Easy One-Bowl Apple Cake Recipe comes together in a pinch. All natural, nothing artificial, and tastes incredible. Luscious Cream Cheese Frosting is optional (it’s vegan without.) This cake is a keeper you’ll want all year round.
I mentioned we finally made it to our local family-owned apple orchard, right? I love, love that place. It’s owned by the sweetest peeps who make their own apple cider, jams, bakery goodies, and even crisp hard cider. It’s all part of the fall experience here in Minnesota.
A visit to the apple orchard always gives us inevitable apple-greed. I believe we came home with nearly 20 pounds of apples. That’s not counting the 5 lbs we polished off on the way home. I wish I were exaggerating.
I’m not really complaining though. Because check out the Easy One-Bowl Apple Cake I’m about to reveal.
There are a few apple cakes we adore: this One-Bowl Apple Streusel Coffee Cake and this Apple Caramel Cinnamon Cake are two of my go-to favorites. But I cannot get myself to stop with the apple cakes; it’s an autumn obsession.
So here we are. Introducing the easiest, fool-proof-est Easy One-Bowl Apple Cake you’ll ever make/eat/repeat.
Watch us make Easy One-Bowl Apple Cake Recipe:
If you just watched that short video, then…right?!
This is the easiest, least messy version of apple cake you’ll ever make. It’s truthfully so moist, tender, and tasty that it doesn’t have to have the luscious cream cheese drizzle. This cake is good enough to stand on its down. That being said…who doesn’t want luscious cream cheese drizzle??
I routinely keep a Ziploc baggie of this easy, fool-proof cream cheese frosting in the fridge because this frosting is a social butterfly and makes friends with all the treats. It takes this already irresistible apple cake and takes it over the top.
I’ll concede that sounds a little bit braggy. I’m trying to stay humble about this cake, but I’m maybe not quite succeeding. 😇
You just have to bake it up and see for yourself. Dessert or breakfast. You choose.
If you make this recipe or any others from our collection, don’t forget to show it off on Instagram. Hashtag it #chewoutloud so we can see your awesomeness!
Print
Prep Time:
Yield:
Category:
Print
PinDescription
Easy One-Bowl Apple Cake comes together in a pinch. All natural, nothing artificial, and tastes incredible. Luscious Cream Cheese Frosting is optional (it’s vegan without.) This cake is a keeper you’ll want all year round.
Ingredients
- For the Cake:
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 2/3 cups sugar
- 2 cups flour*
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp table salt
- 4 1/2 cups apples, peeled and chopped (I use Fuji or Honeycrisp)
- Optional Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 1/2 cup salted butter, softened to room temp
- 16 oz regular cream cheese, softened
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 lb powder sugar
- 1–2 TB milk, as needed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F, with rack on lower middle position. Grease a 9×13 baking dish and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the oil, applesauce, vanilla, and eggs. Using a hand whisk, mix until well combined and smooth. Add the sugar and whisk until combined.
- Gently add remaining ingredients and stir with wooden spatula (it’s a thick batter) until just combined and no flour streaks remain. Do not over-mix. Use rubber spatula to gently fold in apples. Scrape batter evenly into your prepared baking dish, ensuring batter spreads evenly into the corners. Bake 35-45 min or until toothpick inserted in center comes out with few tender crumbs attached. Let cool to room temp.
- Meanwhile, make Cream Cheese Frosting (if using.) In a bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, and vanilla, beating until smooth. Add powder sugar and gently mix in until incorporated. Add a bit of milk as needed to reach desired consistency. Transfer to a Ziploc baggie, press air out, and seal. Snip off a bit of the corner and drizzle onto cooled apple cake.
Notes
*I use white whole wheat flour, which is milder than typical whole wheat. You can use half whole wheat + half white flour, or use entirely all-purpose flour.
Kitchen Stuff we Love:
Apple Addiction:
2. Saucy Maple Apple Pork Chops
4. Upside Down Apple French Toast Bake (Make-ahead!)
? How much sugar? Is the Baking soda amount correct?
Hi, Kelly, I’m so sorry! All amounts are correct now. Thanks so much and happy baking!
Wow.. yummy! Apple cake is always a perfect dessert for my family. Everyone love it!
