The Little Vintage Baking Company

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Apple Pie Bars

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It’s November and I am still obsessing over apples. I love baking with apples, and while I like baking with pumpkin too, apples are my fall baking favorite. Today I’m sharing with you my apple pie bars. Granny Smith and Honeycrisp apples caramelized in butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and apple cider are piled onto a buttery, crisp shortbread-like crust and topped with a crunchy walnut and oatmeal streusel topping.

Apple Pie Bars

This recipe makes a full 13×9 pan and can feed quite a few people (12-16) – perfect for any fall parties or get togethers. And let me tell, you these are most definitely a crowd pleaser. They will go fast. However, you can half the recipe for an 8×8 or 9×9 pan if you want less servings.

Apple Pie Bars

The walnut crumble topping

I really wanted this topping to highlight walnuts and oats. Both go so well with the apples and the topping provides a crunchy and chewy textural contrast to the crust and softened apples. Toast the walnuts before using, as toasting will deepen and enhance the flavor. Don’t like walnuts? You can replace the walnuts with the nut of your choice though I would recommend almonds or pecans. Make the topping after making the crust (in the same food processor bowl) then pop the topping into the fridge to keep cold until baking.

Apple Pie Bars

The crust

The crust is similar to a shortbread crust. This buttery, crisp, lightly sweetened crust is the perfect vehicle to pile on loads of caramelized apples. Sugar, flour and salt are combined in the bowl of a food processor, followed by room temperature butter and processed until large clumps form. Press the dough into the lined pan, using the bottom of a measuring cup to pack and even out the crust. I like to use an offset spatula to even and smooth out the top crust.

Apple Pie Bars

Apple Pie Filling

My apple pie filling has multiple uses so this is a good filling to make on repeat. It makes for fantastic cake filling or ice cream topping. The apples are cooked, reduced and caramelized with butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and apple cider. Your kitchen will smell amazing. Let the filling cool completely before using.

Apple Pie Bars

If you make these apple pie bars, let me know! Drop a comment or tag me on Instagram. I love seeing your bakes and creations.

Enjoy!

Ash xx

For more fall baking recipes, check out these posts:

Mulled Apple Cider Cake Donuts

Brown Butter Maple Pecan Cookies

Brown Butter Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodles

Chai Spiced Apple Cranberry Pie

Apple Pie Bars
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Apple Pie Bars

Caramelized apples made with butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and apple cider on a crisp shortbread crust and topped with a walnut cinnamon oat streusel
Prep Time30 mins
Cook Time1 hr 20 mins
Course: Dessert
Servings: 12 – 16 bars

Ingredients

Crust

  • 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
  • 2 ½ cups (420g) all purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt

Walnut Oatmeal Topping

  • 1/4 cup (38g) walnuts, chopped and toasted
  • ¾ cup (90g) all purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup (142g) light brown sugar, packed
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cubed
  • 1/3 cup (59g) old fashioned oats

Apple Pie Filling

  • ¼ cup (57g) unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup (142g) light brown sugar, packed
  • 8 medium baking apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced I used Granny Smith and Honeycrisp
  • ¾ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
  • ⅓ cup (151g) apple cider

Instructions

Crust

  • Preheat the oven to 350F and line an 12×9 pan with two pieces of parchment paper which extend over the sides to give you a ‘"handles" (this helps with removing the bars easily once it is set).
  • In the bowl of a food processor, place the flour, sugar, and salt, and pulse to combine.
  • Add the butter and pulse until the mixture begins to form large clumps.
  • Press the dough into the prepared pan, then level and smooth it with a bench press or measuring cup. Chill the crust for 10 minutes.
  • Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the crust begins to brown. Let cool completely.

Walnut Oatmeal Topping

  • While the crust bakes, prepare the walnut oatmeal topping.
  • In the bowl of the same food processor used to make the crust, place the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Pulse to mix.
  • Add the butter cubes and pulse until mixture begins to stick together and form small clumps. 
  • Add the oats and pulse to incorporate.
  • Remove the bowl from the food processor and remove the center blade. Stir in the walnuts. Cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until ready to use. 

Apple Pie Filling

  • In a large skillet with deep sides, melt the butter with the brown sugar over medium high heat.
  • Add the apples to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples have softened, about 10 minutes.
  • Stir in the cinnamon and nutmeg along with apple cider.
  • Cook until the apples have caramelized, softened and the liquid has evaporated, about 15 minutes.
  • If there is any sticking, add a tad more apple cider to the skillet to scrape off the bits to the pan. Let cool.

