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Irish Apple Crumble Cake ~ made with fresh apples, plenty of cinnamon, and a sweet crumble top. This rustic and moist Irish apple cake is delightful drizzled with our creamy Apple Brandy Sauce!
First, you’ve probably figured out that I’m a bit obsessed with simple cakes, and especially those with a crumble top like our delicious Lemon Crumble Breakfast Cake. I think I like crumble tops better than icing; but that’s today, so we’ll have to see what tomorrow brings.
Is Irish Apple Crumble Cake easy to make?
When researching Irish Apple Cake recipes, I found that most are extremely simple to make, and all are chocked full of fresh, tart apples. The crumble topping is not always included in the old recipes, but is more prevalent in recent years. We couldn’t resist the crumble topping and then took it over the top with the apple brandy sauce. Our cake is nice and thick and easy to make in a springform pan.
I’m a big fan of real, authentic Irish recipes and often think about the delicious food we enjoyed on our trips to the Emerald Isle.
If you’ve thought about going to Ireland on holiday, I can’t say enough nice things about it, just do it! The country is absolutely breathtaking, the food is phenomenal and the people are gracious, helpful and perfectly wonderful to visit. The Irish don’t seem to be in such a big hurry all the time like we are. It probably helps that there are few things to do outside their little towns and villages, especially at night. But rest assured, there’s plenty of pubs with cold beer and Irish music to keep you entertained on your visit.
Check out our posts about ‘Traveling in Ireland‘ for tips and plenty of photos!
One thing that sets Irish Apple Cake recipes apart, is the creamy vanilla sauce spiced with apple brandy that’s passed around the table with the cake.
While the cake is super moist and doesn’t really need the additional drizzle, I encourage you to go ahead and give it a go. I took a simple, creamy vanilla sauce and elevated it with vanilla beans and a good splash of apple brandy. Doesn’t that sound delicious? It’s the perfect topping and actually enhances the flavor of the cake!
What kind of apples are good for baking this Irish Apple Crumble Cake?
There are plenty of apple varieties that are great for baking and cooking. Here are a few of our favorites:
- Jonagold apples fall in the sweet apple category. They were developed as a cross between the Jonathan apple and the Golden Delicious. The Jonagold apple has a honey-like sweetness with moderate acidity and is great for snacking, salads and baked goods.
- Granny Smith apples are one of my favorite tart apples and are perfect combined with sweet apples when baking. Developed in Australia in the mid-1800’s, the Granny Smith apple is crisp with plenty of acidity and flavor. This apple does not break down like some softer apples, making this great for pies when you need texture not apple sauce. Granny Smith’s are great in anything where sugar is added to off-set the tart flavor.
- Gala apples are a sweet variety of apples, are very aromatic and great for cooking. They would be perfect in this apple sheet cake!
- Empire apples have a pleasant cider-like flavor making them great for snacking. They’re also terrific in salads, sauces, cakes, cookies and pies. They make lovely apple butter!
Everybody loves this cake!
I may have seen family members (who will remain nameless) actually lick their plate clean after devouring this cake and sauce. I think they liked it! This cake never made it outside the family. They wouldn’t let it go and I bet you won’t either. Apple desserts are great any time of the year. Try it and you’ll see!
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PRINT THE RECIPE!
Irish Apple Crumble Cake with Apple Brandy Sauce
Ingredients
For the Crumble Topping:
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- ¾ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the Apple Cake:
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour plus 3 tablespoons divided
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- dash of nutmeg and ground cloves optional
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla bean paste
- ⅓ cup milk
- 3 Granny Smith apples peeled, cored and thinly sliced
- powdered sugar for dusting if desired
For the Brandy Sauce:
- 1 cup whole milk
- 4 large egg yolks
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 3 tablespoons apple brandy
Instructions
For the Crumble Topping:
- Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a small bowl. Add the flour, sugar, and ¼teaspoon cinnamon. Mix with a fork to combine. Set aside.
