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This easy Glazed Honeycrisp Apple Fritter Cake will become an autumn favorite. Made with melted butter, brown sugar, apple butter, yogurt, and lots of cinnamon, this cake is stuffed with cinnamon and vanilla-tossed apples and frosted with a quick, salted-vanilla glaze. Enjoy the warm smells of fall while this cake bakes away. It’s the ultimate fall treat; prepare to become obsessed!
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Desserts in the fall are just better, and this cake is the perfect example. I’ve been excited to share this for weeks, but I’ve been waiting for just the right Friday in September to share it. Today’s launch of our Apple Cider candle felt perfect!
If you haven’t yet done so, be sure to order your apple cider candle! They’re already almost sold out!
When I was younger, I didn’t eat apple fritters or apple cider doughnuts. My family did, however, do a lot of apple picking in upstate New York. We’d pick up buckets and buckets of New York apples, and my dad and I would eat them all.
I remember them being so delicious. Heading to western New York in the fall to pick apples is something I miss about living in Ohio.
Every time we’d head out to the apple farms, their farm stands would be selling their sweet treats. From doughnuts to fritters to heavily glazed apple cakes. They had it all! And while we’d never pick up anything but apples, those memories inspired this cake! The best way to describe this is like an apple fritter but in cake form!
These are the details
Step 1: make the cake batter
It’s a simple batter made with melted butter, brown sugar, apple butter, yogurt, vanilla, and eggs. Then, the usuals: flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Mix this all up in a bowl; nothing fancy is needed.
Step 2: the apple filling
I used up Honeycrisp apples and chopped them up. Then mix the apple bites with brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla and toss them together in a bowl.
I love to leave the skin on my apples. The skin provides more flavor and fiber! If you prefer, you can remove the skin, but around here, there’s no time for that!
Step 3: the layers
Now, layer the cake batter with the apples. Start with 1/2 batter on the bottom, then one layer of apples, the remaining batter, and then add the remaining apples on top to finish.
Now bake into a sweet sheet cake. The smells from the oven will be the sweetest autumn scents, so wonderful and cozy.
Step 4: the vanilla glaze
For the glaze, mix powdered sugar with warm milk, vanilla, and a pinch of sea salt.
Ice the cake while it’s still warm. This ensures the glaze melts into every inch of the cakes, seeping into all those crannies!
If you’re heading out apple picking this fall, make this easy apple fritter cake. Serve with coffee, hot cocoa, or even a steaming mug of cider. It’s a fall delight! And make sure the candles are burning. You’ll certainly have created the perfect autumn experience!
Looking for apple recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Brown Butter Apple Blondies with Cinnamon Maple Glaze
Haunted Pumpkin Patch Margarita
Cinnamon Crunch Apple Butter Soft Pretzel Knots
Salted Maple Apple Tarte Tatin with Cinnamon Pumpkin Seeds
Cinnamon Spiced Apple Fritters with Vanilla Coffee Glaze
Baked Cinnamon Sugar Apple Cider Doughnut Holes
Easy Cinnamon Sugar Apple Cake
Lastly, if you make this Glazed Honeycrisp Apple Fritter 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!
Glazed Honeycrisp Apple Fritter Cake
Ingredients
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup apple butter, (or applesauce/pumpkin butter)
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt or sour cream
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
Apples
- 2 Honeycrisp apples, chopped, (about 2 cups)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons whole milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- flaky sea salt
Instructions
- 1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a 9×9 inch baking dish with parchment paper.2. In a large bowl, stir together the butter, brown sugar, apple butter, yogurt, eggs, and vanilla, until combined. Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix until just combined. 3. To make the apple mix. In a bowl, combine the chopped apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. 4. Spread half the batter evenly into the prepared dish. Spoon over about 1/2 of the apples, then cover the apples with the remaining batter. Top with the remaining apples and any juices left in the bowl. 5. Bake for 55-60 minutes, until just set. Let cool for 10 minutes.6. Meanwhile, make the glaze. Whisk all ingredients in a bowl, adding milk as needed to thin. Drizzle the glaze over the cake. Sprinkle with sea salt. Serve the cake warm or at room temperature. enjoyI
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.
This is delicious! I will be making it again.
