German Apple Cake (Versunkener Apfelkuchen) – A classic German apple cake ready in just 45 minutes! Flavorful butter cake with whole sliced apples topping it!
German Apple Cake (Versunkener Apfelkuchen)
Something I remember about my trip to Germany many years ago was just how delicious all of the food I had when I was there. The schnitzel, pfeffernusse, roggenbrot, and more! One of my favorite things was a versunkener apfelkuchen, a delicious cake with full apples in it. It’s different from other apple cakes that have chunks of apple mixed right into the batter whereas this one has a quarter of an apple thinly sliced and placed on top to create the beautiful top to the cake.
This is really a great fall recipe to make as it has so much apple and a bit of cinnamon in it. I served it topped with a bit of powdered sugar, homemade whipped cream, and hot apple cider and it tasted like fall!
Common questions about making german apple cake (apfelkuchen)
What apples are best for apple cake?
For this german apple cake, smaller sweet, not too mushy apples such as jazz or honeycrisp are perfect. If you are using larger apples, you may need to cut them down a bit so that they cook through. I found that you only want the apples to be about 1″ thick at most.
How long does apple cake last?
This apple cake can stay fresh for about 2-3 days or about 5 days if refrigerated.
Can you freeze an apple cake?
Yes, let the apple cake fully cool and then wrap tightly with plastic wrap. It can last for up to 3 months in the freezer when stored that way.
Can’t get enough of this german apple cake recipe? Try these other recipes!
- Apple Spice Cake – Light and fluffy spice cake topped with caramelized apples.
- Mini Dutch Apple Pies – A personal apple pie! Pie crust filled with apple pie filling and topped with a crumb topping and baked in a muffin pan.
- Caramel Apple Pie Dip – A quick and easy no-bake dessert dip recipe! Caramel cream cheese topped with apple pie filling.
- Apple Snickerdoodle Cookies – A delicious fall dessert made with fresh apples and homemade snickerdoodle cookie dough rolled in cinnamon sugar.
German Apple Cake (Versunkener Apfelkuchen)
German Apple Cake (Apfelkuchen) - A classic German apple cake ready in just 45 minutes! Flavorful butter cake with whole sliced apples topping it!
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- 1/2 cup butter (softened)
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-3 medium apples
Instructions
- Peel apples and quarter them. Remove the core and then thinly slice each chunk of apple, trying to leave slices next to each other so that the entire piece of apple can be placed directly into the cake.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and spray a 9" springform pan with nonstick spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla extract and eggs and beat until mixed together.
- Add in flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Beat until mixed together.
- Transfer cake batter to the springform pan and then arrange the pieces of apple in top, pressing lightly into the batter. Sprinkle with remaining sugar.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with whipped cream.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 227Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 77mgSodium: 218mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 2gSugar: 10gProtein: 3g
This nutritional information can vary depending on the specific products you choose so this is a general guess of the correct nutritional information based on the products I used. Please keep that in mind when making the recipe.