Apple Bundt Cake

This Apple Bundt Cake is sweet and moist, studded with chunks of fresh apple, warm spices and doused in a sticky honey caramel glaze. Perfect for all fall occasions and festivities. This recipe is a keeper!

Whether you’re searching for a cozy fall cake, a Thanksgiving dessert idea, or a honey apple bundt cake for Rosh Hashanah, this moist apple cake recipe fits the bill.

The masses may go nuts over pumpkin at the first signs of fall, but for me, apples are where it’s at!

There is something magical about the combination of apples and spices that makes me want to open the windows, snuggle up with a cozy blanket and soak in the season. (Even though it’s basically 90 degrees year-round where I live.)

This Apple Bundt Cake is a recipe that was given to me by a friend years ago. She and her family make this apple cake for Rosh Hashanah as it is customary to serve honey and apples to symbolize the start of a “sweet” new year.

If you’re new to bundt cakes, you may wonder: Should I peel the apples? Can I make it ahead of time? How do I keep it from sticking to the pan? Don’t worry—I’ve got tips for all of these common apple bundt cake questions below.

This recipe is naturally dairy-free (without the caramel sauce) and can be altered to be nut-free and gluten free. See variations and substitutions below.

Ingredients

This apple bundt cake with caramel sauce can really be enjoyed for any autumn occasion. The ingredients needed are things that you probably already have in your pantry or fridge:

• Pecans. Walnuts would also work great here. Omit the nuts if needed. Some people find pecans get too soft after baking, so to keep their crunch, you can toast them lightly before adding to the batter.
• Sugar. The cake calls for white sugar while the caramel sauce uses brown sugar that deep, rich flavor. Yes, it’s a lot of sugar. It’s a special occasion cake and it’s worth it. Just keep in mind, the high sugar content means the cake can brown quickly, so I’ll share tips for preventing over-browning below.
• Vegetable oil. Canola or other neutral oil may be used as well. If you prefer, you can even substitute part of the oil with applesauce for a lighter twist.
• Honey. This apple cake contains just enough honey to lend a mild honey flavor. Honey is also used in the caramel sauce.
• Eggs. Eggs contribute to the texture, structure and flavor of baked goods.
• Flour. All purpose flour is used here. I’ve never tried baking this with gluten-free flour, but I imagine a one-to-one blend would probably work.
• Baking Soda. This cake is very dense, and baking soda helps to give it a little lift.
• Spices. Cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and salt help give this cake a wonderful autumnal flavor. Feel free to use your favorite fall spice blend or try it with apple pie spice. The blend adds a fall feel to everything from baked goods to snacks like my Spiced Apple Granola.
• Apples. Honeycrisp, Golden Delicious and Fuji apples all make great choices for baking as they hold their shape and have great flavor. Granny Smith is another good option if you like a slightly tart apple bundt cake. I always recommend peeling the apples to avoid tough bites in the final cake.
• Butter. Butter is melted and blended with sugar to create the base for the honey caramel sauce.
• Cream. You may use heavy cream or half and half for the honey caramel sauce. If your sauce ever looks too runny, keep cooking for another minute or two until it thickens—it will also firm up more as it cools.

How to Make Apple Bundt Cake

Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Liberally butter or spray a 12 cup bundt cake pan. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of chopped, toasted pecans into the bottom of pan.

(Banana Bread Bundt Cake with Chocolate Chips is another fantastic use of a bundt pan, by the way!)

Greasing well is essential since one of the most common complaints is bundt cake sticking to the pan. You can even dust with a bit of flour after greasing for extra insurance.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, or a medium bowl, beat together the sugar, oil and honey until it is combined. It will look slushy at this point.

Add the eggs and vanilla extract, beating until everything is well-incorporated.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Gradually add the dry mixture to wet mixture, mixing slowly until just incorporated. This batter batter is quite thick, so prepare to use a little muscle or a hand mixer if you’re not using a stand mixer.

Make sure there are no pockets of flour hiding, but also try not to overmix, as doing so can make the cake tough or gummy. Overmixing is one of the main reasons apple bundt cakes turn out dense or dry.

Next, it’s time to fold in the chopped honeycrisp apples (and nuts, if using them). Fold in the chopped apples (and nuts) until they’re well-dispersed throughout the batter. To avoid apples sinking to the bottom, toss them lightly in a spoonful of flour before folding into the batter.

Spoon mixture evenly over pecans in the bundt cake pan. Smooth the top with a spatula.

Bake at 350°F for 1 hour 15 to 1 hour 20 minutes. I like to start checking the cake at around the 1 hour mark by inserting a wooden skewer into the cake. When the cake is done, the skewer should come out dry or have some moist crumbs attached.

If you’re unsure, look for the cake pulling slightly away from the edges of the pan—that’s another sign it’s fully baked.

Make the Honey Caramel Glaze

Meanwhile, make the honey caramel sauce. Place the butter, brown sugar and honey in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly for about 3-4 minutes.

Remove from heat and carefully add cream — it will bubble quite a bit.

Stir until the mixture looks uniform and is slightly thickened. Set the pan aside and allow to cool slightly. As the sauce cools, it will thicken. If your sauce ever crystallizes or separates, just warm it gently and stir until smooth again.

