Description
This gluten free apple coffee cake is tender, moist, and packed with juicy apples and warm cinnamon. Finished with a buttery cinnamon pecan crumb topping, it’s a cozy fall bake for breakfast, brunch, or an afternoon treat.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (90 grams) gluten free measure for measure flour blend
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup raw pecans, chopped
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 3/4 cups (210 grams) gluten free measure for measure flour blend
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup sour cream, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste, or vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups peeled and diced Granny Smith apples, from 2 medium apples
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 9-inch springform pan with cooking spray then line the bottom with a round of parchment paper.
Make the crumb topping first. Add the gluten free flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt to a medium mixing bowl. Whisk to combined, then mix in the chopped pecans and melted butter. Stir in the butter until the mixture looks lumpy and crumbly. Place in the fridge to chill while you prepare the cake batter.
Add the gluten free flour, cornstarch, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, baking powder, and salt to a medium bowl. Whisk to aerate and combine.
In a separate larger mixing bowl, whisk together the room temperature sour cream, vegetable oil, brown sugar, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until smooth and well combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and whisk until you have a smooth and relatively thick cake batter. Let the batter sit for 15 minutes to ensure time for the flour to hydrate properly and prevent a gritty final texture.
After 15 minutes, fold the diced apples into the cake batter and remove the crumb topping from the fridge.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared springform pan and smooth it into an even layer. Scatter the crumb topping evenly over the batter then gently press it into the top of the batter. This helps it adhere.
Bake the cake in the preheated oven on the center rack for 45-60 minutes until the center is fully set and does not jiggle and a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. If the center looks slightly sunken, it’s not ready yet. Allow the cake to cool for 15 minutes in the pan on a wire rack. After 15 minutes, carefully remove the outer ring then allow the cake to cool completely on the wire rack. Slice and serve once fully cool.
Cover leftovers and store them at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Notes
- Make sure the sour cream and eggs are both at room temperature! This leads to a move even bake and better final texture. I typically take them out about an hour before I’d like to make the cake.
- A gluten free measure for measure flour blend is recommended here. See the body of the post for more information.
- You can make this cake dairy free by swapping in vegan butter and vegan sour cream. I do not recommend making it vegan by using an egg replacer as that would take further testing and tweaking to ensure the best final result.
- You can use an equal amount of walnuts in place of the pecans if you prefer.
- You can skip peeling the apples if you prefer. I personally preferred the texture of the cake with them peeled during testing but it’s entirely up to you!
- For instructions on freezing leftovers, check out the body of the post.
- Keep in mind that you need to factor in about 1-2 hours of cooling time for the cake! I do not recommend slicing and serving it while warm as it needs to finish setting as it cools.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 45-60 minutes
- Category: Breakfast, Dessert