This easy apple sheet cake is one of those desserts that requires little fuss, can feed a crowd and is perfect for fall! It's topped with a delicious and creamy cinnamon cream cheese frosting and pretty apple roses.
Fall is fully upon us and I'm ready to embrace all that comes with it. Cooler weather, chunky sweaters, boots, decorating my front porch with all the pumpkins, and of course lots of delicious apples.
I've talked in the past here about my love of apple orchards but unfortunately was unable to make it to the orchards this year. Thankfully the grocery store had some great looking Honeycrisp apples that were calling my name.
Best Apples for Baking
Before we get into the nuts and bolts of this delicious apple cake recipe, let's first talk about the best types of apples to bake with. You typically want a firmer apple when baking so that it doesn't lose its shape. The sweetness of the apple really depends on what you are baking and can be countered with either less or more sugar and your personal preference for how sweet you want your dessert.
- Honeycrisp: This is the chosen apple for this recipe. It's perfect because it is a firm and crisp apple so it will hold its shape and adds a lot of sweetness to the cake.
- Braeburn: Also a sweet apple with some slight tartness, braeburns fit the bill due to not turning mushy when baked.
- Jonathans: This is the apple I remember picking as a child in Illinois. These apples are grown all over the midwest and are juicy, sweet and firm.
- Granny Smith: The apple of choice for a traditional apple pie, this variety is the most tart of the bunch with more tang than sweetness.
How to easily remove the cake from the pan
This apple sheet cake couldn't be easier to come together. I wanted to serve the cake out of the pan for a prettier presentation so I chose to line the pan with parchment with the edges of the parchment hanging out of the pan to lift it out easily.
If you don't care about the presentation or are taking it somewhere to serve, this step is not necessary.
How to make the cake
First, you will combine the dry ingredients together and then in another bowl combine the oil, sugars, eggs and vanilla. Last, you will stir in the apples.
I chose to slice the apples thinly and then chopped them into ¼ inch pieces to have smaller apple chunks throughout the cake versus larger pieces. Make sure you don't overmix the batter so just stir until the apples are evenly incorporated.
This will yield a thick batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 30-35 minutes until a tester comes out clean.
Creamy cinnamon frosting
The last step is to make the sinfully delicious cream cheese frosting. You simply combine the softened cream cheese with some softened butter, vanilla, cinnamon and powdered sugar until creamy.
Adding a little heavy cream or half and half will thin out the frosting ever so slightly to a spreadable consistency. You can add more or less depending on the consistency you desire.
The only thing left to do is slather that apple sheet cake in the frosting and cut yourself a big 'ol slice and be transported instantly to fall. Enjoy!
For more apple recipes, check out these:
- Apple Pie Cupcakes
- Apple Cinnamon Rolls
- Apple Cranberry Crisp with Snickerdoodle Topping
- Apple Cinnamon Babka
Tag me on Instagram @themarblekitchenblog if you make this and leave a star rating and comment below! Thank you and enjoy!
Apple Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Apple Cake
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup brown sugar packed
- 4 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 large apples thinly sliced and chopped into ¼ in pieces
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 8 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoon half and half or heavy cream
Instructions
Apple Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 x 13 baking pan with parchment paper, leaving some hang out the sides if you will be lifting the whole cake from the pan to serve. If serving directly from the pan, skip this step and lightly spray the pan with cooking spray.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a bowl.
- In another larger bowl, whisk together oil, brown and white sugar, eggs and vanilla until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Stir in the chopped apples.
- Pour into the prepared pan, smoothing the top. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool in the pan completely before attempting to lift it out of the pan for serving. Once cooled, frost the cake with the cream cheese frosting.
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a stand mixer or using an electric mixer, mix the cream cheese, butter, vanilla and cinnamon until creamy. Add 3 cups of powdered sugar and mix until combined. Mix in the heavy cream or half and half adding more if needed to get your desired consistency.
Notes
- The best way to cut the apples for this cake is to thinly slice them and then chop them into about ¼ pieces.
- The cake will last a few days in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
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