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This Salted Bourbon Apple Crumble Coffee Cake is fall baked up into a sweet little cake, infused with warming autumn spices, bourbon, and swirled with crisp autumn apples. This cake is no fuss, easy to mix up, and SO DELICIOUS! Every bite is layered with sweet cinnamon streusel, apples, and bourbon-vanilla coffee cake crumbs. Finish with a light drizzle of sweet glaze for a cake that no one can turn down…breakfast or dessert.
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I’m taking a pause from all the pumpkin recipes to bring back an autumn apple recipe! Once October hits I feel like we can all get sidetracked by baking (and cooking) with so much pumpkin. It’s easy to do, something about baking with pumpkin just feels so quintessentially perfect in October.
But, I’m here to remind us all that it’s still very much apple season. And we can’t forget about baking with fall apples too!
Enter this cake. It’s honestly one of the more delicious recipes I’ve baked up all month.
Here are the details
There are three steps to this cake…the batter, the streusel, and the glaze. The batter is pretty simple but has a few special ingredients: apple butter, apple cider, bourbon, apples, and a bit of sour cream to give the cake a perfect moist crumble.
Simply mix together the wet ingredients in a large bowl, then add in the dry…very simple, nothing fancy.
For the middle of the cake, you’ll need to make a streusel. You’ll also need some Honeycrisp apples. For this cake, I opted out of any creamy cheese, as I wanted the flavors of the apples and bourbon to really shine through.
I swirled the middle of the cake with chopped apples and then added a layer of streusel mixture.
For the very top of the cake, I like to arrange a few apple slices around the cake. Then I finish it off with streusel. It’s so delicious and perfect atop this apple cake.
Now on to that glaze
I don’t love a straight powdered sugar glaze. I find it to be pretty bland, and really, it’s just too sugary for my taste.
With this glaze, I wanted it to be exciting, but not overpowering. I wanted the flavors within the glaze to help highlight the flavors in the cake. Apples pair so well with maple. They help to make this my favorite buttery glaze. The bourbon adds a warmth and richness to the glaze, and the small pinch of salt ties it all together.
Not too strong, not too sweet, but just right. Especially when drizzled over this warm cake.
Insanely delish.
When everything is combined into one cake, you have a truly special fall apple cake. Make it today for something sweet tonight. But don’t forget about it when Thanksgiving rolls around next month as well.
It makes for a great brunch cake too!
We all really loved this. Especially my dad, who highly agreed that the apples really do make this cake.
Looking for other apple fall recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Apple Cinnamon Rolls with Brown Butter Maple Icing
Baked Apple Cider Doughnuts with Cinnamon Maple Glaze
Chewy Brown Sugar Maple Cookies
Lastly, if you make this Salted Bourbon Apple Crumble Coffee Cake, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Salted Bourbon Apple Crumble Coffee Cake
Ingredients
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) salted butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2/3 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1/3 cup apple butter
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 cup apple cider
- 1/4 cup bourbon, (or more cider)
Streusel
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 6 tablespoons cold butter, grated
- 1 1/2 cups chopped apples, plus 1 small apple, thinly sliced
Glaze
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon bourbon
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Butter a 9-inch bundt pan.2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and brown sugar until combined. Add the sour cream, apple butter, and vanilla, beating until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Slowly mix in the apple cider and bourbon until just combined, being careful not to overmix.3. To make the streusel. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Add the butter and use your fingers to mix the butter into the flour until a crumble forms.4. Spoon half the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the apples over the batter, sprinkle half the crumble over the apples. Spoon the remaining batter over in an even layer. Evenly layer on the apple slices, then top with the remaining streusel mix.5. Bake for 60-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool 30 minutes and then invert the cake onto a plate, flipping it back upright onto a serving plate.6. To make the glaze, add the butter and maple to a small pot set over medium heat to melt. Whisk in the powdered sugar, bourbon, and salt. Drizzle the glaze over the cake and let set 10 minutes. Serve the cake slightly warm or at room temperature. Keep cake stored, covered in the fridge.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Looking forward to making this cake this weekend! Looks amazing! But I don’t see the apples listed on the ingredients. Can you clarify how many apples you used for this recipe?
Hi Danie,
This recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups of chopped apples:) Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT
So all the apples go into the middle with the streusel, correct? 🙂
Hi Dorothy,
Yes, that is correct. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xT
And the winner is… Salted Bourbon Apple Crumble Coffee Cake! From the perfect cake consistency, the buttery crumble, and apples for texture to the salty bourbon drizzle, THIS is amazing!!! And the BEST part? An easy to follow recipe that produces deliciousness.
Thank you so much for trying out the recipe! Have an awesome weekend! xT
As always, perfection! idk how, but my glaze is brown and yours is white. Tastes amazing nonetheless!
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try! I appreciate you leaving a comment! 🙂 xT
I can’t wait to try this recipe. After reading through the process, I’m confused about what pan to use. The directions say bundt pan, but it looks like you used an angel food cake pan. Can you clarify? Thank you.
Hi there! Either will work just fine! xT
Looks amazing! Curious about using a Bundt pan. If I flip it over onto serving plate after baking will it be upside down with the streusel and apple slices in the bottom instead of on the top?
Hi Gwen,
You are going to flip it back upright in step 5. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Yum! Made it today as directed except used a 9″ springform pan. Rave reviews from everyone. Will definitely make it again.
Thank you so much for trying out the recipe! Have a great week! xT
This looks amazing! Do you think you could split this into two loaf pans and bake that way?
Hey Abby,
Totally, that should work well for you! Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope it’s delish! xx
Hi! I made this for a family gathering last night and it turned out great! Thanks so much for making your recipes so easy to follow I’ve been loving making them!
For this recipe I ended up making it in a square 9inch pan and it worked perfectly! I actually ran out of maple syrup though so I substituted honey in the glaze it was still good but I’m sure it’s 10 times better with the maple flavor, everyone still said it was great though. Thanks again!
Hey Regina,
Happy Monday!!⛄️ Thanks so much for making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it turned out well for you! xT
If I’m making it the day before thanksgiving should I let it cool to room temperature and then put it in the fridge overnight? Was planning to do the glaze before we eat it.
Hi Olivia,
You can just store in an airtight container on the counter:) I hope this recipe turns out well for you! Happy Thanksgiving! xT
Does the cake need to cool before you add the glaze? 🙂
Hey Michelle,
Yes, you are letting it cool for 30 minutes in step 5. Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xx
Thank you! Making today to bring to Thanksgiving 🙂
This looks delicious! Is it ok to make in a 9×13 pan instead and adjust bake time accordingly?
Hey Lidia,
Sure, that should work well for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
I see apples in the cake photo, but only in the topping ingredients. Can you clarify. Thank you!
Sue
Hi Sue,
You are adding apples into the cake in step 4. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
I made mini Bundt cakes and baked for 35 minutes each. They turned out great. I am not a fan of bourbon so I used butterscotch schnapps which is sweeter than the bourbon so I didn’t have that bite cutting through the sweet but it was still delicious!
Hey Cathy,
Happy Friday!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks a bunch for making it! Great idea to do mini bundt cakes! 👻
Made as the recipe said and it didn’t disappoint!
Hi Kori,
Wonderful!🤩 I love to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for making it! xT
Do you think I can substitute the flour with oat of GF flour? Or would that make the consistency change?
Hey Emma,
I think it would be just fine for you to use an equal amount of gluten free flour here. Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
Just made this! Heavenly❤️ Thank you so much for your wonderful recipes!
Hi Donna,
I truly appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xx