
Who doesnʼt like apples… Who doesnʼt like apples baked into an apple crumble cake then topped with a delicious pecan crumble topping… No one we know! German apple and pecan crumble cake is almost a cross between a cake and a tart. It’s, not a high cake, it’s more of a little bit of cake batter with mixed spice, layered with apples and topped off with a delicious nutty pecan crumble.
Serve German apple and pecan crumble cake with a good dollop of softly whipped cream and you’re on your way to heaven.
We grew up in a rural area and apple orchards were all around us. We would get to pick our own apples straight from the tree. None of this cold storage for 9 months business. Ah, memories……..
German Apple Cake Is Best Made With Cooking Apples
We’ve made our German apple cake on several occasions, using either Granny Smith or pink lady apples. Both apples work well but we particularly liked the pink lady as they brought a little sweetness to the cake.
Cooking apples come with so many varying characteristics from verging on the sweet side to very tart but they all have the ability to hold their shape when cooked. So it’s worth asking your grocer about what apples are in season and how sweet or tart they are.
Cutting into this German Apple Cake is a sensory explosion as you’re firstly met with the sweet scent of vanilla and spices then the texture of the apple and pecan crumble. YUM!
Apples and lemons are two of our favourite fruits for dessert making. Perhaps our very favourite is Apple Tarte Tatin with Star Anise and Black Pepper ……..absolutely divine. Apples buried into dark and sticky caramel and married with Star Anise and Black Pepper then finished with a crisp pastry, all combine to make this heavenly French dessert.
Or our lemon curd sponge roulade filled with cream and lip-puckering lemon curd. OMG!

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What’s your favourite Apple Cake

German Apple and Pecan Crumble Cake
This little winner is a cross between a cake and a tart almost. Itʼs, not a high cake, itʼs more a little bit of cake batter with mixed spice layered with apples and topped off with a delicious nutty pecan crumble. Served with a good dollop of softly whipped cream and youʼre on your way to apple cake heaven.
Ingredients
Pecan crumble
- 150 g lightly toasted pecan nuts (5 ounces)
- 55 g light brown sugar (2 ounces)
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 40 g butter, cut into small cubes (1 1/2 ounces)
Cake batter
- 1 cup self-raising flour (150 g / 5 1/4 oz)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon mixed spice
- 200 g castor sugar (7 ounces)
- 2 large eggs
- 150g butter cubed - room temperature (5 ounces)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup milk
- 4 small pink lady apples, peeled, cored and cut into thin slices
Instructions
Springform cake pan
- lightly butter and flour 26 cm springform cake pan
- line base of pan with baking paper
Crumble Topping
- pulse all ingredients till nuts are broken up being careful not to over pulse
- place crumble mix in fridge
Cake
- turn oven on to 350 f (180 c) on bake (not fan)
- in a food processor add sugar and eggs and whizz for 1 minute
- add butter and process, scraping sides if necessary till blended
- mix in vanilla and milk
- add flour, mixed spice, baking powder and salt and whizz till combined thoroughly
- note: mixture may look curdled but this is fine
- pour batter into cake pan
- place apples starting from the outside till whole cake is covered - see photo
- sprinkle crumble mixture evenly over batter
- gently press the crumble mix into the apple and batter mix
- bake for 55-60 minutes - check cake at around 40 minutes as you may need to loosely foil the pan if crumble is getting too dark
- serve and enjoy!
Notes
- peel and slice apples and pop slices in a bowl of cold water with some lemon juice if there is a delay in layering them onto cake.
Nutrition Information
Yield
10Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 438Total Fat 28gSaturated Fat 11gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 15gCholesterol 79mgSodium 449mgCarbohydrates 46gFiber 3gSugar 32gProtein 5g
Nutritional information provided here is only intended as a guide.