Assemble Bars

  • Once cooled, spread the apple pie filling evenly over the crust.
  • Evenly scatter the walnut oat topping over the apples.
  • Bake for 50-60 minutes until the topping has turned golden brown. Rotate the pan halfway through baking.
  • Let the bars cool completely on the rack before slicing and serving.

Notes

Bars can be frozen for a month.
Bars can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Coconut Lime Crumble Cake

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I am not a fan of coconut. I’ve tried to like it over the years, but just hadn’t found anything with coconut that I enjoyed. Until this cake. I was determined to make a coconut cake that I loved, one without an artificial or overpowering flavor. This is THAT cake! It’s probably one of the best cakes I’ve ever made – it’s that good. Moist, fluffy and tender coconut lime cake made with lime zest, coconut milk, lightly toasted coconut and a small about of coconut extract just to oomph up that coconut flavor. Filled with a sweet tart lime curd, toasted coconut and crunchy graham cracker crumble, my coconut lime crumble cake is perfectly balanced, delicious and is the perfect summer cake.

Coconut Lime Cake

Lime Curd

This curd is seriously good enough to be eaten on its own. It’s tart and sweet, creamy and thick, and pairs so well with the coconut lime cake. Lime curd is easy to prepare and takes less than 30 minutes to make. Egg yolks, a whole egg, sugar, salt, lime juice and zest are heated until thickened and creamy. Butter is added to help thicken the curd, add a little bit of richness and also make the curd silky smooth. Once the curd is chilled, it is ready to use.

Coconut Lime Cake

Graham Cracker Crumble

The graham cracker crumble adds a layer of crunchiness to add texture to the cake with its creamy fillings. With the creamy buttercream and tart lime curd, the crumble adds an element to the cake that is reminiscent of key lime pie. Crushed graham crackers are mixed with melted butter, brown sugar and a pinch of salt and baked until golden brown and crunchy. Don’t use finely crushed graham cracker crumbs. You want to make sure you are leaving some small pieces of graham cracker intact for some extra crunch and texture. Once the crumble is baked and cooled, break into larger pieces and toss with some of the toasted coconut. The crumble will be layered with the coconut buttercream and lime curd.

Coconut Lime Cake

Coconut Buttercream

For this cake, I went to my go-to Swiss meringue buttercream as the base for my coconut buttercream. For a semi-naked 8″ cake, 5″ tall, you will only need a half of a batch of buttercream. To fill and completely frost a 8″ cake, 5″ tall, make 3/4 of a batch or a full batch of Swiss meringue buttercream. Coconut cream and a small amount of coconut extract gives the buttercream it’s creamy coconut flavor. Use as much or as little coconut extract as you like. Be careful adding too much though, because adding too much will give you that suntan lotion/artificial coconut flavor.

Coconut Lime Cake

How to make coconut lime crumble cake

I typically bake my cakes in two pans then torte (cut in half), but you can divide the batter between 3 pans if you like. For a 6″ cake, make a half batch of the batter. This coconut lime cake uses coconut milk, coconut extract and lime zest for flavor.

Butter is mixed into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs. Mixing the butter into the dry ingredients coats the flour, preventing too much gluten formation. Then, a small amount of the milk mixture is added, just until the dry ingredients are *just* moistened and the mixture is beaten on medium-high for two full minutes until lightened in color, and thick like soft-serve ice cream. This mixing is crucial as it helps to form the structure of your cake. The remaining wet ingredients are added in three parts. The cake batter will be a bit on the thicker side.

Coconut Lime Cake

You will also notice, a scale is required for this recipe. Scratch cakes can be tricky to make sometimes, and the baking science is very important in the making and baking of scratch cake. We need cakes to be consistent in taste and texture, and bake up with no problems – no sinking, no overflowing, no rubbery layers, etc. A scale is key in getting consistent results. I use this one from Amazon. This recipe will not work if you convert it to volume (cups) measurements.

If you make this coconut lime crumble cake let me know! Drop a comment or tag me on Instagram. I love seeing your creations.

Enjoy!