Remove the apple bundt cake from the oven and allow it to cool in the bundt pan for about 30 minutes before flipping it onto a cooling rack or serving platter. (Flipping a bundt cake too early while it is hot can lead to crumbly, disastrous results!) This is the step where many cakes break apart—patience here pays off.

Tip: The thick batter in this apple cake and the amount of moisture that comes from fresh apples makes it take a while to fully bake compared to other bundt cakes. However, the high sugar content of the cake will cause the top to brown quickly; don’t be fooled by the browning!

To avoid over-browning the top (bottom) of the bundt cake, I like to place a piece of aluminum foil loosely over the top of the pan once it has browned (about 30 minutes into baking). This will allow the cake to continue to properly bake through without burning the top or edges.

When the cake is slightly cooled, drizzle the honey caramel sauce over the top. I usually only use half of the sauce directly on the cake, and serve each slice with a little extra… because it might just be my favorite part.

The caramel sauce will set a bit, but remain sticky. This apple cake is delicious on its own, but over the top served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

For an even more festive touch, try serving it with cinnamon whipped cream, hot apple cider, or a garnish of fresh apple slices and cinnamon sticks on the platter.

Substitutions & Variations

Feeling like changing things up? Try out some of these variations for a different take on this apple cake:

• Swap pecans for walnuts.
• Try different types of apples such as Granny Smith, Fuji or Golden Delicious.
• Switch up the spices! Try adding a bit of ground cloves, allspice or cardamom for a different flavor.
• Don’t feel like making caramel? Try serving the cake with a sprinkle of powdered sugar instead. (Although I really think the caramel sauce makes the cake!)
• Make mini bundts for individual servings at gatherings or holiday dinners—they bake faster and look beautiful on a dessert table.

Substitutions

• Try using cup-for-cup gluten free flour blend for a gluten-free version. (Note: I have not tried this specifically for this recipe, but I imagine it should work fairly well.)
• This recipe is naturally dairy-free when served without the caramel sauce. You can also try making the caramel sauce with dairy-free creamer, coconut milk or serve with store-bought dairy free caramel.
• Omit the pecans for a completely nut-free version.

FAQ’s

Apple Bundt Cake

This Apple Bundt Cake is sweet and moist, studded with chunks of fresh apple, warm spices and doused in a sticky honey caramel glaze. Perfect for all fall occasions and festivities. This recipe is a keeper!

Rate Recipe

Pin Recipe

Course Dessert

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 50 minutes mins

Author Dianna Muscari

Ingredients  

For Apple Bundt Cake

• 1 cup chopped pecans divided
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• ¼ cup honey
• 3 large eggs
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 cups Honeycrisp apples peeled & chopped

For Honey Caramel Sauce

• 1 cup light brown sugar
• ½ cup butter
• ¼ cup honey
• ¼ cup heavy cream or half and half

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 12- cup bundt pan {or spray liberally with non-stick cooking spray} and sprinkle bottom of pan with ¼ cup of chopped pecans.
• In a medium bowl, beat sugar, oil and honey until combined. {Note: This batter is going to be thick so a hand mixer or stand mixer is the best bet here.}
• Add eggs one at a time, making sure each is well incorporated after each addition.
• In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Gradually add to wet mixture until just incorporated. Like I said, it’s a super-thick batter, so make sure there are no pockets of flour hiding, but also try not to overmix.
• Fold in vanilla, remaining ¾ cup chopped pecans and chopped apples — this part can be done by hand, but it'll take some muscle!
• Spoon mixture evenly over pecans in pan. Bake at 350° for 65-75 minutes. Note: This cake browns very quickly due to the high sugar content. If you notice that it's looking like it might burn, loosely place a piece of foil on top to prevent over-browning.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 20-30 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to remove from pan. When the cake is slightly cooled, pour ½ cup honey sauce over top.
• Serve the remaining honey sauce with each slice of cake.

For Honey Caramel Sauce

• Bring sugar, butter and honey to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly for about 3-4 minutes.
• Remove from heat and carefully add cream {it will bubble quite a bit}, and stir until the mixture looks uniform and is slightly thickened. {For a thicker sauce, allow to cool before drizzling.}
• Place the cooled cake on a cooling rack on top of a baking pan. Drizzle some of the sauce over bundt cake. Allow to set slightly before transferring cake to a serving dish or cake plate.

Dianna’s Tips

Variations:

• Swap pecans for walnuts.
• Try different types of apples such as Granny Smith, Fuji or Golden Delicious.
• Switch up the spices! Try adding a bit of ground cloves, allspice or cardamom for a different flavor.
• Don’t feel like making caramel? Try serving the cake with a sprinkle of powdered sugar instead.

• For Gluten Free Version: Try using cup-for-cup gluten free flour blend for a gluten-free version. (Note: I have not tried this specifically for this recipe, but I imagine it should work fairly well.)
• For Dairy-Free Version: This recipe is naturally dairy-free when served without the caramel sauce. You can also try making the caramel sauce with dairy-free creamer, coconut milk or serve with store-bought dairy free caramel.
• For Nut-free Version: Omit the pecans for a completely nut-free version.

 

Slightly adapted from a recipe by Nicole Slaven, private chef and instructor at the JCC in Manhattan