When life gives you a free jug of apple cider, make cake.
That’s basically how this cake happened. My neighbors got home from vacation, asked if we wanted some apple cider, and I was like, “Um, YES.” And then they brought it over and I made cake. It was a pretty productive evening!
This is not the alcoholic kind of apple cider, which you can totally use if you want. This cider is from Scott’s Orchard in North Alabama. It has a super strong apple flavor, which is why I thought it would do well in a cake.
I had this idea that I could take pictures of it at work the next morning, so I tried to get there early, but then realized I completely forgot to make the glaze and hadn’t packed any props or anything. So I decided to take pictures right when I got home from work, but I forgot I had to go to the store, and then the sun was going down by the time I got home. I scrambled to get pictures outside, but I think they turned out alright!
I really would like to have some sort of schedule for this blog, but I haven’t been able to work it out yet. At least I work with a bunch of foodies who will eat all of these things for me. 🙂
This cake is super moist and a little dense, but full of apple cider and cinnamon flavor. I decided to brown the butter because obviously I’m still riding that bandwagon. I also used a combination of all purpose flour and whole wheat flour, and a combo of granulated sugar and brown sugar. Lots of things going on, but so very worth it! You can sub all the flour for whichever kind you want; all purpose, whole wheat, almond, etc. Just make sure you’ve got the right total measurement.
If you’ve been reading along with me recently, you know I’m not much of a pumpkin fan and lean more towards apples, apple cinnamon, and caramel apple in all the many forms they come in (thank you food blogs!), but I’ve got some Halloween-ish posts coming next. And then (gasp!) a pumpkin recipe! Sometimes I just feel like I’m missing out on the pumpkin craze, you know?
For now, I hope you enjoy this apple cider cake. Live Happley.
Brown Butter Apple Cider Cake
Ingredients
apple cider cake:
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1 cup brown butter melted
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup apple cider
apple cider glaze:
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp apple cider
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
apple cider cake:
- First, brown your butter. This is a great step-by-step post if you need one. Set aside to cool.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a bundt pan with cooking spray.
- In one bowl, whisk together both flours, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- In another (heatproof if your brown butter is still warm) bowl, add both sugars and melted brown butter. Mix on medium speed until combined.
- Add vanilla and both eggs. Mix well.
- Add half of the flour mixture and half of the apple cider to the brown butter mixture and mix until just combined. Repeat with the second half of the flour mixture and apple cider. Mix well.
- Pour batter into prepared bundt cake pan. Bake for 30-32 minutes, or until a toothpick insert into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and let the cake cool for 5-10 minutes in the pan. Then transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.
apple cider glaze:
- Combine all three ingredients in a bowl and whisk until incorporated.
- If glaze is too thick, add a teaspoon or two of cider until it's the preferred consistency.
- Drizzle over cooled cake. (Or slightly warm.)
Ohmylanta. Apple cider + brown butter= magic! This looks fantastic and those pictures are GORGEOUS! Just out of curiosity, what camera and lens do you use? (I’m looking to get a dSLR this Christmas so I’m wondering.)
Thanks, Faith! I bought a Nikon D5200 a month or so ago and loooove it. It’s an amateur-body camera, so it has all the auto settings but you can switch it over to manual if you want. It came with a 18-55mm lens, but I used a 50mm for all these pictures. Good luck with your camera adventures!
Yes YES YESSSSSS. Beth, this apple cider cake looks heavenly! Brown butter (obviously a favorite of mine too heehee) sounds like a great addition to this apple cider cake. Don’t worry too much about setting up a schedule: i feel like every time I set one up, something comes up and I’m running around all over again! 😀
Thanks, Jess! I feel like you have a really good schedule, though! Like, specific days each week. There just aren’t enough hours in the day sometimes, I guess. Oh well! 🙂
Drool…
I really want to make apple cider DONUTS!
Oh my gosh, yes! Apple cider donuts would be incredible. I’m counting on you to make them now. 🙂
Nice! You just about yanked that jug of cider out of poor neighbor’s hands but you made magic with it. Good job!
Thanks! 😀
This cake sounds delicious! Between the apple cider and the brown butter – so perfect! I also really like that you got in some whole wheat flour. And yes for co-workers who help you eat all the dessert you make! haha It would be so bad if I couldn’t give a lot of what I make away ….
