It’s October, which in West Michigan, is synonymous with “apple season” — and what’s better than a from-scratch, WHOLE GRAIN apple cake with homemade cinnamon yogurt whipped cream?
Not much!
Our family LOVES apples and we are fortunate to have several amazing orchards within a short drive from our house (one of which has a bakery with amazing donuts!)
We hit up these orchards several times every fall (we were just there last week for James’ school field trip) and we make lots and lots of foods with apples this time of year.
Many years ago, I shared our favorite Apple Cake recipe — but over the past 16-18 months of transitioning into eating lots and lots of whole grains, I’ve majorly updated that recipe to not only be 100% whole grain but to also have significantly less sugar!
It’s super delicious and could be served as a dessert or even on a brunch menu.
And it’s easy enough that the kids can help!
If you need a new apple recipe to try this Fall, give my 100% whole grain apple cake a try!
The oat + pecan topping really adds a nice crunch and the cinnamon yogurt whipped cream has just the right amount of “tang” to perfectly finish off this dish.
Seriously, I’m hungry now!
Whole Grain Apple Cake
If you need a new apple recipe to try this Fall, give my 100% whole grain apple cake a try!
The oat + pecan topping really adds a nice crunch and the cinnamon yogurt whipped cream has just the right amount of "tang" to perfectly finish off this dish. It's also a great dish for the kids to help with!
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 c. applesauce (or vegetable oil)
- 2/3 c. buttermilk (or milk)
- 2/3 c. honey (or brown sugar)
- 1 t. vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 c. flour (I use 220 grams of freshly ground soft wheat or oats)
- 1 t. cinnamon
- 1 t. baking powder
- 1/2 t. baking soda
- 1/2 t. salt
- 1/4 t. ground ginger
- 2 c. apples; peeled and diced
- -- FOR THE OAT TOPPING
- 1/4 c. oats
- 1/4 c. brown sugar
- 1/4 c. chopped pecans (or additional oats)
- 1/4 c. cold butter
- 1 T. flour
- dash of salt
- -- FOR THE YOGURT WHIPPED CREAM
- 1/2 c. plain Greek Yogurt
- 1/4 c. whipping cream
- 1 T. brown sugar
- 1/2 t. cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease a 9" round or rectangular pan. Set aside.
- In a large bowl combine eggs, applesauce, buttermilk, honey/sugar, and vanilla
- Add in all dry ingredients (flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ginger. Stir, just until combined.
- Add in diced apples and pour the mixture into prepared pan.
- To make the oat topping, mix oats, brown sugar, pecans, flour and salt in the same bowl you just mixed the cake batter in.
- Grate cold butter into oat mixture and combine until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Sprinkle topping over cake batter and bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes or until center is set.
- While cake is baking, combine yogurt, cream, brown sugar, and cinnamon in the same bowl. Whip until thick and fluffy. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Nutrition Information
Yield
10Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 294Total Fat 6gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 3gCholesterol 47mgSodium 210mgCarbohydrates 54gFiber 2gSugar 30gProtein 8g
Nutritional information is approximate and does not account for additional ingredients or added toppings.
NOTE: I use a cheese grater to grate cold butter into my topping. It requires less butter this way and it’s easier to quickly mix together.
I wait to make the yogurt whipped topping until shortly before I will serve the cake so it stays fluffy. If I do need to mix it up ahead of time, I simply add in a 1/2 t. corn starch and that does the trick.
Since I have access to really great apples year-round, this whole-grain apple cake has been my go-to dessert for the past 12-16 months… always getting rave reviews whenever I take it places or serve it to guests!
I’ve also made it in mini bread loaf pans and given it as gifts with other festive fall treats.
It stays “fresh-tasting” for several days (in my opinion) so you can definitely make it a day ahead if necessary. My only suggestion with this is that you leave it UNCOVERED so the topping doesn’t get soggy!
A Few More of My Apple Recipes:
- My previous Apple Cake Recipe (also super delicious!)
- Dutch Apple Pie (James has requested to help me bake this pie soon)
- Apple Crisp
- Apple Butter Pumpkin Pie
- Apple Butter
- Apple Zucchini Bread
- Applesauce
- Chunky Cinnamon Applesauce
- Apple Bacon Pecan Salad
- Caramel Apple Dessert “Salad”
- Apple Berry Banana Smoothies
Is your mouth watering yet?
That ought to give you a few reasons to buy apples this week!!
What are your favorite apple recipes?
Visit my virtual recipe box for more simple, delicious, family-friendly recipes!
Diana says
I made this last night, and even with the changes it turned out yummy! I used 1/4 cup brown sugar inside and 1/4 cup in the topping, and used regular unsweetened almond milk. Yum!!
