Apple cake is a classic dessert of Italian cuisine made with few genuine and simple ingredients like apples, lemon, butter, eggs, sugar and flour. This is an easy-to-make recipe, perfect for a sweet and quick snack, for an healthy breakfast or for dessert. I usually bake this cake during cold winter afternoons; me and my boys love to sit on a sofa, tasting this traditional italian apple cake with a good cup of hot tea.
In this recipe you can use different qualities of apples and mix them together. The diversity will make this Italian apple cake recipe even more special and tasty.
Apple Cake is a timeless dessert and every family in Italy has its own recipe that is jealously guarded, as the most precious of the treasures. Here you will love my version of Italian apple cake, perfect to give yourself a gourmand cuddly with your loved ones!
Curiosities: Italian Apple Varieties
In our country, the most famous area for apple production is Trentino, a mountain region in northern Italy. Particularly famous are the Val di Non apples. In this area there are many excellent qualities of apples, such as Golden Delicious, Renetta, Pink Lady and Granny Smith.
In central Italy you can find another type of apples: Annurca and the apple of the Sibillini Mountains. These varieties are small, with dark red skin and very fragrant.
Italian Apple Cake Recipe
Ingredients for a 22 cm (about 8-inch) springform pan
- 150 g (about 7/8 tablespoons) of all-purpose flour
- 50 g (2 tablespoons) of cornstarch
- 3 medium eggs
- 100 g (½ cup) of melted butter
- 100 g (about 6 or 7 tablespoons) of white sugar
- ½ tablespoon of baking powder
- zest of 1 lemon
- juice of 1 lemon
- 3 apples (about 1lb – Golden Delicious, Renetta, Pink Lady or Granny Smith: choose the ones you like)
- brown sugar for decoration
Directions
Preheat the oven to 180° (375F), and line a 22 cm (about 8-inch) round baking tin with baking paper (wet and squeezed). Wash and peel the apples then make very thin slices (1). Squeeze the lemon and add the juice to the apple slices (2). Set them aside. Meantime, in a large bowl, whisk the eggs with sugar for 2/3 minutes (3).
Then add the melted butter and the lemon zest (4). Finally add flour, cornstarch and baking powder, mixing the ingredients very well (5). Pour the mixture in the springform pan and cover it completely with slices of apples (6). Cook in the oven for 30 minutes.
The apple cake will be ready when the apple slices will be toasted and golden (7). Sprinkle with a little brown sugar and serve tepid (8).
2 Replies to "Italian Apple Cake Recipe. Light and Easy"
amarena April 6, 2018 (8:32 am)
It sounds really delicious, easy to make and hopefully doesn’t have too many calories if we eliminate the brown sugar! I will definitely try it!
Barbara Lucchini July 31, 2018 (2:54 pm)
Hi Amarena,
I promise, it’s delicious. Thanks for your comment!