Thanks, Ashley! Yes, I don’t think I could do this blogging thing if I didn’t have people to eat all the stuff for me, haha. 🙂
Stop the presses — there’s alcoholic apple cider? how did I not know this?!
But seriously, this apple cider cake looks delicious. We’ve got a big jug of apple cider in our fridge, and this recipe is just calling my name. And I think your pictures turned out great, especially since you were racing the clock!
Thanks, Jamie! I totally meant “hard cider,” but that’s definitely not what I wrote, haha. My bad!
it looks yummy!
Thanks, Dina! 🙂
Lovely cake!
Thank you, Jennifer! 🙂
This cake looks delicious, I can’t say no a apple cider baked good. This is perfect for breakfast!
Thanks, Pamela! I can’t turn down anything apple cider either. 🙂
“This cake is super moist and a little dense, but full of apple cider and cinnamon flavor.” – a good description. I thought it blended the apple and cinnamon very well. 🙂
Thanks! Glad you liked it!
Yum! I have never had apple cider cake but it sounds great. Will be trying this one!
Thanks, Kristen! If you try it, let me know how it goes! 🙂
super moist and a little dense <– the best (and only) way I want a cake!
browned butter, apple cider, cinnamon – bet your house smelled amazing!!!
Oh yes, that is the best way to have a cake! Moist, dense, and a nice smell in your house. 🙂
I like pumpkin goodies, but I’ll admit that apple stuff is my favorite. This cake looks so moist and delicious!
Thank you, Tina! I really do like some pumpkin things. But yeah, the apple ones are my fave. 🙂
This cake is stunning!!! I will take apples over pumpkins any day and this cake while I’m at it. I always keep a 1/2 gallon of apple cider in the fridge during the winter and I am so looking forward to trying this cake with it.
Thank you, Zainab! Keeping some apple cider on hand is such a good idea! I need to remember that. 🙂
brown butter and apple cider, I am totally hooked
Me too! 🙂
I could use a HUGE slice of this goodness and a nice cold glass of milk, and I’d be set!! 😉 It looks amazing!!
Haha, thanks Jocelyn!
That cake looks delicious. I love everything to do with apples and the cider glaze on this cake must have some flavourful and moist.
Thanks, Laura! And yes, the glaze was probably my favorite part. 🙂
Brown butter, and double the apple cider? I could eat this for breakfast…and lunch…and a midnight snack too!
Oh, I could too! 🙂
De-li-cious, there is a small pub near me that sells some very very strong home brewed cider but it is also very big on the apple flavour so will probably be good for this cake. So nice to use ingredients from smaller producers and great that you know exactly which orchard your apples came from!
Thanks, Amy! I wish there was a pub like that close to me. And yes, I love to use local ingredients when I can!
Oh my, this looks AMAZING. I lovelovelove apple cider everything, so this is totally going on my must make list. And brown butter obviously makes everything better, so nothing can really be wrong with this. Yum!
Thanks, Rachel! Apple cider everything is my favorite! 🙂
I’m looking forward to baking this. This is the first recipe I came across that didn’t have a ton of sugar in it! Only 2 cups between the cake and glaze both is way better than 3 and beyond like I’ve been finding. Thank you.
Wish people would try the recipe before commenting. Just made this as written. It was still liquid after 30 minutes, baked for 45 until toothpick was clean. The cake stuck to the pan horribly. It also has a very greasy texture.
Is there enough flour in the recipe? It is the consistency of sticky toffee pudding. Is this what I should expect
Was hoping this would be a Thanksgiving dessert but cannot serve this. The batter tasted good before it was baked but now it seems to have lost the cider flavor. Please let me know if there are any changes to this recipe because it seems to have great potential. Seems as if maybe one stick of butter would have been sufficient. Your recipe says one cup which is 2 sticks.
Hi Karen, I wish you wouldn’t discredit a recipe after only trying it once. There are several things that can go wrong while making cake batter and baking. I haven’t made this cake in awhile, but it has never been greasy for me. If the cake stuck to the pan, that’s hardly the recipe’s fault; I would just double check that the pan has been greased. The butter is definitely correct. If I make this cake again soon, I will make sure to adjust the recipe if I find that it needs any changes. Thanks and sorry it didn’t work out.