Andrea says
on good — glad you enjoyed it! it’s one of our favorite apple cakes!
Jen says
I made this apple cake a few times this fall, and plan to make it each fall from now on. It’s a family favorite. Thanks!
Andrea says
yay — glad you enjoyed it! I actually just made it as muffins last week. I like the cake better, but the muffins were good.
Foteini says
Hello Andrea. Thank you for sharing this recipe with us. I would like to ask you. Although I think you explain this in the article, maybe I did not understand it. How do I keep the whipped cream fluffy? Say, if we eat three pieces in the morning and want to eat the rest of the pie later or the day after, what will happen to the cream if it stays for so long? Thank you!
Andrea says
You’re welcome, Foteini!
When I make this, we usually eat the vast majority in one sitting — however, I’ve had pretty good luck just putting the whipped cream in the fridge until later. It doesn’t go flat or liquidy on me (I’ve even left it in the fridge for 3 days).
Foteini says
Great! Thank you!
Rachel says
I finally got some buttermilk and am ready to try this recipe! I saw it from a photo you posted on your Facebook page and noticed you made yours in a bundt pan with a glaze on top. Was there anything you did differently for the cake when you baked it in a bundt pan? Did it need any more baking time? Also, do you have the recipe for the glaze drizzled on top? Also, I made a quiche based on your recipe for my kids, and they loved it!
Andrea says
HI Rachel!
Glad you kiddos love the quiche — it’s SUCH an easy breakfast when you need to feed lots of mouths at the same time!
Just an FYI, if you ever need buttermilk in a snap, just mix 1T. of white vinegar with 1 c. milk and let sit for 3-5 minutes. Done!
Also, the recipe I made in the bundt pan was different — you might not have enough batter with this recipe to fill the bundt pan. That said, if you want to try it, bunt pan recipes usually bake for 45-50 minutes (but definitely just watch it starting around 35 minutes).
As for the glaze — that’s just powdered sugar with enough milk to make it “drizzly”!
Rachel says
Thank you for that info! I took home some homemade buttermilk from a Home Ec class I was helping teach yesterday and knew I had a recipe waiting to use it. 🙂
My kids and I baked this cake today as part of our homeschool, and we loved it! The cake was just the right amount of sweetness, and the yogurt topping complimented it well. We used all oat flour per another reader’s comment, and my GF daughter was able to enjoy it as well. We also stayed with the 9″ pan instead of using the bundt just so I knew we were doing something right. Thanks for the recipe!
Andrea says
yay — so glad it turned out well! I LOVE the yogurt whipped topping!
Diana says
Yes, that is one reason I like your recipes 🙂
Andrea says
thanks so much Diana!
Diana says
This was tasty! I didn’t have pecans so used walnuts 🙂 I realized my pan was 8X8 so I scooped some out and baked it in a separate dish to make sure it baked all the way through. I didn’t end up making a whipped topping and it was fine without!
Andrea says
yes, definitely! I always try to share recipes that can be tweaked and altered a bit based on what individuals have in the house! no need to run out to buy a last-minute ingredient!
Glad you enjoyed it!!
Melissa says
Question: do you think it could be assembled the night before and baked in the morning? Curious if you have tried it that way before. And if so, how it alters the bake time/temperature.
Thanks for great content!
Andrea says
yes I do think you could make it in advance — just don’t put the crumble topping on until right before you back it. I would mix the crumble topping together and keep it in the fridge (so the butter stays cold) and then crumble it over the cake batter right before you put it in the oven.
Kari says
My mind was blown when I got to the picture of you grating the cold butter! I’ve never thought to do that, but will definitely be giving it a try!
Andrea says
haha — it’s such a SIMPLE tip! And works really well!
Kate says
Have you made this with only oat flour? Or do you usually combine oat and wheat flours?
Andrea says
I have not, but I think it would turn out just fine. You don’t really need gluten to make this recipe work, so I’d say give it a try!
Kate says
I tried it on Saturday with oat flour only- AMAZING!! I will definitely be making this cake again. Thanks for yet another great recipe!
Andrea says
oh yay — thanks so much for sharing your experience! It really is delicious!!
Chris says
Mmmmmm!
Cherry says
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I would like to make it tonight! How much butter will I need? I didn’t see it on the ingredient list. Thanks!
Andrea says
sorry, I missed that — just added it to the recipe!
It’s 1/4 c. of butter 🙂
Cherry says
Thank you! I’m glad it’s not the whole stick I saw there!
Andrea says
definitely not the whole stick! You could probably get away with only 2-3 T. if you wanted to cut the fat!