Apple Coffee Cake

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Moist and sweet Apple Coffee Cake with a brown sugar streusel and an apple cider glaze. The best fall breakfast or dessert!

Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American

Keyword apple coffee cake

Prep Time 35 minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Servings bars

Calories 352kcal

Author Chelsea Lords

Cost $5.71

Ingredients

Coffee Cake

3 cups white, all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons apple pie spice
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon EACH: fine sea salt and baking powder
3/4 cup vegetable oil or canola oil
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar (light brown works, dark makes for richer flavor)
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 and 1/2 cups sweetened applesauce

Streusel

1 and 1/4 cups white all-purpose flour, divided
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tablespoons apple cider
tiny pinch fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon apple pie spice

US - Metric

Instructions

PREP: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray (or you can line with parchment or foil and then grease for easy cleanup).
DRY INGREDIENTS: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, apple pie spice, nutmeg, baking soda, fine sea salt, and baking powder; set aside.
WET INGREDIENTS: In a medium bowl, add the oil, packed dark brown sugar, maple syrup, and heavy cream. Add in the vanilla and applesauce. Whisk until smooth.
COMBINE: Pour wet ingredients into the dry. Mix until just combined, being careful not to overmix the batter. The batter is very thick. Spread and then smooth the batter evenly in the prepared pan.
STREUSEL: Melt the butter in the microwave and then let stand at room temperature until cooled (don't add hot butter to the streusel -- it will make it greasy). In a separate medium bowl, whisk together one cup of flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, apple pie spice, and salt. Add the cooled melted butter and mix until the streusel is evenly combined and forms small clumps. Gradually add in the remaining 1/4 cup flour until larger clumps form. Sprinkle the streusel mixture evenly over the apple batter. Do not press the streusel into the cake. Use all of the streusel.
BAKE: Bake until the edges begin to pull away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (or with a few moist crumbs attached) about 35 to 40 minutes (My oven always takes 35 minutes). Cool completely in the pan before frosting.
GLAZE: Combine all the glaze ingredients in a small bowl. Start with 1 tablespoon apple cider and add more as needed until a thick glaze forms. Whisk with a fork until smooth. Drizzle over the individual pieces and serve.

Video

Notes

To maximize the shelf life of this Apple Coffee Cake, only glaze the pieces you'll be eating right away. Then, store the bars and glaze separately at serving time. Cover cake with plastic wrap to prevent drying out and keep the glaze in an airtight container in the fridge. You will likely need to microwave the glaze for 10 seconds and stir it briskly after it's been stored in the fridge.

Covered coffee cake will last about 1-2 days at normal room temperature, but will stay good for about 1 week in the fridge (in airtight containers). Warm leftover pieces in the microwave and glaze warm.

Freeze leftover cake by wrapping each piece tightly with plastic freezer wrap and then placing individual pieces in a freezer bag. There is some loss of texture and flavor when frozen and thawed, especially if the cake has been glazed. Coffee cake can be frozen for 2-3 months; thaw the bars at room temperature or in the fridge overnight.

Nutrition