Ash xx

For more layer cake recipes, check out these posts:

Strawberry Rose Buttermilk Cake

Earl Grey Cake with Honey Buttercream and Blackberry Caramel

Banana Cake with Salted Caramel and Peanut Butter Buttercream

Chocolate Stout Cake with Coffee Irish Cream Buttercream

Coconut Lime Cake
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5 from 1 vote

Coconut Lime Crumble Cake

Moist, fluffy and tender coconut lime cake made with lime zest, coconut milk, lightly toasted coconut and a small about of coconut extract filled with a sweet tart lime curd, toasted coconut and crunchy graham cracker crumble
Prep Time1 hr
Cook Time45 mins
Cooling Time3 hrs
Course: Dessert

Ingredients

Lime Curd

  • 3 large (42g) egg yolks
  • 1 large (50g) egg
  • 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup (76g) fresh lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon lime zest
  • 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter, room temperature

Graham Cracker Crumble

  • 3/4 cup (107g) graham cracker crumbs (about 4 1/4 graham cracker sheets)
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • pinch of fine sea salt
  • 1/4 cup (22g) coconut, sweetened, flaked

Coconut Lime Cake

  • 14 ounces (396g) cake flour
  • 14 ounces (397g) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons lime zest
  • 8 tablespoons (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 4 large eggs
  • 3 ounces (85g) canola oil
  • 12 ounces (341g) unsweetened coconut milk
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
  • 1/2-3/4 cup (43g-64g) toasted coconut, sweetened, flaked

Coconut Buttercream

Instructions

Toast the coconut.

  • Place the coconut for both the streusel and the cake a in a large skillet.
  • Cook over low-medium heat, stirring frequently, until the flakes are mostly golden brown. Because the coconut is sweetened, it will toast quickly.
  • Set aside to cool completely.

Make the lime curd.

  • Combine the sugar and lime zest into a bowl. Rub the mix between your hands to release the oils of the zest.
  • Add the egg and egg yolks to the sugar mixture and whisk to combine thoroughly. 
  • Add the lime juice and whisk to combine.
  • Pour the mixture into a medium sauce pan, and place over a medium low heat. Add the butter. Stir continuously to keep the mixture moving so your eggs don't scramble.
  • Cook the curd until thick and just beginning to bubble, or until an instant read thermometer reaches 170F. The curd will thicken more in the refrigerator.
  • Take the curd off of the heat and whisk in the butter. Strain the curd into a clean shallow bowl, and let it sit until it reaches room temperature. 
  • Cool completely in the refrigerator before using.

Make the graham cracker crumble.

  • Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a small cookie sheet with parchment paper.
  • In a medium bowl, melt the butter in the microwave, about 30-45 seconds.
  • Whisk in the brown sugar.
  • Add the graham cracker crumbs to the bowl and stir to coat.
  • Pour out the streusel onto the parchment paper.
  • Bake for 6-8 minutes, or until golden brown. Let the crumble cool.
  • Sprinkle 1/4 of the toasted coconut over the crumble. Stir to mix, breaking up some of the larger crumbs.

Make the coconut lime cake.

  • Prepare your cake pans. Brush the bottoms and sides of your cake pans with melted butter. Line the bottoms and sides with parchment paper.
  • Combine the coconut milk, oil, eggs, coconut extract and vanilla in medium bowl. Whisk to thoroughly combine. Pour 40z/113g of the wet ingredients into a separate mixing cup.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the cake flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and lime zest. On low speed, mix for 1 minute.
  • With the mixer still running, add in the softened butter pieces, one or two pieces at a time. Mix until the mixture resembles cornmeal. You should be able to gather a bit in your hand, squeeze and you have a solid piece. This means the butter is evenly distributed.
  • With the mixer still on low, pour in the 4oz of liquid and mix until the flour mixture is moistened.
  • Turn the mixer speed to medium (4 or 6) and whip for *two full* minutes. The mixture should be whipped up, thick, and lighter in color.
  • Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure everything is properly mixed.
  • With the mixer speed on low, add the remaining wet ingredients in three parts, scraping down the bowl after each addition has been mixed in.
  • Once all the wet ingredients have been added, give the bowl a final scrape and mix with a spatula. Fold in the 1/2 cup of toasted coconut.
  • Evenly divide the batter among the prepared pans.
  • Bake the layers for 35-45 minutes. Check the cake at 30-35 minutes to test for doneness. If a toothpick comes out clean, and the top of the cake feels springy and set when touched, take the cakes out.
  • Tap the cake once, firmly against the counter to remove excess steam. If your cakes dome at all, use a clean kitchen towel to gently push the domes down. Cool the cakes for 15 minutes in the pans.
  • Run a palette or butter knife around the cakes in their pans before turning them out to cool completely on cooling racks.
  • Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator a couple hours.

