Apple Crumb Cake (Soft, Buttery & Cinnamon Kissed!)
Imagine a soft buttery cake cradling tender bites of tart-sweet apples all crowned with a crisp cinnamon crumb that shatters with every forkful. This apple crumb cake fills your kitchen with the smell of autumn and tastes like a hug you can eat. And yes you can make it any time of the year when the craving calls.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup sour cream
- 2 medium Granny Smith apples peeled, cored, and diced
- 1 cup all purpose flour for crumb topping
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon for crumb topping
- ¼ teaspoon salt for crumb topping
- ½ cup unsalted butter cold and cubed (for crumb topping)
- ½ cup brown sugar packed (for crumb topping)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar for crumb topping
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter for drizzle
- ½ cup brown sugar packed (for drizzle)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon for drizzle
- 2 tablespoons milk for drizzle
- Pinch of salt for drizzle
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and grease a 9×9 inch square pan or line with parchment.
- In a bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
- In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla.
- Add dry mix and sour cream alternately, beginning and ending with dry ingredients.
- Fold in diced apples gently.
- For crumb topping, mix flour, cinnamon, salt, brown sugar, and granulated sugar.
- Cut in cold butter until pea-sized crumbs form.
- Spread cake batter in pan and scatter crumb topping generously on top.
- Bake 55–65 minutes until golden and a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool for 20 minutes.
- For drizzle, melt butter in a saucepan, stir in brown sugar, cinnamon, milk, and salt, and simmer 2–3 minutes.
- Drizzle over cooled cake or serve on the side.
Notes
Choose tart apples like Granny Smith for contrast. Don’t overmix the batter to keep the cake tender. Chill your crumb topping before using for best crunch. Taste your drizzle and adjust with extra sugar or milk if needed.