A Mini Apple Cider Cake that is big enough to share, or small enough to satisfy your fall flavor cravings! This is a coarse crumb cake made with flour and cornmeal for a satisfying bite. And the apple flavor is amped up with cider, applesauce, and fresh apple slices – for a perfect slice of fall!
Mini Apple Cider Cake – Delicious Fall Dessert
Getting to the fall dessert flavor, I would say apple comes in a close second to – you guessed it – pumpkin. But let’s face it, sometimes we get a little pumpkin’d out. Besides, don’t you just love the idea of apple harvest time, and going out with your little basket to pick some apples? Wait, I saw that in a Hallmark Movie. 🙂
6-Inch Mini Cake for Two
This recipe is for a mini 6-inch cake. This makes it the perfect size for two people to have two slices – if you want to make the cake last more than one day! Otherwise, it does serve 4 perfectly portioned slices of cake. Because it’s fall, and you probably have a kitchen counter full of other tasty fall treats!
Mini Apple Cider Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 medium apple, cored and thinly sliced (I used a Red Delicious)
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup cornmeal
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon apple cider
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
- 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- Maple Syrup Caramel Sauce (I doubled the recipe for this cake)
- Crystalized Ginger, chopped (optional for adding to Maple Syrup Caramel Sauce)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees and adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Line the cake pan with a piece of parchment paper wide enough to fit the pan and long enough to overhang the sides of the pan – this creates a sling to lift the cake out of the pan.
- Core and thinly slice the apple. Depending on how you arrange the apple on top of the cake, you may have extra slices. For this recipe, I only used about ¼ of the apple.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the apple cider, applesauce, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Mix in the egg until incorporated, then mix in the melted butter.
- Add ½ of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Gently whisk until just incorporated. Add the remaining dry ingredients and whisk until no dry streaks remain.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Arrange the apple slices in concentric circles on top of the batter. Pour 3/4 (if you doubled the recipe – all if you did not) of the caramel sauce over the top of the apples. Optional – sprinkle chopped pieces of crystallized ginger over the top.
- Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean. Cool in the cake pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Use the parchment sling to gently remove the cake from the pan, remove the parchment, and cool completely on a wire rack.
- Drizzle with the remainder of the caramel sauce before serving, and enjoy!
about the author ...
I'm Erin and I'm all about desserts - and a little bit of butter!
I've tested, written, and photographed hundreds of recipes on my website. Here you'll find the tastiest small batch desserts - all homemade, all simple, and all for you! Click here to learn more about me!