Make the coconut buttercream.

  • In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the coconut cream at little at a time, coconut extract and prepared Swiss meringue buttercream.
  • Mix on low until everything is incorporated and the buttercream is smooth.

Assemble the coconut lime crumble cake.

  • Work with chilled cake layers. Using a long serrated knife torte the layers, cutting them evenly in half. You will have four cake layers total. The tops of the cakes will be the center two layers of your cake. If you made your cake in 3 pans, skip this step.
  • Put one of the cake layers, cut side up onto an 8" cake board or directly onto a cake stand.
  • Spread a thin, even layer of the butter on the cake layer with an offset spatula. Pipe a rim (or dam) of buttercream around the edge of the cake layer.
  • Spread about 1/3 to 1/2 cup of the lime curd over the cake. 
  • Sprinkle the graham cracker streusel on top of the curd. Pat into place.
  • Spread about one cup of the buttercream on top of the curd/crumble using an offset spatula to evenly distribute the buttercream. You're looking for the buttercream to be about 1/4 inch thick. 
  • Place the second cake layer on top, top up, and press down gently so that the layer is adhered to the buttercream. Repeat steps 3-6.
  • Place the third cake layer on top, top up, and press down gently so that the layer is adhered to the buttercream. Repeat steps 3-6.
  • Place final cake layer on top and frost with the remaining buttercream. Chill for 30 minutes.
  • Slice into pieces and serve.

Notes

The completed cake will keep in the refrigerator for up to three days. Bring to room temperature before serving. 

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

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There is just something about sitting out on the porch early in the morning, before the family wakes up, with a latte and a couple warm blueberry streusel muffins slathered with butter. It’s the calm before the daily hustle and bustle. Hot from the oven blueberry muffins are never a bad thing to start your day with, and these muffins do not disappoint.

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Bursting with loads of fresh blueberries, and topped with a crunchy cinnamon streusel, these blueberry streusel muffins are super easy to make and come together in no time, making them a perfect no fuss breakfast. They’re soft, tender, fluffy and not too sweet – you really taste the fresh blueberries in these.

Blueberry Muffins

Or, if you’re rushing out of the house in the morning, these can be made the night before. After baking, let cool completely on a baking rack. Then pop the muffins back into the tin. In the morning, pop the muffins in the oven at a low temperature for a few minutes to just slightly warm them through.

Blueberry Muffins

Note that this recipe uses both buttermilk and sour cream. The buttermilk provides a subtle tanginess and also acts as a tenderizer,  making this muffin soft and moist. The sour cream adds tanginess as well as richness and helps makes the muffins moist. I like to use full fat sour cream, but you can use light if you wish. Avoid fat free sour cream.

Blueberry Muffins

One noticeable difference about this blueberry streusel muffin recipe compared to most is the mixing method. While traditional muffin recipes combine dry ingredients together in one bowl and wet ingredients in another and then they’re combined, I chose to use the creaming method here. Creaming the butter with the sugar gives these muffins more of a lighter, cake-like texture reminiscent of bakery style muffins. Speed up your butter softening process up by popping it in the microwave. Microwave in 5-10 second bursts, until softened but not melting.

Blueberry Muffins

The streusel topping is a perfect contrast of texture to the fluffy, tender crumb of the muffin. It’s crunchy, full of cinnamon flavor and adds a bit of extra sweetness to the muffin. Use fresh blueberries if you can, but frozen will work here too. I like to pop a few extra berries on top so they pop and get all oozy when baking.

Store the muffins in an air tight container, if there are any leftovers. Though they’re so yum, I doubt there will be. Enjoy!

