Apple cake with caramel drizzle is a one bowl wonder. Delicious and EASY this fall apple recipe would be great to take to a cookout. Enjoy those fall flavors of sweet apple and rich caramel!
Apples and fall just go together. To be truthful, I prefer an apple dessert over a pumpkin dessert any day. Though this pumpkin ice cream roll was delightful to say the least.
Apple cake with caramel drizzle is a one bowl deliciousness that is easy to make, has simple ingredients and can be made in a hurry. It also gets eaten in a hurry, but that is to be expected.
What type of apples are best for baking?
There are certain types of apples that are better for baking than the others. A Red Delicious apple works best for eating. A Granny Smith apple bakes so well as it is rather tart. It is probably too tart to eat plain for most people. (Though my children love them!)
I personally bake with Fuji the most as I like how it holds up when baked. You don't want the apples to turn into sauce while making a cake.
If you are interested, I put together a small guide of what apples are the best for eating, baking and sauce.
Can I use one bowl for this cake?
Yes you can and those types of recipes tend to be my favorite. When I only have dirty one bowl, that is a good baking day. You will need to wash, peel and cut up the apples separately. Another good one bowl recipe is this applesauce cake.
Instructions
First, mix the oil, the butter and sugar together then add the eggs and vanilla. I personally don't ever measure vanilla. It is a dump and go method over here. However, never fear, I included the amount of vanilla needed for you in the recipe card below.
Now mix all the dry ingredients together and fold in the apples. Spread in a 9x13 cake pan or springform pan and bake.
Apples or apple filling?
So, the great debate is to use fresh apples or canned pie filling. It really depends on your time but there are also some pros and cons to both.
The fresh apples will have a slightly crunchy texture, takes a little longer to prepare and is more the classic apple cake.
The apple pie filling instead of the the chopped apples is easier of course because there is now chopping involved.
It also makes the cake a little softer and more moist because of the extra liquid.
I made the cakes both ways and they are both delicious and easy to make. Feel free to do what you have time for or preference.
Now the caramel
If you don't want to make homemade caramel, you can use Kraft caramels melted down to make a drizzle. I also added a little bit of almond milk in the pan with the caramels to keep the caramels from sticking and to make the drizzle more drizzly. Sure that is a word.
If you are interested in making homemade caramel, which of course is creamy and buttery and delicious, here is the recipe for Homemade Caramel Sauce.
📖 Recipe
Apple Cake With Caramel Drizzle
Ingredients
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 2 cups sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
Apple Choices
- 3 medium apples peeled and cut into bit sized pieces
- 21 oz apple pie filling
For The Caramel Topping
- 10 Kraft caramels unwrapped
- 1 tablespoon milk or almond milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Cream the oil and sugar together in a medium bowl
- Stir in the eggs and vanilla
- Mix in the flour, cinnamon, salt and baking soda
- Stir well
- Use chopped and peeled apples OR apple pie filling. Mix well into batter
- There are two options here: Place dough mixture in a greased 9x13 cake pan and bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until cake test done with a toothpickOrPlace dough in a greased 9 inch springform pan. Bake 350° for 50-60 minutes or until cake tests done
- After the apple cake is done baking, set on cooling rack to cool. Meanwhile, melt unwrapped caramels and milk together in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly
- Drizzle over cooled cake and serve
Nutrition
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Lea
Kim, would brownies travel well with this luscious-looking caramel sauce drizzled on top? Most of them will be hand delivered, but I’m mailing a couple. I’ve baked some espresso brownies that would go well with your caramel! I’m just worried about the drizzle fizzling out ;-) and creating a mess.
Kim
I apologize for not replying sooner... I was away from my computer! I don't think it would travel well so I wouldn't try mailing it. To hand deliver, it would probably be okay, but I would recommend making the caramel, then bringing it along in a separate container for them to add it when they are ready to eat. Hope that helps!!