Hey Kari,
Awesome! Love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! Happy Sunday! x
Wanting to make this but needs to be gluten free. Do you think a 1 to 1 flour would work ok with this? Or would oat flour be better?
Hi Robyn,
The 1 to 1 gluten free flour should work nicely for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
Hi Teigan, that looks so good, do you think whole wheat flour would be okay to sustitute for the white flour? Thank you for your always creative recipes.
Hi Janice,
Sure, I bet that would work nicely for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
Hi! What does the apple butter provide the recipe, which already has apples and cinnamon separately? Is it there for moisture?
Hi Marcia,
The apple butter adds moisture and a more concentrated apple flavor to this cake. Please let me know if you give this recipe a try! xT
I had planned to make this immediately, but then I saw it calls for apple butter. No place to get apple butter around here in 45-minute-drive-to-the-nearest-town Wyoming, and by the time an online order arrives, my honey crisp apples will no longer be fresh. Is there anything I can use instead of apple butter? Thank you.
Hi Judy,
You could use apple sauce in place of the apple butter, that should work nicely for you! Please let me know if I can help in any other way! xT
Tieghan has a fabulous apple butter recipe on her website (Homemade Slow Cooker Maple Apple Butter) and you only have to search for “apple butter”. I have used this recipe to make Thanksgiving/Christmas gifts for local girlfriends plus I pass along Half Baked Harvest recipes that use the apple butter, such as this cake recipe. When you search for “apple butter” you can find recipes that use apple butter as an ingredient.
Yes, I have been frustrated with errors in the posted recipes and I usually go back to review the post text and current recipe on the website before I make a Half-Baked Harvest recipe. But in this post Tieghan addresses the question about peeling the apples by stating “I love to leave the skin on my apples. The skin provides more flavor and fiber! If you prefer, you can remove the skin, but around here, there’s no time for that!” And then there are the photos in the post. Out of respect and curtesy, take the time to read the post before submitting a question and if your question has already been asked, check back for Tieghan’s answer to the already posted question.
Why is your recipe inspo solely from childhood or your brother’s cravings? You went to France but haven’t shared any French food recipes. Did your trip not inspire you? It’d be nice to see recipes inspired by recent experiences.
Hey Serena! I had/have so much inspiration from my travels. In fact I have a salad coming soon inspired by one I enjoyed while in France. This time of year I draw inspiration from everywhere but my childhood memories bring me a lot of comfort and joy so I do pull from them a lot. Hope that makes sense! Have a wonderful week! xxT
When I click on apple butter, assuming I will get a link to a recipe, it takes me to target but they don’t carry apple butter?!!!
Hi Stephanie,
So sorry about that, it should take you to an apple butter from target. If you want to use my homemade recipe, you can find that here:
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/homemade-slow-cooker-maple-apple-butter/
I hope this helps! xT
It doesn’t. It takes you to a search for “apple butter” on the Target website, but they don’t carry apple butter. Completely useless.
Do you peel the apples?
The apple pieces don’t appear peeled in the photos. I’m thinking that’s optional, but see what Tieghan says.
Hi Susan,
For this recipe, I did not peel my apples, but if you would like to you absolutely can do that! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Hi, can you use a 8×8 pan? Thanks
Hi Jacqueline,
Sure, that should be just fine for you to use! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xT
Do you have a recommendation of a flour substitute to make this gluten free?
Hi Beth,
A gluten free flour blend should work nicely for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
Two questions: 1. Can you recommend an apple butter brand that’s easy to find? I shop mostly at Trader Joe’s and they only carry pumpkin butter. 2. Could I substitute pumpkin butter? Thanks!
Hi Amy,
My Whole Foods carries Eden brand, but typically I make my own:
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/homemade-slow-cooker-maple-apple-butter/
Yes, you could also use pumpkin butter or apple sauce! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Hi! Can you make this in advance (the night before)?
Hi Tracey,
Totally, that would work well for you! Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT
I have never seen apple butter before, what is it similar to?
Hi Zoe,
The best way to describe it would be a very thick apple sauce, you could also use that if you are unable to find any apple butter! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try! xT
What kind of yogurt do you use?
Hi Katie,
I used greek yogurt in this recipe:) Please let me know if you give it a try! xT