This apple cider bundt cake is the perfect cake for fall. After plenty of testing to get it just right, this apple cider cake recipe is moist, tender, incredibly delicious, and has all the flavors of fall. I’m talking tart Granny Smith apples, brown sugar, and plenty of apple cider. The best part? No mixer is required. It’s the perfect treat for fall when all that amazing fresh apple cider is in stores.
While this apple bundt cake is baking, the scent of warm spices and sweet cake will make your house smell so good, giving you a layered, apple-rich smell that lingers long after the cake is made. It’s the aroma that makes my house feel warm and cozy.
Why You Need to Bake This Bundt Cake for Fall
This apple cake combines the flavors of an apple cider donut with the texture of a moist bundt cake, absolute apple perfection. This easy, no-mixer apple cake is truly a seasonal delight. The cake batter is made with apple cider and fresh, grated apples. And while the cake is still warm, the outside is brushed with an apple cider glaze.
For more fall dessert recipes try my Apple Cake with Pistachios, my Cranberry Orange Mini Bundt Cakes or my popular Eggnog Bundt Cake.
For more apple desserts, try some of my favorites, including my classic Apple Crumble with a brown butter twist, and my Apple Bread Pudding with an apple cider caramel sauce.
Key Ingredients for the Apple Cider Bundt Cake
This cake is the perfect treat for fall when all that amazing fresh apple cider is in stores. Make sure you grab apple cider (not apple cider vinegar and not apple juice). Apple cider is less sweet than apple juice and perfect for this cake.
- Fresh Apple Cider: This gives the cake a rich apple taste and a moist texture. To amplify the flavor, I boiled the cider to concentrate the flavor, which gives it a more intense taste. Just be cautious not to reduce it too much, or it can lean toward the vinegary side, something I discovered during my recipe testing!
- Granny Smith Apples: Granny Smiths are my preference for their bright and tart apple flavor. You can also use Honeycrisp or Newton or a combination of your favorite tart crisp apples. The apples are shredded right before adding them to the cake. Squeeze the apples after shredding them by picking them up in my hands and giving them a good squeeze. Then, I place them in a bowl for weighing.
- Light Brown Sugar: Like granulated sugar, it adds moisture and sweetness, but it also gives the cake a golden brown color and adds subtle caramel notes. I prefer light brown sugar for this recipe as it’s sweeter than dark brown sugar.
- Ground Spices (Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Cardamom, Ginger, Allspice): These warming spices complement the delicious apple flavor of this cake. Feel free to adjust the spices according to your own taste. For instance if you like the peppery bit of ginger, then increase it to 3/4 teaspoon.
Full ingredients, measurements, and instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How to Make Apple Cider Bundt Cake
Before you begin baking this cake you’ll need to reduce the fresh apple cider by boiling it on the stove until it’s reduced to a little over a cup. Reducing the cider concentrates the flavor. I recommend doing this step the day before or first thing in the morning, so the cider has time to cool and you’re not rushing.
Step 1: Prep your bundt pan by coating the inside thoroughly with vegetable shortening and flour. I include expert tips on how to do this later on.
Step 2: Place the butter in a heatproof bowl, then melt it over a pot of simmering water. As soon as the butter melts, remove the bowl.
Step 3: In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Step 4: Whisk together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, ginger, and allspice.
Step 5: Add the melted butter and whisk until mixture is smooth.
Step 6: Whisk in the eggs. until thoroughly combined.
Step 7: Add the reduced-down apple cider and whisk to combine.
Step 8: Peel and grate the apples with a box grater. Use your hand to squeeze the moisture out of the apples, then weigh the shredded apples.
Step 9: Stir the shredded apple into the wet ingredients.
Step 10: Gradually add the dry ingredients in three parts.
Step 11: The batter should be somewhat thick and lumpy.
Step 12: Spoon the batter in the bundt pan. Place a kitchen towel under the pan and tap it twice to settle the batter.
Step 13: Bake the cake until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Step 10: Remove the cake from the oven and place it on a wire cooling rack. Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes. While the cake is cooling, take parchment paper and brush it lightly with vegetable oil.
Step 11: To invert the cake, place the oiled parchment paper on top of the cake, then place the cooling rack on top of the parchment paper. Invert the cake onto the parchment paper-lined cooling rack.
Step 12: Immediately brush the entire surface with the apple cider glaze. Allow the cake to completely cool.
Tips for Making a Delicious Bundt Cake
- Properly prepare your bundt pan with a combination of fat and flour. In this recipe, I call for vegetable shortening and flour. You can also use Baker’s Joy spray which is a combination of fat and flour. Don’t use butter and fat, since the cake contains fruit.