For the Apple Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Invert the bottom of an 8" springform pan (to make it easier to slide the cake off the bottom) then lock on the sides of the pan. Lightly grease and flour the bottom and sides of the pan. Line the bottom with a round of parchment paper and set aside.
- Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder and cinnamon. Set aside.
- Peel, core and thinly slice the apples and place them in a large mixing bowl. Toss the apples with 3 tablespoons of flour and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar. Beat for several minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time, just until the yolk disappears. And the vanilla bean paste and mix just until blended.
- Add ⅓ of the flour mixture to the creamed butter and sugar. Beat on low until incorporated. Add about ½ of the milk and blend until smooth. Repeat adding ½ of the remaining flour, then all the remaining milk. Finally, blend in the last of the flour mixture and mix just until incorporated. Scrape up the batter from the bottom of the bowl give it one last spin. Fold in the apples.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle with the crumble topping (leaving some in large clumps). Place a large sheet of foil on the lower oven rack to catch any drips that may come from the cake. Bake in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes or until the top is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Cover the cake with foil during the last 15 minutes of baking if needed to prevent over browning. Check the cake by inserting a toothpick in the center. It should come out with only crumbs attached, no wet batter.
- Cool the cake on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes if serving warm, or cool completely before removing the sides. Carefully slide the cake onto a serving platter and dust with powdered sugar before serving.
- Top with a Apple Brandy Sauce if desired. Refrigerate leftovers.
For the Brandy Sauce:
- In a medium saucepan, heat the milk over medium-low just until warm.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and salt until slightly thickened and lighter in color. Slowly pour half the warm milk into the yolk mixture while whisking continuously.
- Pour the now warm yolk mixture back into the saucepan, whisking to combine. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of the spoon.
- Place a medium mixing bowl over an ice bath, and strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve set over the bowl. Add the vanilla bean paste and stir to combine. Continuing stirring until the mixture cools. Add the apple brandy (or other liquor) and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Don’t forget the make the sauce too!
Here are a few more crumble desserts you might enjoy:
- Easy Peach Crumble ~ from Saving Room for Dessert
- Blueberry Crumble Bars ~ from Grandbaby Cakes
- Blood Orange Crumble Bars ~ from The View from Great Island
- Blueberry Crumble Muffins ~ from Country Cleaver
Do you plan to make a Irish dish or two for St. Patrick’s Day? Or maybe you are planning on a few green beers 🙂 If you’re looking for more inspiration – check out a few of our favorite SRFD Irish recipes!
- Colcannon
- Dublin Coddle
- Guinness Beef Stew Recipe
- Guinness Chocolate Cake
- White Chocolate Irish Cream
- Brown Irish Soda Bread
- Spinach Tarts – An Irish Recipe
Thanks so much for stopping by! Have a wonderful weekend.
Tricia
Bonnie Benedict Benedict
Have you tried making this a day in advance? I’m wondering if, with the apples, the cake might become too moist and the topping soften. Thoughts ?
Tricia Buice
Hi Bonnie. The cake is indeed moist but the topping should stay somewhat crisp. If using the apple brandy sauce only drizzle on when serving otherwise it would be wet. Don’t store in an airtight container as that might also make the topping moist. If making one day ahead, once completely cool I would keep the unsliced cake lightly covered with a tea towel or similar lightweight item. Enjoy!
Bonnie
Thank you! Looking forward to tying it. Brandy sauce is made. Question. Do you serve the sauce cold or warm?
Tricia Buice
Hey Bonnie. You can serve the brandy sauce cold or closer to room temperature. Enjoy!
Saundra
Your recipes look amazing! I was wondering what can be submitted for
the alcohol in these Irish recipes.
Tricia Buice
Hi Saundra. I guess that depends on which recipe. For most you can just skip it but if you’re making a Bailey’s Irish Cream Pie I don’t think it would work without the Irish Cream. Let me know if I can help!
