“Look up at the stars and not down at your feet.” – Stephen Hawkings. R.I.P
I don’t think i would have ventured into trying out Apple cakes as I have never come across any recipe or picture of one that really drew me in . But by some coincidence, there were several requests for apple cake by readers in a short span of time, a couple for wholewheat nonetheless. That had my interest piqued. That and the fact that there are always apples lying at home.
I have never tasted an apple cake. I did once make an apple cake with chopped apple on top, but never one that had apple in the batter itself. and since it had been a while since I had baked a cake, and in a oven foreign to me, i braced myself for a few test runs. Turns out, I didn’t need them.
I tried out this recipe from “Lets Cook Healthy Tonight” which seemed to have good reviews. I did change it a tiny tiny bit. I kept the applesauce chunky in the hope that it will give me more apple flavour. And i kept the batter preparation more straightforward. Reduced the sugar and also used almond milk in one try to see if it can be veganised decently. It can be , but if you arent vegan,i would suggest you use whole milk . I preferred it slightly more, but then it could be a matter of personal taste.
A few things to keep in mind. Apple in a cake has a mild flavour ( infact applesauce can be used as a fat replacement in baking for this reason itself). And the earthiness of the wholewheat flour can further mask the flavour . For a stronger apple boost, you can add finely chopped apple into the batter like I did the second time i made this cake .Also, remember to aerate the flour by sifting it atleast 5 times with the other dry ingredients . Be wary of undertaking a wholewheat cake. Remove the cake from the oven only when a toothpick inserted comes out clean AND the cake springs back on pressing gently. Do press gently unless you want your fingerprints imprinted on the cake for posterity!
Final Verdict : The cake was light but moist and had a great crumb .
Wholewheat vegan apple cake
Ingredients
- 130 grams or 1 cup wholewheat flour
- 100 grams or 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 120 ml or 1/2 cup milk or almond milk
- 120 ml or 1/2 cup water
- 60 ml or 1/4 cup oil
- 2 apples
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C/ 350 F .
- Butter a 7 inch round cake pan and dust well with flour. Line bottom with parchment (optional )
- Remove the peels of the apple. Grate one apple and chop the other into tiny pieces
- Heat the grated apple with the sugar in a pan over medium heat. Once the sugar dissolves , continue heating for 5-6 minutes stirring occasionally until there is a thick chunky sauce. Let cool.
- Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt 5-6 times .
- In another bowl, mix together all the liquids - apple sauce, oil, water and milk.
- Add the liquid mixture to the dry mixture and whisk until smooth.
- Fold in the chopped apple.
- Pour batter into the prepared pan
- Bake at 180 C / 350 F for 40-42 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out dry and the cake springs back on pressing gently.
- Let cool in pan for 5 minutes . Unmould and cool completely on wire rack
Notes
I used Royal Gala apples, you can use any red apples
Doesn’t the picture speak for itself? I was pretty pleased with the result given that it was whole wheat and eggless . I wouldn’t say it was like eating a fresh apple – the apple taste was not that dominant but the flavour was more of an undercurrent , and the apple bits added to the effect. All in all, a very good Vegan wholewheat cake !
Thank you to all those who requested me for this cake and pushed me out of my comfort zone! Do write back and let me know if i did good here!
Oh.. here s how my apple sauce looked !
Hi akshatha.. there are 2 types of apples I get here.. the flesh of one is comparatively crisp and the taste is sharp, the other is quite soft and the taste is less intense .(sorry for they layman terms); can you tell me which type you use
Hi,
I made this cake twice. But both the times it was soggy inspite of keeping the cake in the oven for nearly 1hr. The second time the skewer came out clean but when I cooled the cake, the cake sank. What could have gone wrong? Could you please tell me the measurement for the Apple sauce and apple chunks that have to be added? But both the times the taste was too good though 🙂
Hi Akshata. Encouraged by the awesomeness of your banana coconut cake, I’m going to try this one today. I would like to skip sugar though. Would adding more apple work? Please advise.
Hi.. And sorry that I took so much time to get to you.. Skipping the sugar or adding more apple would alter the texture I think… If u do try it, let me know!
Hi can this be made with APF…..i somehow dont like aata cakes i did try this recipe my family n frenz loved it… it moist n yummm…. stays good in fridge for over a week….apples in the cake helpbthe cake retain moisture n thus making it tastier with every passing day….but i still wanna try it with maida….any specific changes to be made if using maida
Hi Hina… thanks for trying the recipe and i m glad your family and friends liked it. I understand that you don’t like atta cakes so much . I haven’t tried this recipe with app, but in most wwf recipes , you can use app without any issues- so go ahead and make it a maida apple cake !
The cake looks so tempting …will try it soon.
Thanks Manju – hope you like it !
Thanks for the immediate reply . I will try now and give you the feed back . Actually one of my German colleague is Glutin allergic and a vegan as well . Hopefully the search ends ..
Oh.. hopefully it works , and i will also be on the look out for a gluten free vegan recipe . And get back to you with it !
Hi
I m back to give my reviews .
I prepared with rice flour 1 1/2 cups ( increased because the batter was quite liquidy , cane sugar 150gms , cream of tartar -1 tsp ( as she is glutin allergic Baking powder is not suggested ) and 1tsp baking soda as per the recipe , almond milk , water , oil ( coconut oil ) and 2 apples as per the recipe
Method also as given in the recipe
I made cup cakes and they cake out very good . They don’t raise like other cup cakes . But are very tasty and got cooked in 15 minutes
Thanks a lot . Your inspired me to make a vegan glutin free cake .
Wish I could share the picture
Oh… Thanks a lot for sharing your your experience. Very informative, i didnt know that baking powder isnt recommended for gluten free baking ! I hope your colleague enjoys the cake and may i say its quite generous of you to put so much effort so he could have some good cake ! Do email me a pic at [email protected] .
Hi ,
Since long I m searching for a vegan gluten free recipe and I happened to bump to your nice recipe but my search is still incomplete as I need to make a gluten free . Can I replace the wheat flour with oats flour ?
Thanks in advance
Annapurna
Hi Anna purna.. i havent tried it , but why dont you give the recipe a go with oat flour. It should work. Besides this is a simple recipe with minimal ingredients , so an experiment gone wrong means relatively less waste of ingredients n time.. if u try, do let me know !
Hi AKSHATHA, you are tempting me so much with such delectable recipes, I have been trying one after the other!! This looks so simple, I will definitely try tomorrow, as I have apples around!! Thanks again
I hope u try n like this too Suneetha !!!
You know i had opened your website to leave a reply on the semolina orange syrup cake that i made last night and i jumped with joy on seeing this wholewheat apple cake recipe that i had requested earlier..thank you so much..i am trying this recipe this weekend..about the semolina cake i hv to tell u it came out super duper hit just like all your recipes..i wish i had an option here to post a picture…ur recipes are a boon to beginners like me they never go wrong and give me so much confidence tht i too can bake and that too so well..thanks a lot..looking forward to more amazing recipes from you..btw whats your name?
Hi Damini !! I should thank you (and the others ) who suggested wholewheat apple cake.Its quite different from other cakes i have tried and hope you like it too ! Great that you liked the semolina cake. Please mail me the pics at [email protected] . I would love to share them ! And my name is Akshatha ! keep visiting and Please do pour in more suggestions and criticisms !