Easy Apple Coffee Cake

Do you ever take a piece of cake and breathe out a sigh of relief? Well, get ready. After many tests (we’ve lost count — maybe 6 or 600? We’ve cracked the code for the perfect Apple Coffee Cake! This apple coffee cake is balanced, a little toasty, comforting, and infused with cinnamon.

It’s made with healthy almond flour and coconut sugar that is nutty and full of flavor. This is perfect for an afternoon tea, breakfast, brunch, or snack. All you need is simple, everyday ingredients as well as one mixing bowl. We’ll show you exactly how to do it!

Coffee Cake Origins

Coffee cake is not always made with coffee. Coffee cake is a sweet cake that’s eaten with a cup of coffee. It is believed to have originated in Northern/Central Europe in the 17th Century.

Immigrants from Germany and Scandinavia then brought it to America. In the late nineteenth Century, American bakers added coffee to the batter of the cake, and some modified it to make it denser and cake-like.

This is a vegan or gluten-free version with apple, cinnamon, and optional crumbs.

How to Make Apple Coffee Cake

Almond flour combined with our DIY gluten-free Flour Blend creates a healthy, crumb-like texture that can stand up to vegan butter’s richness. The maple syrup and coconut cane sugar provide sweetness, while cinnamon, vanilla, and salt add flavor.

Baking soda and baking powder provide leavening. A small amount of dairy-free milk is added to the mix to keep it moist enough to resist the moisture in the apples.

Every bite of the cake is infused with the flavor of apples. The Granny Smith apple was the most prominent in flavor. We tried both the sweet Honeycrisp and tart Granny Smith apples.

The top of the cake will turn golden brown after a few minutes in the oven. It is now ready to be topped with the optional but highly recommended topping.

The crumb top is made from a simple mixture of organic cane and coconut sugar, which are infused with cinnamon. Vegan butter and gluten-free flour help to create a crumbly texture. It gets golden brown in 5 more minutes.

Ingredients

Apple CAKE

• We used almond milk.
• We like Miyoko vegan butter here.
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup organic cane sugar or 1/2 cup Coconut sugar
• Almond flour 2 1/2 cups
• 1 1/2 cups DIY gluten-free flour blend
• 1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• Half a teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 1/2 cups granny smith apples, peeled and chopped into cubes of 1/2 inch

CRUMB TOPPING Optional

• 1/4 cup organic cane Sugar
• Coconut sugar, 1/4 cup (or brown sugar)
• Half a teaspoon cinnamon
• We like Miyoko vegan butter here.
• Half to 3/4 cup Gluten-Free Blend. (See notes for store-bought)

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375 F. Line an 8×8 inch baking pan with parchment paper. Leave plenty of paper around the edges for easy removal. This recipe can also be used in a 9″ round cake pan or two 6″ round cake pans.
• Mix well dairy-free milk with maple syrup and vanilla in a large bowl. Add the baking powder, baking sodium, cinnamon, coconut sugar, almond, and gluten-free flour mixture, then stir well. The texture of the batter will be thicker and more like a cookie than a cake batter. Add the apple cubes and stir until they are evenly dispersed throughout the batter.
• Spread the batter evenly in the baking dish. The top can have some texture, as the crumble topping will cover it.
• The cake will need to be baked for 40 minutes. Prepare the crumble topping, if desired.
• Add the cinnamon, cane sugar, and coconut sugar to your empty mixing bowl and combine with a fork. Mix well the vegan butter. Add the flour in increments of 1/4 cup (40g), mixing with a spoon each time. It may be necessary to use more or less depending on your brand of gluten-free mix. Add flour until it appears pale, slightly dry, and clumps easily when you pinch the mixture.
• Remove the cake from the oven at the 40-minute mark and add the crumble topping evenly on top. Then, return the cake to the oven for another 5 minutes to ensure the crumble topping looks toasty and is dry.
• Let the baked goods cool in the oven for 10 minutes. Let the cake cool down almost completely before cutting and serving. Store at room temperature for up to three days or in the refrigerator for up to one month.