The Best Apple Crumb Cake Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x12-inch baking dish generously.
• Whisk flour, sea salt, baking powder, and baking soda together in a bowl. Set aside.
• Combine walnuts, brown sugar, white sugar, salt, cinnamon, and melted butter in a bowl. Mix until walnuts and sugar are thoroughly coated with butter.
• Cream butter and sugar together in another bowl with a spatula until well blended. Add 1 egg and whisk until mixture is smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in second egg until thoroughly incorporated. Add vanilla extract and yogurt; whisk together. Add flour mixture to wet ingredients; whisk just until flour disappears. Do not overmix.
• Remove cores from apples. Cut across into 1/8- to 1/4-inch slices. Stack up a few slices, make 1 cut down the center, and dice across into cubes. Add to cake batter, folding in with a spatula until just combined.
• Spread 1/2 of the batter evenly into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Scatter 1/2 of the crumble mixture evenly over the top. Top with the rest of the batter in dollops. Spread carefully to evenly distribute, trying not to disturb the crumbs. Top with the rest of the crumb mixture. Press crumbs into the batter very gently.
• Bake in the center of the preheated oven until a toothpick or bamboo skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Let cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes, before slicing and serving.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Tip 120g plain flour and 60g caster sugar into a large bowl.
• Add 60g unsalted butter, then rub into the flour using your fingertips to make a light breadcrumb texture. Do not overwork it or the crumble will become heavy.
• Sprinkle the mixture evenly over a baking sheet and bake for 15 mins or until lightly coloured.
• Meanwhile, for the compote, peel, core and cut 300g Braeburn apples into 2cm dice.
• Put 30g unsalted butter and 30g demerara sugar in a medium saucepan and melt together over a medium heat. Cook for 3 mins until the mixture turns to a light caramel.
• Stir in the apples and cook for 3 mins. Add 115g blackberries and ¼ tsp ground cinnamon, and cook for 3 mins more.
• Cover, remove from the heat, then leave for 2-3 mins to continue cooking in the warmth of the pan.
• To serve, spoon the warm fruit into an ovenproof gratin dish, top with the crumble mix, then reheat in the oven for 5-10 mins. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Steps:

• Mix the flour, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Cut the butter into cubes and add to the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter or your hands, work the butter into the flour until it's no longer visible. Add the egg and knead until the dough is smooth. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 24 hours.
• Peel, core, and quarter the apples. Cut them into slices 1/8 to 1/4 inch/3 to 6mm thick and put the slices in a large pot. Add the juice of 1 lemon along with the Lebkuchen Spice and the 1/4 cup/60ml of water. Cover the pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Cook the apples for 15 to 20 minutes, or until silky and relatively broken down. The apples should not turn completely to mush but still retain some shape. Take the pot off the heat and stir in the cranberries and the remaining 1 Tbsp granulated sugar.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Line the bottom of a 9-inch/23cm springform pan with parchment paper. Take two-thirds of the dough and pat it evenly into the springform pan, forming a 1-inch-/2.5cm-high rim at the edges. Refrigerate the remaining dough. Prick the dough in the pan evenly all over with a fork. Line the dough with a sheet of aluminum foil and fill the pan with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the crust is starting to firm up but is not yet browning. Remove from the oven and carefully remove the aluminum foil and pie weights; maintain the oven temperature.
• Scrape the apple mixture evenly into the par-baked shell and smooth the top. The apple filling should precisely fill the crust. Roll out the remaining one-third of the dough between two pieces of plastic wrap until just slightly larger than the circumference of the pan. Trim the edges of the circle and then gently transfer the circle to the top of the cake, laying it over the apple filling. Tuck in the top crust and cut off any excess. Cut 3 small slits in the top of the dough. Put the pan back in the oven and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and slightly puffed.
• Remove the pan from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes while you prepare the glaze. Sieve the confectioners' sugar into a small bowl and whisk in the 2 teaspoons of lemon juice and the 2 teaspoons of water until smooth. Brush the glaze over the still-hot cake and then let the cake cool completely before serving. The cake will keep at room temperature, covered lightly with plastic wrap, for 2 to 3 days.