Blueberry Muffins

For more breakfast sweets, check out these posts:

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Bacon, Cheddar and Chive Scones

Blueberry Muffins
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Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Tender-crumbed, moist fresh blueberry muffins,  topped with a crunchy, cinnamon streusel. 
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time18 mins
Total Time28 mins
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Servings: 12 muffins

Ingredients

For the blueberry muffins:

  • 1 3/4 cup (256g) all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup (127g) sour cream, room temperature
  • 1/4 cup (64g) buttermilk, room temperature
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup (159g) granulated sugar
  • 1 stick (113g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cup (285g) fresh blueberries

For the streusel:

  • 1/4 cup (50g) light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup (71g) unbleached, all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
  • 3 tbsp unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners. 
  • Prepare the streusel. In a medium bowl, whisk to combine the light brown sugar, flour and salt.
  • Cut in the butter using a pastry blender or your fingertips until small and medium clumps form. You can also use a food processor. Place into the refrigerator to keep cold while preparing the muffins.
  • Combine the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda into a medium bowl and whisk to combine.
  • Remove ¼ cup of the flour mixture and place in another bowl. Add the blueberries. Stir gently to coat the blueberries in the flour mixture. This keeps them from sinking to the bottom of the muffins.
  • In a measuring cup, combine the sour cream, buttermilk and vanilla extract and whisk to combine. Set aside.
  • In the bowl of stand mixer, cream the unsalted butter with the sugar. Mix on medium speed until light and fluffy. Don’t skimp on this step. Mix for about 5 minutes, stopping the mixer every so often to scrape down the bowl.
  • Add the eggs, one a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition.
  • Reduce mixer speed to low. Beat in flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the sour cream mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Mix only until just combined and well blended.
  • Remove the bowl from the stand mixer and fold in the blueberries and remaining flour until just combined. Fold gently to prevent crushing the blueberries and making purple batter.
  • Divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffin cups. I like to add a few extra berries right on top.
  • Sprinkle the streusel mixture on top of the muffins, dividing it evenly among the muffins.
  • Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until lightly golden around the edges and a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs and no wet batter.
  • Cool in the tin for a few minutes before placing them onto a wire rack to completely cool. Serve warm with a generous spread of salted butter.

Notes

Recipe adapted from The Dahlia Bakery Cookbook by Tom Douglas and Shelly Lance

 

Caramel Apple Coffee Cake

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Well hello there. It’s officially apple season and I am loving it. To me, baking with apples is so quintessentially fall. Pairing apples with cinnamon and caramel – now that’s when the magic happens. My caramel apple coffee cake is perfect for those chilly fall mornings with a fresh cup of hot coffee, or for an after dinner treat (also with coffee, because, well, coffee). The cake is rustic and beautiful and while it’s perfect for a snack cake, it also makes for an impressive sweet treat for the holidays. This caramel apple coffee cake consists of a sour cream cake batter topped with cinnamon sugar tossed apples and a sweet and crunchy pecan streusel topping and drizzled with salted caramel. The cake is simple to make and absolutely delicious.

Caramel Apple Coffee Cake

I found this recipe in a stack of old recipes passed down from my great grandmother. It definitely required quite a bit of tweaking but it’s so awesome to be able to rework one of my great grandmother’s recipes. I learned a lot of my baking from her just by watching her as a child, long before I showed any interest in baking at all. It always fascinated me that she would make pies without recipes and measuring and they came out the same, perfect every time. I can only assume that came from years and years of baking practice.

So, on to making this caramel apple coffee cake.

Caramel Apple Coffee Cake

The key to making the cake batter light and tender is room temperature ingredients and also making sure to adequately beat together the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy. I know we see the “beat until light and fluffy” terminology often, but it really is an important step, and one that is absolutely necessary for helping create the texture of your cake. I used sour cream in this recipe for flavor and for added moisture. Note that the batter will be quite thick. Spoon it into  a 9″ springform pan and use an offset spatula to make sure it’s evenly distributed in the pan.

About the apples

My preferred baking apple is Granny Smith, particularly when I’m using streusels, frostings, etc. that will be adding extra sweetness. For this recipe, I like the contrast of the tart apples to the sweet streusel and caramel toppings. But you can definitely use your favorite baking apple. Honeycrisp and Braeburns are also awesome to bake with. The apples are peeled and sliced, and tossed with a mixture of cinnamon and sugar. Slice your apples to about 1/4″ thick. You don’t want them too thick otherwise they won’t cook all the way through. The apples are then layered flat on top of the cake batter. I leave a really small space in the center without apples so that I can check if the cake is done without the apples skewing the result.

