what I’m talking about? Read on to find out how to make this amazingly simple and wonderfully delicious apple cake. Oh, and don’t forget the yummy caramel glaze!
It’s fall and the time of year when it just seems right to put apples in everything. There is a season for everything and fall and apples just go together. Apples will never taste juicier or sweeter than they do right now. And what goes perfectly with apples, why caramel of course!
I first tasted this scrumptious cake at a friend’s house. Mary Carroll served it for dessert following a delicious dinner, and both my husband and I loved it. In fact, my husband liked it so much that he requested that I make it for him for his birthday. Mary graciously shared her recipe with me, and now I’m sharing it with you.
The origin of Apple Dapple Cake is a little murky, but it appears that this decadent cake has been around for decades and probably passed down through families for generations. Apple Dapple Cake sports three cups of apples and one cup of pecans, so you could almost say it’s healthy, but I won’t go that far. What I will tell you is that the apples give this cake a wonderfully moist texture and the aroma wafting through your house while it is cooking is heavenly. Leftovers, if you have any are even better the second day with a cup of coffee for breakfast.
Speaking of apples, if you like this recipe, check out these other apple recipes: Sweet Apple and Bacon Club Sandwich, Fish Taco Bowls with Green Apple Guacamole, and Apple Pecan Chopped Salad.
The ingredients for Apple Dapple Cake are all-purpose flour, salt, baking soda, pecans, vegetable or coconut oil, granulated sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, and apples. Any variety of apples works great in this cake, so use your favorite. For the Caramel Glaze, you will need brown sugar, heavy cream, and butter.
If you have all of your ingredients and are ready to make this yummy cake, first preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Rub the bottom and sides of an angel food tube cake pan or bundt pan with a little butter, shortening, or baking spray. Make sure to get into the corners and all the way up the sides. Flour the sides and bottom of the pan by scooping a bit of flour into the pan, then shaking and tapping to coat the bottom and sides of the pan with flour; dump out the excess. (This hint is from my friend Harriet – You can also substitute a little sugar for the flour used to coat the pan which will give you an even sweeter crunchier crust.)
(Now I know you are wondering about this pan. No, it’s not a tube pan or bundt pan! I couldn’t find my bundt pan anywhere, so I had to improvise and use this lemon pan and another loaf pan.)
In a large mixing bowl add the oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Use an electric mixer and mix well.
In a separate bowl measure out the flour, add it and salt, and baking soda. Mix well with a fork.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and combine. Fold in the apples and pecans and combine, but do not overmix. The batter will be stiff.
Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake in the oven for one hour.
About ten minutes before the cake is done, make the Caramel Glaze by combining the brown sugar, cream, and butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. (You can substitute half and half or milk for the cream.)
After the mixture comes to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for about 3 minutes.
When the cake is done, remove from the oven and pour the caramel glaze over the hot cake while it is still in the cake pan. (Yes, the glaze will be on the bottom of the cake!)
Place the cake on a cooling rack and allow it to cool completely before removing it from the pan.
| Prep Time | 15 minutes |
| Cook Time | 60 minutes |
| Servings | 12 servings |
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup pecans chopped
- 1 cup vegetable or coconut oil
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups raw apples peeled and finely chopped (about 3 large apples)
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup heavy cream or half and half
- 3/4 cup butter (1-1/2 sticks)
Ingredients Cake Ingredients
Caramel Glaze Ingredients
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- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Rub the bottom and sides of the cake pan with a little butter, shortening, or use baking spray. Make sure to get into the corners and all the way up the sides. Flour the sides and bottom of the pan by scooping a bit of flour into the pan, then shaking and tapping to coat the bottom and sides of the pan with flour; dump out the excess. (This hint is from my friend Harriet - You can also substitute a little sugar for the flour which will give you an even sweeter crunchier crust.)
- n a large mixing bowl add the oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Use an electric mixer and mix well. In a separate bowl add the flour, salt, and baking soda. Mix well with a fork. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and combine. Fold in the apples and pecans and combine, but do not over mix.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake in the oven for one hour.
- About ten minutes before the cake is done, make the Caramel Glaze by combining the brown sugar, cream, and butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. After the mixture comes to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for about 3 minutes.
- When the cake is done, remove from the oven and pour the caramel glaze over the hot cake while it is still in the cake pan.
- Place the cake on a cooling rack and allow it to cool completely before removing it from the pan.
This recipe sounds good. I’m going to add some spices to it when I make it, maybe some cinnamon and/or nutmeg.
Hi Mary,
I think you will love it and I imagine it will be delicious with some cinnamon and nutmeg.
I made this today, for Thanksgiving. It was delicious! And the caramel sauce…oh man! (I had some left over and my husband ate it with bananas! It was so good!)
I was a little worried because, once mixed, the batter was very dense and thick…very unlike a traditional cake. I should have checked the cake after 50 minutes, it was just a tad over done. I also would have saved half of the sauce to put on top of the cake after it was inverted.
I will certainly make this cake again. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Thanks so much for sharing Cindy! I’m so glad you liked it. It’s my husband’s absolute favorite cake. I wish I had made it yesterday, I tried a new recipe and unfortunately it bombed…
This cake is ohhhh sooo good! I added some cinnamon because you NEED it with anything apple (though in this house anything with nutmeg gets tossed out …I’m one of those people that can’t stand that flavor lol) and when it was done i poked holes all over the cake before spreading on the caramel so it could seep inside easier. I may get creative in the future and add peaches or something in place of the apples – I’m sure that would be just as delicious!
Thanks, Jane! You are right and I’ll bet the cinnamon made it even better!