Patricia Rodgers
I made this cake yesterday..had to bake it for 60 minutes plus..it was so soggy and heavy..very disappointed..had to throw the rest away..
Tricia Buice
Sorry you did not enjoy this cake Patricia. It has a load of apples in it so it’s going to be more moist than a regular cake.
Karen
I made this for book club tonight and it was absolutely delicious. I loved the apple brandy custard on top! I did not have an eating sprinkle pan so I just used a tall 8 inch pan and lined it with extra long parchment paper, so I could pull it out easily. It worked!
Tricia Buice
Thank you very much for the comment Karen! I’m thrilled you tried this and enjoyed the cake. Bravo, and lucky book club members 😉
AliceK
Is that a springform pan? Looks like an autocorrect error- LOL
Liz
Great recipe! Our family is Irish living in England, so I decided to try this recipe to connect with our roots. It was that good that two cakes lasted only four days in our house! Did the recipe without the crumble topping, still absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing this! Go leor beannachtaí, Liz x
Tricia Buice
So glad you enjoyed this cake Liz! We hope to visit England one day, and love Ireland. I wish we could travel again – maybe someday soon 😉 Thanks for trying the recipe and for taking the time to comment!
Liz
Oh, my. This is my dream dessert! I love all things apple and with a crumble?? De-lish!!
Tricia Buice
Thank you Liz. It’s a delicious slice for sure 😉
Cynthia S
I love anything apple. I made two apple pies for Thanksgiving, and they both were gobbled up. I wanted to ask if you have ever tried brown sugar in the topping, instead of white sugar. The reason I ask is because I won’t be able to make the apple Brandy sauce. Thanks for a yummy recipe! Cynthia S
Tricia Buice
Hi Cynthia. This cake will be delicious even without the Brandy Sauce so don’t worry about that. It’s delicious for sure, but not essential to the success of the recipe. I have not tried brown sugar for the topping. I’m not sure how that will turn out but I think it’s worth a try. No way it will ruin this cake. It may not be as crispy as brown sugar is made with molasses and is more moist than granulated sugar. I also love all things apple! With two pies for Thanksgiving your family must have been thrilled. Thank you for the great question and comment! Have a blessed holiday season 🙂
Kathy Thomas
Hi Tricia, have you ever tried this cake in a 8 inch springform pan? I have two both 9 inch. I hate to purchase another. I did see that someone used an 8 inch pan with high sides. Would that be a cake pan?.sure wanna make this for some company this weekend. Will leave a comment after I bake this.
Thanks for the yummy recipe
Kathy from Va..
Tricia Buice
Hi kathy. You can make this cake in an 8 or 9-inch springform pan. Whichever you have! Watch the baking time on the 9-inch. Enjoy!
Kay
Hello:) this looks very yum! Just wondering if I could make in advance & freeze for a week or so? Don’t see any reason why not.. Just wondered if anyone had tried?
Tricia Buice
Hi Kay – I haven’t tried freezing the prepared cake. With so many apples it may turn out a little mushy and soggy after being frozen. The crisp crumble top is one of the best parts so I don’t recommend freezing. But if you try it, let us know if it turned out okay! It’s a delicious cake for sure 😉 Thanks for the great question.
Kay
I’m trying tomorrow – LYK how I go! Also wondering if you have any Thermomix conversions? NP if not, just thought I’d check:)
Tricia Buice
Thanks Kay – looking forward to your feedback!
Julie G
This recipe is delicious! I made it in a 9” cake pan, baked exactly 50 minutes, cooled 30 minutes and it popped out of the pan easily. Moist cake full of apples with a yummy crunch topping. Just perfection. I have to pick up an 8” springform to try it in that along with all the other breakfast cakes. The pumpkin one is next!
Tricia Buice
Thank you so much Julie – you picked a great one! The springform pan makes these cakes so easy to bake and release. You’re the best for trying our recipes and especially for the comments. Just saying, you’re going to love the pumpkin one too 😉 XOXO