Irish Apple Crumble Cake with Apple Brandy Sauce

Name: Irish Apple Crumble Cake with Apple Brandy Sauce
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 65 min
Total time: 95 min
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted); ¾ cup unbleached all-purpose flour; ⅓ cup granulated sugar; ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon; 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); 1 cup whole milk; 4 large egg yolks; ⅓ cup granulated sugar; ⅛ teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste; 3 tablespoons apple brandy

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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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5 from 5 votes