Irish Apple Cake with Crumble Topping
This old-fashioned cake is a lightly spiced, rustic dessert studded with fresh apples, a buttery crumb and a crunchy topping. It’s delicious on its own, but when paired with a vanilla custard sauce, it becomes irresistibly yummy. Perfect for St. Patrick’s Day or whenever you crave a cozy bite.
Servings 8 slices
Ingredients
For the Streusel Topping:
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup packed light brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon or apple pie spice mix
- ¼ cup cold unsalted butter cut into small cubes
Cake batter:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup buttermilk use store-bought or make your own (see Notes below)
For the Apples:
- 3 to 4 medium Granny Smith apples peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon or apple pie spice mix
Instructions
Make the streusel or crumble:
- In a medium bowl, combine ½ cup all-purpose flour, ¼ cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup packed light brown sugar and ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon.
- Cut in ¼ cup cold unsalted butter pieces using a pastry blender, your fingers or a fork until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Reserve in the fridge while preparing the rest of the cake.
For the cake batter:
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a 9-inch (22-23cm) round springform cake pan.
- In a medium bowl, sift together 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda and ¼ teaspoon salt. Reserve.
- In a large bowl, cream together ½ cup unsalted butter, softened, and ¾ cup granulated sugar for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy.
- Add 2 eggs, one at a time, beating to incorporate after each addition. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and mix.
- Add the sifted dry ingredients to the butter mixture in 2 parts, alternating with ½ cup buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Don’t overmix at this point or the cake will be tough. With a spatula, give the mixture a few folds to make sure it’s well integrated, and there are no dry spots in the bottom of the bowl.
For the apples:
- In a bowl, toss 3 to 4 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced with 1 tablespoon lemon juice, ¼ cup granulated sugar and ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon.
For the cake:
- Pour half of the cake batter into the prepared pan. Smooth with the spatula.
- Arrange half of the apple slices over the batter. Pour the remaining batter over the apples, and then arrange the rest of the apple slices on top.
- Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the apples. Press it slightly to compact a bit.
- Bake for about 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. It might take more depending on your oven and pan.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before running a smooth-bladed knife around the edges to loosen any stuck bits. Release the sides of the springform pan.
- Serve the cake warm with custard sauce, vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream.
Notes
Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use an oven thermometer to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend tracking how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
Homemade buttermilk: mix ½ cup of milk (preferably whole milk) with 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or white vinegar. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes at room temperature until it thickens and slightly curdles. Stir it once more, and measure it again before using.
I recommend a springform cake pan, but if using a regular one, let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes and run a smooth-bladed knife around the edges to loosen any stuck bits. Let the cake cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before carefully inverting it onto a serving plate.
For a richer flavor, you can also use brown sugar (instead of white) in the cake batter.
For extra crunch, add ½ cup of chopped walnuts or rolled oats to the streusel topping.
