Apple Spice Snack Cake! This vintage, super moist spice cake is loaded with mini apple bits and features a wonderful, tempting salted caramel glaze on top, just in time for fall season! So easy to make and perfect for Fall Baking!
It's also simply perfect for snacking when you have a sweet tooth attack or just craving a good ole apple spice snack cake to bring you back to your childhood days!
There's nothing like a old-fashioned, homemade spice cake filled with apples to get into the fall season! You can whip this delish cake up in just a few minutes.
The glaze is made with some salted caramel sauce, melted butter, powdered sugar and vanilla and it really could not be easier to make! The whole house is going to smell so insanely good with apple and cinnamon scents wafting about! You're welcome! 🙂
Ingredients You Need
Apple Spice Snack Cake
- all-purpose flour
, measured correctly
- baking soda
- salt
- ground cinnamon
- ground nutmeg
- unsalted butter, softened
- granulated sugar or Monkfruit Classic Sweetener
- egg
- buttermilk - make it easily: 1 ½ teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice + ½ cup milk of choice
- walnuts, optional chopped
- 2 small apples chopped small ¼ - ⅓ inch thick or grated
Caramel Glaze
- unsalted butter
- milk of choice
- powdered sugar or use Lakanto Powdered Monkfruit Sweetener
for sugar-free
- salted or regular caramel sauce
, homemade or store-bought or use a sugar-free caramel sauce for sugar-free
How to Make Apple Snack Cake
Apple Spice Snack Cake
- To start, make the sour milk. Measure out ½ cup milk and add 1 ½ teaspoons of vinegar or lemon juice and stir. Let milk sit for 5 minutes so it can curdle and sour.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray an 8x8 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line with parchment paper for easy removal if desired. Double recipe ingredients for 9x13 pan.
- Whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a bowl.
- Cream the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy using an electric mixer set at medium speed. Beat in the egg.
- Add the dry ingredients alternately with the sour milk, beating well after each addition, using an electric mixer set at low speed.
- Stir in the walnuts and apples. Pour the batter into prepared pan and bake for 30-40 minutes until done.
- Cool cake in pan on a wire rack, unless you want to add glaze while warm, see below.
Caramel Glaze
- Microwave the butter and milk until the butter is melted. Gradually stir in the powdered sugar until combined. Stir in the caramel and combine. Add some salt or sea salt if you want the sweet and salty vibe if you don't have salted caramel sauce. Pour evenly over the warm or cooled cake. Let set for about 15 minute before slicing and serving. You may not use it all, depends how thick you want your glaze on top!
- Can also top with caramel sauce or dust with powdered sugar. Of course, cream cheese frosting is always an option!!
Cake Tips
- This apple cake recipe is for an 8x8 pan to get 9 nice sized sheet cake bars. Double the recipe for more servings and bake in a 9x13 pan for more. If you want a thicker cake, change to 12 servings on the recipe card to get the ingredient measurements using an 8x8 pan.
- These kinds of cakes are also called heirloom cakes or sour milk cakes. We made our sour milk by first measuring out the milk we needed. Then, add in either some white vinegar or lemon juice and stir it together.
- You can also improvise and throw in some raisins or walnuts!
- 'Toppings: Go for dusting this cake with some powdered sugar or ice it with some cream cheese frosting to make it super retro tasting!
- I just know so many people love the taste of caramel and apples together. So, this salted caramel glaze is our modern twist! Add a light sprinkling of sea salt on top of the glaze if you want more of the salt to come through, even though the glaze is already a salt and caramel combo. It can always be added later after sneaking a bite without sea salt and then another with. I just know that glaze is yum.
How to Make Sour Milk or Buttermilk
- For this apple cake recipe we made our own buttermilk.
- To make ½ cup buttermilk, measure out 1 & ½ teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice + ½ cup milk of choice and add them together.
- Let the milk sour for 5 minutes. Unless you have buttermilk on hand, then by all means, use that instead.
How to Make Apple Snack Cake Sugar Free!
- Simply make this apple cake recipe sugar free! It's sooooo delicious, I'm serious! I've used Lakanto
with really great results, using both their granulated sugar
and their powdered sugar
, etc.
- For healthier cake options, check out Lakanto! Use my discount promo code: thebakingchocolatess15, to get a 15% discount on all their products for all your sugar-free, low-carb and Keto needs!
Here's another healthy sugar-free dessert you might like too: Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake - Keto | Sugar Free Option too!
These are so wonderful for Thanksgiving, Christmas or anytime you're feeling a warm and cozy caramel and apple dessert snack attack coming on.
Apple Desserts You'll Love!
- Apple Cinnamon Bread
- Ultimate Soft Caramel Apple Drop Cookies
- 25 Apple-icious Desserts That'll Tempt You
- Heavenly Baked Apple Dumplings
- German Spiced Apple Cake
- 10 Tempting Comfort Snack Cakes
- Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars
This tasty Apple Spice Snack Cake is amazing warmed up in the microwave for 15-20 seconds, if you are storing it in the fridge. OMG! Try it!
More Apple Desserts!
- Easy Applesauce Bars
- Peanut Butter Muffins
- Awesome Country Apple Fritter Bread Recipe
- Salted Caramel Chip Apple Blondies
- 25 Apple-icious Desserts That'll Tempt You
Apple Spice Snack Cake - Sugar Free Option
Caramel and apple flavors rock together! This vintage, super moist spice cake is loaded with mini apple bits and features a wonderful, tempting salted caramel glaze on top, just in time for fall season! So easy to make! It's simply perfect for snacking when you have a sweet tooth attack or just craving a good ole snack cake to bring you back to your childhood days!
Ingredients
Apple Spice Snack Cake
- 1 cup all-purpose flour measured correctly
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup granulated sugar or Monkfruit Classic Sweetener
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup sour milk/buttermilk ½ cup buttermilk: 1 ½ teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice + ½ cup milk of choice
- ⅓ cup walnuts, optional chopped
- 2 small apples chopped small ¼ - ⅓ inch thick or grated
Caramel Glaze
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons milk of choice
- 1 ¼ cup powdered sugar or use Lakanto Powdered Monkfruit Sweetener for sugar-free
- 3 tablespoons salted or regular caramel sauce homemade or store-bought or use a sugar-free caramel sauce for sugar-free
Instructions
Apple Spice Snack Cake
- To start, make the sour milk. Measure out ½ cup milk and add 1 ½ teaspoons of vinegar or lemon juice and stir. Let milk sit for 5 minutes so it can curdle and sour.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray an 8x8 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line with parchment paper for easy removal if desired. Double recipe ingredients for 9x13 pan.
- Whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a bowl.
- Cream the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy using an electric mixer set at medium speed. Beat in the egg.
- Add the dry ingredients alternately with the sour milk, beating well after each addition, using an electric mixer set at low speed.
- Stir in the walnuts and apples. Pour the batter into prepared pan and bake for 30-40 minutes until done.
- Cool cake in pan on a wire rack, unless you want to add glaze while warm, see below.
Caramel Glaze
- Microwave the butter and milk until the butter is melted. Gradually stir in the powdered sugar until combined. Stir in the caramel and combine. Add some salt or sea salt if you want the sweet and salty vibe if you don't have salted caramel sauce. Pour evenly over the warm or cooled cake. Let set for about 15 minute before slicing and serving. You may not use it all, depends how thick you want your glaze on top!
- Can also top with caramel sauce or dust with powdered sugar. Of course, cream cheese frosting is always an option!!
Notes
If you want a thicker cake, use 12 servings to get the ingredient measurements.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
