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My applesauce cake is super moist and tender, and needs just one bowl to whip up! No oil, no dairy, and no eggs are needed, but you’d never tell.
Love baking with applesauce? Try my applesauce cookies, applesauce brownies, applesauce pancakes, and applesauce bread next.
Applesauce, to me, is one of life’s magic ingredients. It’s an essential ingredient for healthy baking and is often used to replace butter and oil. It keeps baked goods moist and tender and cuts down on the sugar needed, thanks to its natural sweetness.
While it is often used to replace fat, it can also be used to amp up some apple flavors, like in my fabulous applesauce cake recipe.
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe
- Basic ingredients. My cake uses pantry staples that you probably have in your pantry right now, and no eggs or milk, either!
- Quick and easy. With less than two minutes of hands-on time, this cake is very much foolproof.
- Perfect texture and taste. Okay, I know I shouldn’t play favorites, but this cake nails the texture. It’s super moist and fluffy in the middle and has a tender crumb. It tastes like fall with a subtle apple and cinnamon flavor.
Ingredients needed
- Flour. Either all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour.
- Baking soda and baking powder. Both leavening agents are used to give the cake some rise and fluffiness.
- Ground Cinnamon. A must for any recipe calling for applesauce, AND it is a fabulous Fall flavor.
- Milk of choice. I used unsweetened almond milk, but any milk will work.
- Vinegar. Vinegar is used because it curdles when mixed with the milk, and replaces the need for any eggs. I used white vinegar, but apple cider vinegar should be fine.
- Unsweetened applesauce. Be sure to use 100% unsweetened applesauce. Plenty of brands have added sugar, so double-check to be sure.
- Sugar. While white or brown sugar works, I prefer the latter as it yields a richer cake with a super moist middle.
- Butter OR vegan butter. To keep this recipe vegan, I used vegan butter but standard unsalted butter works. You can also use a neutral flavored oil, like vegetable oil or canola oil.
- Vanilla extract. A must for any good cake recipe.
- Vanilla frosting. Optional, but I can never say no to frosting! I used a simple cream cheese frosting.
- Walnuts. It is optional, but I sometimes like to toss a handful of crushed walnuts into the batter.
How to make applesauce cake
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- Make the cake batter: Mix the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and set that aside. In a separate bowl, add the milk, vinegar, applesauce, sugar, and softened butter, and whisk until combined. Let sit for 5 minutes so the vinegar can thicken the mixture. After 5 minutes, add the dry mixture and mix until combined.
Step 2- Bake the cake: Pour the batter between two cake pans. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer comes out just clean.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Oven makes and models differ. It took me 20 minutes to bake my cakes completely, but you may need 25-30 minutes. Insert a toothpick in the center of the cake and if it comes out clean, the cake is ready to be removed.
- You can use homemade applesauce, but be sure it is completely smooth and has a thin texture. If your applesauce is too thick, simply run it through a blender or food processor.
- Add more fall spices into the cake batter, like nutmeg, cloves, and even a touch of ginger.
- If you notice the tops of the cake browning a little too quickly, cover it with aluminum foil to prevent over-cooking the outsides.
- If you want to make a single-layer cake, simply halve the ingredients.
Storage instructions
To store: If you don’t frost the cake, you can store the cake at room temperature. Keep it in a sealable container with a paper towel on top. It will keep well for 5 days. If you’ve frosted your cake, you must store it in the refrigerator. Cover it in plastic, and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
To freeze: Leftover applesauce spice cake can be placed in a freezer-friendly container and stored in the freezer for up to 6 months. Thaw the cake overnight in the refrigerator.
Frequently asked questions
When made with vegan butter or oil, this cake contains no dairy and is suitable for those following a vegan diet.
I’ve tried this cake using a gluten-free flour blend, and it worked well. Just remember to choose a gluten-free flour that contains xanthan gum.
More easy cakes to try
Applesauce Cake
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 2 cups milk I used unsweetened almond milk
- 3 tablespoon vinegar
- 2 cups unsweetened applesauce
- 2 cups sugar white, brown, coconut, or sugar free subs
- 1 1/3 cups butter softened, dairy free or standard
- 1 cup cream cheese frosting or preferred frosting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Prepare two 8-inch cake pans with cooking spray and parchment paper and set them aside.
- In a mixing bowl, add your flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon, and mix well. Set aside. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together milk, vinegar, butter, sugar, and the applesauce, until combined and glossy. Let sit for 5 minutes. Combine your wet and dry ingredients.
- Distribute the batter among the two baking pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a skewer comes out just clean.
- Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cool, layer the cake by adding frosting between them and on top.
Easy and delish!
Thank you for healthier recipes. I’m diabetic and can eat your desserts 😃👍🏻! And to top it off…they’re delicious 😋 Have a beautiful day 😊
This cake was surprisingly awesome! My husband kept commenting every time we had it for dessert. I used half unbleached flour, and half almond flour and erythritol sweetener. I added pecans and a few raisins. It was out of this world! Thank you for this wonderful recipe. Will definitely make again. I know it will be well-received by even our non-vegan relatives and friends!
Please can I have the ingredients in UK metric.
We use American cups and tablespoons, we haven’t calculcated this using the metric system.
I just made this using almond flour. Unsure what I did wrong but it was still really wet and soggy after 45 mins – would never pass the skewer test! In the photo it doesn’t look like a sponge so I thought maybe its meant to be soggy not spongy? I’d like to make it again but worried the second attempt would go the same way… no way can I ice it – does it go more solid when cold? I had left the butter at room temperature for 2 hours but it didn’t want to beat in – how can I soften the butter so it mixes better – I guess melting it would not work?
Hi Elizabeth- this recipe doesn’t use almond flour, it uses all purpose gluten free flour or plain flour, so I’m not surprised it didn’t turn out.