Apple Cake Recipe (A French Classic)
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With tart apples baked into a buttery cake with just a hint of rum, this might be the best apple cake you’ll ever taste. It’s simple yet so satisfying—perfect for dessert, a cozy afternoon snack, or even breakfast (yes, it’s that good!).
The summer after my junior year of college, I worked as an au pair in Paris for a family with three energetic little boys. My host mother, Valérie, loved to cook and often enlisted my help in the kitchen once the kids were in bed. Her apple cake recipe, with chunks of tart apples nestled in a tender, buttery rum cake, quickly became one of my all-time favorite fall desserts. Like many French classics—think clafoutis, madeleines, or crepes—it’s wonderfully simple yet incredibly satisfying. A slice is perfect with a cup of coffee in the afternoon or served as dessert with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
“Last year I won first place in a state fair with this recipe…This year I won division champion in our county fair. It’s a total winner of a recipe!”
What You’ll Need to Make French Apple Cake
- All-purpose flour: Forms the base of the cake, keeping it light and tender.
- Baking powder: Gives the cake its lovely rise and fluffiness.
- Salt: Balances the sweetness and enhances the flavor.
- Unsalted butter: Adds rich flavor and moisture, making the cake soft and buttery.
- Granulated sugar: Sweetens the cake and gives it a crisp topping.
- Eggs: Help bind the ingredients and create structure.
- Vanilla extract: Adds warmth and complements the apples.
- Dark rum: Adds a hint of depth and complexity to the cake. If you’d like to omit the rum, you can replace it with milk, apple cider, or apple juice.
- Baking apples: Tart-sweet varietals provide the perfect balance of flavor and also make the cake incredibly moist. When this baking this cake or other desserts with apples, such as apple crisp, apple pie, or apple cobbler, it’s important to use apples suitable for baking. These apples hold their shape when cooked, so the chunks of fruit won’t turn into applesauce in the oven. Granny Smith apples and Honeycrisp apples are both great options. Feel free to combine different varieties for a more nuanced flavor.
- Confectioners’ sugar (optional): A light dusting gives the cake a pretty finish.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by combining the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl.
No need to sift; just whisk well.
Set aside. Then, in the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs one at a time.
Beat in the vanilla extract and rum.
It will look a little curdled at this point; that’s okay.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients.
Mix until just combined.
Add the peeled and chopped apples.
Use a rubber spatula to fold the apples into the batter.
Have a 9-inch springform pan greased, or a 9-inch cake pan greased, lined with parchment, and greased again.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and even the top.
Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar.
Bake the cake for about 40 minutes, until golden and crisp on top.
Serve warm or room temperature, plain or with lightly sweetened whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. A dash of cinnamon would be a nice addition, too.
Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions
The cake is best enjoyed fresh but keeps well at room temperature for up to 2 days. Store it at room temperature in a cake dome or covered with foil. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, wrap it tightly with aluminum foil or freezer wrap. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
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Video Tutorial
French Apple Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled off
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling over cake
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons dark rum
- 2 baking apples, peeled, cored and cut into ½-inch cubes (3½ to 4 cups chopped; see note)
- Confectioners' sugar (optional), for decorating cake
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease a 9-inch (23-cm) springform or regular cake pan with butter or nonstick cooking spray. If using a regular cake pan, line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper and grease again.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
- Using a handheld mixer with beaters or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and rum. Don't worry if the batter looks grainy at this point; that's okay. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until just combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the chopped apples.
- Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and even the top. Sprinkle evenly with 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool on a rack in the pan. Once cool, run a blunt knife around the edges of the cake. If using a springform pan, remove the sides. If using a regular cake pan, carefully invert the cake onto the rack, remove the parchment paper, then gently flip the cake over and place right-side-up on a platter. Using a fine sieve, dust with confectioners' sugar (if using). Cake can be served warm or room temperature, plain or with lightly sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Notes
- When this baking this cake, it's important to use apples suitable for baking. Baking apples hold their shape when cooked, so the chunks of fruit won't turn into applesauce in the oven. Tart-sweet varietals such as Granny Smith, Honey Crisp, Pink Lady, Braeburn, and Jonagold are all great options. Feel free to combine different varieties for a more nuanced flavor.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cake is best enjoyed fresh but for up to 2 days. Store at room temperature in a cake dome or covered with foil. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, wrap it tightly with aluminum foil or freezer wrap. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Didn’t have 2 apples so made with 1 apple and 1 pear- absolutely delicious! A keeper recipe for sure.
Will this work if I use blueberries instead of apples? Love the texture of this cake.
Hi Dawn, I probably wouldn’t use blueberries as they can be very tart when baked, which mean you’d need to add sugar to the recipe, which would throw things off a bit. But think it’d work well with pears or peaches. Also, I have a blueberry cake you may want to check out if you have some you want to use up.
Have made this twice in the last two weeks, the first time, having not quite enough apples, adding a pear, the second time using only apples (firm English eating variety). Both really scrumptious but the consensus here was that the second edged it. I’m now about to make it again and plan to make your Buttermilk Fried Chicken Tenders tomorrow, so it reminds me to ask you for the metric equivalent of your cups, because I notice that although you have the cup/metric toggle there are still items that mention only cups? Googling no help because the many helpful charts vary quite wildly. Thank you so much
Hi Patricia, so glad you’ve enjoyed the cake! Which recipe is lacking some of the weight/metric equivalents? Thanks for clarifying!
The French Apple Cake mentions Cups in relation to the amount of chopped apples; The Buttermilk Fried Chicken tenders has Cups of flour & Cups of vegetable oil. Since I really like the look of so many of your recipes I wanted to get an idea of your most used ingredient cup in relation to metric quantities.
Hi Patricia, both recipes actually have conversion to metric measurements. To view them, scroll down to the recipe and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “cup measures” to metric, you’ll see measurements that will work for you. Hope that helps!
This was AMAZING, thank you so much for sharing. I’ve made apple cakes before but this was the best one.
I made this for a Mother’s Day dessert. My husband’s and brother’s comment….”It tasted like not enough.” My mom and dad loved it. My kids thought it was amazing. I will definitely make again. Thanks so much for a delicious recipe.
I only have salted butter. Will that work?
Sure. While it varies by brand, most salted butter has approximately 1/4 tsp. salt per stick, so you can use the salted butter and reduce the salt in the recipe as needed. Hope that helps!
What a delicious cake – made it a few hours ago… nothing left but a very happy family!
This recipe is a keeper!
I changed the quantities to metric and multiplied the amounts by 1.5.
I also used Bramley apples and Canarian Ron Miel (Honey Rum from the Canary Islands). The sponge is beautifully light. The Bramley apples give a midly sharp contrast to the sweet sponge and held their shape and texture while being cooked. Really impressed. Also baked it in a square 10 x 10 inch tin.
This is a beautiful cake. Easy to make . Never fails. I reheat the serving in microwave and serve with dollop cream. Thank you for the recipe.
Just tried out this recipe and loved it. The only change I made to it is I substituted 3/4 tsp of cinnamon powder for the rum and added 2 tablespoons of milk to the batter as I felt it was a little dry. This recipe is for sure a keeper. Thank you.
I made this cake last night. I adjusted the recipe to my taste by reducing the rum to only 2 Tbsp and adding cinnamon. I’m so glad I made that addition because, in my opinion, apples are extra delicious when co-mingled with cinnamon. I didn’t let mine get to the beautiful color that your pic shows because I did not want it to dry out. But, oh my goodness, the texture was divine add the flavor was delicious.
Thank you for sharing this quick, simple but delicious recipe. I will be adding this to my repertoire of cakes.
Camilla
I made this recipe for the first time and we all love it. Great recipe! one that I would make again and again. I didn’t have rum so I substituted it with whiskey and it still tasted great. Thank you