Filled with fresh chunks of tart apple and glazed with a delicious homemade caramel with a touch of salt, this beautiful Caramel Apple Cake is a real treat! Just imagine all the flavors of an old-fashioned caramel apple baked into a moist and tender cake that is really easy to make.

a slice of caramel apple cake on a plate.

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Easy Caramel Apple Cake Recipe

In my book caramel makes everything better! It’s such a simple thing that is literally composed of just sugar, butter, and milk. It’s really not fancy or complicated when you break it down. But when you simmer those simple ingredients together they transform into yummy velvety smooth caramel that can be added to any baked good or dessert.

And as a kid, I used to love caramel apples. The classic flavor combination is well-known for a reason! It’s incredibly good. So when I came up with this caramel apple cake recipe I had that in mind. It calls for fresh apples and of course my favorite caramel sauce. I mean the cake would not be complete without the caramel. In some ways, it has a similar flavor profile to my Apple Pie Bread Pudding but in a cake.

I like to serve this cake warm as an after dinner dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a dollop of whipped cream or for brunch with Irish Coffee. The cake is also a hit at potlucks. It’s truly an amazing cake that your friends and family will love!

Why You’ll Love This Caramel Apple Cake

Classic Caramel Apple! With chunks of tart fresh apples and a buttery caramel drizzle, this moist and delicious cake will bring back memories of good old-fashioned caramel apples.
Easy Recipe! While the cake may look fancy and be sophisticated in flavor, the recipe is really easy. It’s perfect for even novice bakers. You don’t need any special skills or fancy ingredients.
Make Ahead Option! You can make this caramel apple cake a week ahead and store it in the freezer. Then defrost, make the caramel glaze, top the cake, and then serve it the day of your event.

Ingredients You’ll Need

Cake

Vegetable Oil – Use a flavorless vegetable oil. It helps to keep the cake super moist.
Sugar – I used granulated white sugar. You can also use cane sugar.
Eggs – You will need fresh large eggs and for the best results they should be at room temperature.
Flour – Simple all-purpose flour is all you need. Pastry flour is another option.
Baking Soda – It’s used as a leavening agent that helps to give the cake rise.
Cinnamon – Complements the apples beautifully. You can also add a bit of ginger and cardamom too if you like.
Vanilla – Use pure vanilla extract for the best flavor.
Apples – Crisp and tart apples like Granny Smith are the best choice. But any type of apple will work. I also like to use Honeycrisp, Gala, and Fuji.
Pecans – They add a lovely crunch to the cake.

Caramel Glaze

Butter – This is one of those rare exceptions in baking where you will need salted butter.
Brown Sugar – It naturally has a bit of molasses in it, which gives the glaze depth.
Milk – I typically use whole milk, but any type of milk will work.
Vanilla – Pure vanilla extract will always add the most flavor.

How To Make Caramel Apple Cake

This recipe is the perfect example of how easy it is to make a cake with complex flavor in under 90 minutes! The simple batter comes together in no time and the caramel glaze is totally foolproof.

Preheat The Oven And Prep The Pan

To begin, preheat your oven temperature to 325°F (163°C) so that it is ready for baking once the batter is made. Then grease a 12-cup tube pan or 2 loaf pans and dust it with flour. Make sure you cover the entire pan well when greasing to ensure that the cake doesn’t stick.

Make The Batter

process shots showing how to make caramel apple cake.

Now let’s start making cake! Add the oil, sugar, and eggs to the large bowl of a stand mixer. Then mix everything together at medium-high speed using the whisk attachment until the mixture is creamy.

Next, sift the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together in a separate bowl.

Then add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients in the stand mixer and mix well on low speed. You want to continue mixing in the dry ingredients until no more bits of flour can be seen. Yet, be careful not to overmix. Then add the vanilla. Finally, gently fold in the chopped apples and pecans to finish the batter.

Bake The Cake

With the batter made, pour it into the prepared pan. Then place it into the preheated oven to bake for about 1 hour. The cake is done baking when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the sides of the cake have started to pull away from the edges of the pan. Then when it’s done, allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes before turning it out onto a plate.

Make The Glaze

Making the glaze is really easy! To start, melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Next, add the brown sugar and milk and bring the mixture to a boil while stirring constantly. Then let it simmer for another 10 minutes before removing it from the heat and stirring in the vanilla. You want to do this entire process over low heat.

Glaze The Cake And Serve

It’s important to let the caramel glaze cool for about 5 minutes before you do this step. Then once it has cooled a bit, pour the caramel over the top of the caramel apple cake. Now, you can finally enjoy! Slice the cake and serve.

What Else Can I Add To My Cake?

Dried fruit such as raisins or diced crystalized ginger can easily be added to this caramel apple cake. Just very gently fold in the additional ingredients with the nuts and apples. And of course, you can always add more spices like nutmeg, ginger, or cardamom along with the cinnamon if you like.

Can I Make Gluten-Free Cake?

Most likely yes! But I’ve not tested the recipe. However, if you do, make sure to use a 1-to-1 gluten-free flour that has xanthan gum in it, which acts as a replacement for the gluten that is naturally in all-purpose flour. This recipe will not work properly if there is no xanthan gum in your alternative flour of choice.

Expert Tips

Use room temperature eggs. This helps the batter to emulsify and properly come together to create the best texture. So I always suggest taking the eggs out of the fridge a couple of hours before starting the recipe.
Don’t overmix the batter. It’s really important to fully incorporate the dry ingredients by gently mixing them in at low speed and then folding in the nuts and apples.
Grease the pan well. You do not want your cake to stick. So do not skimp on how much you grease the pan and do generously dust with flour as well.
Let it cool. Be sure to give the caramel apple cake about 5 to 10 minutes to cool in the pan before attempting to turn it out onto a plate.

Storage

You can store the cake for several days at room temperature on a covered cake plate. That is the best way to maintain the shape of the cake and keep it from drying out. However, if you don’t have a covered cake plate, you can also cover your cake with a dome-shaped bowl or plastic container. Basically, make your own covered cake plate.

I don’t advise storing the cake in the fridge. Oftentimes, it not only dries the cake out but tends to dull the flavor as well.

How To Freeze Cake

This caramel apple cake freezes exceptionally well for up to 2 months. If you are baking it for a make-ahead dessert, bake the cake and let it cool, but don’t add the caramel glaze. Instead, once it has cooled, wrap the entire cake well in several layers of plastic wrap or cut the cake into individual slices and wrap each one separately. Then when you are ready to serve, allow the cake to thaw out at room temperature. Then make the glaze and pour it over the cake before serving.

Caramel Apple Cake