Agreed, Maria – my fam, too!
Regarding the Easy one bowl apple cake. Does the recipe really require 11 teaspoons of baking soda? Sounds like alot.
Thanks
Isabel, it’s 1 tsp baking soda 🙂 Thanks so much for checking in and happy fall baking!
Oh goodness that looks absolutely amazing! I love going to the apple orchard, it’s like the start of fall signal! Lol
Glad I tasted the batter before baking! NO sugar? I added 1/2 cup – still not as sweet as my folks would like, so made the frosting cuz it needs it! Was no sugar a mistake?
Yes it was a total mistake, I’m sorry! I had updated the recipe to say 1 2/3 cups sugar. Thanks for checking on that. Hope you can try the recipe again as it is truly yummy. Happy fall!
YOu are really fattening up my family…lol, your recipes are so simple half the time I have all the ingredients in my pantry or only need an item of two. I like that this is simple and pan, the less mess the better.
Looks so yummy and easy to make. I’ll have to try it for Thanksgiving!
It’s honestly SO good – hope you guys love this as much as we do!! 🙂 Happy fall, Vanessa!
This recipe is divine. I love the video tutorial. Apple pastries taste excellent with vanilla ice cream as a topper.
Thanks so much,Cocoa… glad you liked the video!
I’m going apple picking on October 7th. I’ll have to refer back to your recipe then. Do you really keep the icing in the freezer? I’d love to do that and keep it on hand for those times when I bake a cake and am just too lazy to make frosting.
Yes, I’ve frozen or just refrigerated the icing just fine, as long as it is airtight. I make little ziplocs of them ahead of time, so I can use them when needed 🙂
I am not a baker but glad i stumbled on this post! Can’t wait to try it out tonight. Thanks for putting it together 🙂
You’re welcome and hope you all love this as much as we do!
These look so good! and a good recipe and new recipe that I need to try thanks!
You’re so welcome, Bianca!
Now this looks absolutely yummy. Reminds me of something growing up my grandmother used to eat in the mornings with her coffee.
Cute Fun Fringe Sweater
http://www.keepingupwithcandy.com
Yum! I’d love to try a slice of the apple caramel cinnamon cake and I’d also be interested to try following the recipe. It’s a great cake to share with family at home.
Glad to see that Fuji apples work with this recipe. I will forward this to my wife for her to try out at home.
Thanks for sharing. Actually there are a lot of seem-difficult-to-make dishes/desserts can be made by this way too. However, people just never truly discover it.
So true!
That looks like a really tasty apple bowl cake recipes. It’s healthy and you have many variations in its presentation.
It’s kinda sorta healthish 😉
This recipe looks amazing, and simple and oh so fall! Love it, can already smell the apples baking…!
Thanks so much! It does smell awesome 🙂
Wow! You are such a pro and that cake looks absolutely yummy. I have oven but don’t bake too often. Lemme try this.
I think you’ll love it 🙂
But why does this cake look like it’s from a tv commercial? This is a professional fantastic job! Yesss
You’re too kind 😉 Thanks and happy fall!
Everything looks so delicious through images. I am definitely going to try out this recipe this weekend. I hope I can make it as tempting as it looks in the pictures above 🙂 Thank you for sharing this recipe with us.
Wow!! These one bowl apple cake looks so tasty and delicious. Would love to try these recipe. I really like apples.
It’s not vegan with eggs in it… do you have a good substitute?
You can sub with “flax eggs”… hope you love it!
Being easy is a big selling point for me, but what I really love is all those apple chunks in there. I can’t wait to make this!
★★★★★
Looks so yummy and easy to make. I’ll have to make this for a house warming party this weekend!
★★★★★
It’s a perfect pick for parties!
We picked so many apples at the orchard, and this would be a great recipe to use up some apples! Sounds delicious, and my kids would have fun baking this.
What a super tasty recipe, I just got hungry to read it!
★★★★★
Your apple cake looks moist and delicious and I love how easy it is to make too! Perfect for when you want something sweet in a pinch.
★★★★★
This recipe seems so easy to do and I am going to make this with my kids next week for half term as they love eating apples
★★★★★
This apple cake recipe looks really delicious. Perfect dessert for our family gathering this weekend.
★★★★★