Caramel Apple Coffee Cake

I use a food processor to make my streusel, as I do my tart and pie doughs, just because I find it to be easier and faster than doing it by hand. Pulse together the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Add in the butter chunks and pulse until small clumps start to form and the mixture no longer looks powdery. Mix in your pecans last so that they retain their crunchiness and don’t end up pulverized. Scatter the streusel evenly over the apples. The streusel can be made in advance and stored in the refrigerator.

The caramel apple coffee cake takes quite a while to bake, about 60 minutes or so. However, it’s important to check on the cake starting at about 40-45 minutes because baking times can vary depending on the juiciness of the apples. The cake is done when a tester comes out with few crumbs.

Caramel Apple Coffee Cake

How to make the salted caramel sauce

While the cake is baking, or even a few days in advance, make the salted caramel sauce. I start this caramel sauce with a wet mix – a mixture of sugar and water. After the the water and sugar is mixed, set down that whisk, and leave it be. Let the mixture boil until it turns a rich amber color. Then immediately remove from the heat to stop the cooking process. Be careful when adding the butter and the cream, as they cause the mixture to sputter and steam. So watch those fingers. Let the cake cool until just warm or room temperature before drizzling with caramel sauce. And because it’s always okay to be extra with caramel, go ahead and drizzle a bit more on each slice before serving.

Caramel Apple Coffee Cake

This caramel apple coffee cake is a total winner and an absolute comforting fall bake. If you try my caramel apple coffee cake, let me know! Leave a comment in the comment area below and be sure to snap a photo and tag it #littlevintagebaking on Instagram so I can see your creation!

For another fall inspired recipe, try these pumpkin cream cheese muffins!

Caramel Apple Coffee Cake
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4.67 from 3 votes

Caramel Apple Coffee Cake

This caramel apple coffee cake consists of a sour cream cake batter topped with cinnamon sugar tossed apples and a sweet and crunchy pecan streusel topping and drizzled with salted caramel.
Prep Time15 mins
Cook Time1 hr
Total Time1 hr 15 mins
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Caramel Apple Coffee Cake

Ingredients

Apple Coffee Cake:

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 cup sour cream, full fat, room temperature
  • 2 cups apples, peeled and sliced (about 2-3 medium apples)
  • 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Streusel Topping:

  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes
  • 2/3 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup pecans, chopped and toasted
  • 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

Salted Caramel Sauce:

  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature,
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

Instructions

Make the salted caramel.

  • In a medium sized saucepan, combine the sugar and the water. Whisk just until combined. 
  • Place the saucepan over medium heat. Let the sugar mixture cook, without stirring, until the sugar mixture turns a rich amber color. Take the mixture off the heat to stop the cooking process.
  • Add the butter to the saucepan and whisk to combine. Be very careful as the mixture is incredibly hot and will bubble up and steam when the butter is added. 
  • Whisk in the heavy cream, followed by the vanilla and the salt until smooth.
  • Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a glass jar to cool completely.

Make the streusel.

  • In the bowl of a food processor, place the flour, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon. Pulse to mix.
  • Add the butter cubes and pulse until mixture begins to stick together and form small clumps. 
  • Remove the bowl from the food processor and remove the center blade. Stir in the pecans. If not using right away, store in the refrigerator until ready to use. 

Make the apple coffee cake.

  • Heat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour a 9" springform pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.
  • In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk to combine. 
  • Place the butter and the sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on medium speed, stopping to scrape the bowl every so often, until the mixture is light, fluffy and creamy, about 3-5 minutes. 
  • Add eggs, one at a time, beating well and scraping the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla extract.
  • Add the flour mixture to the batter in three batches, alternating with the sour cream, beginning and ending with the flour. 
  • Remove the bowl from the mixer, and scrape down the the bowl and give it a stir to ensure the flour is fully incorporated.
  • Spoon the batter into the prepared spring form pan and smooth with an offset spatula.
  • Place the peeled and sliced apples into a medium sized bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, and stir to coat the apples.
  • Layer the apples, slightly overlapping, onto the cake batter. 
  • Sprinkle the streusel topping on top of the apples. 
  • Bake the cake for 45-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with few moist crumbs. 
  • Cool the cake in the pan on a wire cooling rack for 15 minutes before removing from the pan. When the cake has cooled a bit, but is still warm, drizzle the cake with caramel sauce, cut into wedges and serve. 

Notes

Store caramel sauce in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.