- Use a kitchen scale to weigh the flour, butter, and eggs. Weighing the eggs is especially important if you’re using organic cage-free eggs. I typically use conventional large-grade AA eggs, which have a consistent weight of 50 grams
- Let the cake cool before you inverting it from the pan. If you try to turn the cake out too soon, it will stick tp the pan and break apart. If you let it sit too long, it will restick toe the pan and break apart when you invert it. There’s a sweet spot (usually 15-20 minutes) where the cake releases from the pan as it sits and comes cleanly out of the pan.
If you make this perfect for all Apple Cider Bundt Cake please leave a rating and a comment below.
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Apple Cider Bundt Cake (No Mixer Required)
Equipment
- Nordic Ware Braided Bundt Pan or a 10 cup Bundt Pan
Ingredients
Apple Cider Bundt Cake
- 4 cups (960 ml) fresh apple cider
- 3 cups (375 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour sifted
- 1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 cup (227 grams) unsalted butter melted
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (150 grams) light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
- 3 large (150 grams) eggs at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 pound Granny Smith apples
Apple Cider Glaze
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) apple cider
- 3 tablespoons (38 grams) brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon (14 grams) unsalted butter
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
Reduce the Apple Cider
- Pour 4 cups of apple cider into a 3 or 4-quart saucepan. Bring the cider to a boil, then reduce to medium heat and simmer until the cider is reduced to 1-1/4 cups (300 ml). It will take about 30 minutes for the cider to reduce.
- Cool the cider to room temperature before using it in the cake batter. If making this the day before cool the cider, than refrigerate it.
Prep the Bundt Pan
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- There are two ways to coat the interior of the bundt pan. One is to use a combination of vegetable shortening and flour, and the other is to use a baking spray, like Joy of Baking spray.
- If using the shortening and flour method, prep your pan at the start of the recipe. If using the baking spray, spray the pan right before adding the cake batter.
- Shortening and Flour Method: With a paper towel or pastry brush, generously coat the interior of the bundt pan with Crisco vegetable shortening or a similar product. Make sure to get into all the nooks and crannies of the design. Pay special attention to the center tube.
- Add 2 tablespoons of flour to the pan, and tilt and rotate the pan to evenly coat all greased surfaces with flour.
- Tap out any excess flour over the sink or a paper towel.
- Hold the pan up to the light and inspect to ensure no bare spots remain. If needed, touch up any areas with more shortening and flour.
- Important Note: Don't use butter in the pan for this recipe. Since the cake contains fruit, the milk solids in the butter will cause the cake to stick to the pan when you invert it onto a cooling rack.
Make the Cake Batter
- Crack the eggs into a separate bowl.
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt for 30 seconds.
- In a heatproof bowl, melt the butter over a pot of simmering water. As soon as the butter is melted, remove the bowl from the simmering water.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, ginger, and allspice until combined.
- Add the warm melted butter and whisk for 1 minute. Add the eggs and whisk until the ingredients are well combined.
- Next, add 3/4 cup (180 ml) of the apple cider and whisk until well combined.
- Peel and grate the apples with a box grater on the side with the largest holes.
- Use your hand to squeeze the moisture out of the apples and weigh out 180 grams of shredded apple. Add the shredded apple to the wet ingredients and stir together.
- Add the flour mixture in three batches, and use a silicone spatula to stir in the dry ingredients. Be sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl to ensure all ingredients are mixed in.
Bake and Cool the Cake
- Spoon the batter into the prepared bundt pan. Place a kitchen towel under the pan and tap it twice to settle the batter into the grooves of the pan.
- Bake the cake for 60-70 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. If using an instant-read thermometer, the temperature in the center of the cake should be about 214 degrees F.
- Remove the cake from the oven and place it on a wire cooling rack. Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes.
- While the cake is cooling, take a square piece of parchment paper and brush it with a light coating of vegetable oil.
- To invert the cake, place the oiled parchment paper on top of the cake, then place the cooling rack on top of the parchment paper. Invert the cake onto the parchment paper-lined cooling rack.
Make and Add the Glaze
- About 15 minutes before the cake is supposed to come out of the oven, combine the remaining ½ cup of cider and 3 tablespoons of light or dark brown sugar in a small saucepan.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer and let it simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes to further reduce the cider.
- Remove the cider from the heat, add the butter, and whisk until the butter is dissolved. Stir in the vanilla extract.
- Once the cake has cooled for 15 minutes, invert it onto the prepared rack. Immediately brush the entire surface of the warm cake with the apple cider glaze, using all the glaze.
- Allow the cake to cool completely, about 2 hours.
Storing the Cake
- The cake will stay fresh at room temperature for 2 days in a cake container. If you want to store it in the refrigerator, the best method is to cut the cake into pieces (about 2-3 servings in size) and wrap each cake piece tightly in plastic wrap. If you want to store the whole uncut cake in the refrigerator then wrap it in two layers of plastic wrap. Unwrapped cake tends to dry out in the refrigerator and collect food orders.
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