This 3-layer Apple Cider Cake is bursting with the sweet-tart flavor of crisp apples. The cake includes concentrated Apple Cider Syrup and shredded sour apples for a double hit of apple flavor and enough cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice that is pure comfort food.

Fill and frost the layers of apple cake with Apple Cider Buttercream and then cover the whole thing with a drippy, bittersweet blanket of Dark Chocolate Ganache.

And, what's the best way to decorate an apple cake? With apple roses, of course! I'll show you an easy method for making them.

Photo byRebecca Blackwell/ ofbatteranddough.com

As a child, I have very clear memories of standing in front of a chocolate shop bakery case trying to decide which of the giant caramel apples I wanted. Inevitably, I'd select one covered in chocolate.

That combination of flavors and textures is still one of my favorites. The tart crunch of an apple coated in rich caramel and bittersweet chocolate was irresistible.

That's what I was chasing when I stepped into the kitchen to create this apple cider cake. What I soon discovered is that it's actually quite difficult to bake a cake with a strong apple flavor. A combination of concentrated apple cider and shredded apples was the solution and a thick layer of apple cider buttercream and chocolate ganache is the perfect finish.

Photo byRebecca Blackwell/ ofbatteranddough.com

How To Bake a Cake with an Intense Apple Flavor

Like most fruit, apples are largely water. So, if you add a lot of apples to the cake's batter, you also end up adding a lot of water. Too much water weakens both the flavor and the structure of a cake.

So, if adding a lot of apples isn't the way to bake a cake with an intense apple flavor, what is? I thought that adding some apple cider might work... but, once again, didn't want to water down the batter.

The solution? Reduce the apple cider into thick apple cider syrup!

The apple cider syrup has a deliciously concentrated, tart apple flavor that goes a long way, boosting the flavor of the cake and the buttercream without watering everything down. Here's what you do:

1. Pour a large 1.5 liter jug of apple cider into a skillet and let it boil until it's reduced to just 1 cup.
2. Use half of the apple cider syrup in the cake batter and reserve the other half to make apple cider buttercream.

Photo byRebecca Blackwell/ ofbatteranddough.com

Grated Apples is the Secret to a Moist, Fluffy Cake

Besides flavoring this cake with concentrated apple cider, I also wanted to include fresh apples.

The problem with adding chunks of apples to cake batter is that you can end up with a slightly gummy texture around each chunk of apple. To ensure a fluffy, even texture, I decided to grate the apples.

Grating the apples not only allows you to evenly incorporate the apples throughout the batter, it prevents the watery, slightly mushy areas of cake that chunks of apples can create. The result is a supremely moist cake with a tender, fluffy crumb.

Photo byRebecca Blackwell/ ofbatteranddough.com

Recipe: Apple Cider Cake

This recipe was originally published on ofbatteranddough.com. For more detailed instructions, please see the original recipe ---> Apple Cider Cake with Apple Cider Buttercream

For the Apple Cake:

• 1.5 liter (50 ounces/ 1.6 quart) Apple Cider
• 1 ½ cups (319 grams) packed brown sugar, light or dark
• 16 tablespoon (8 ounces/ 226 grams) ) unsalted butter, melted
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 3 ¾ cups (450 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 ½ teaspoons table salt, or 2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 semi-packed cups shredded Granny Smith apples that have been peeled and cored (about 1 ½ pounds/ 680 grams) *See Note.

For the Apple Cider Buttercream:

• 3 sticks (24 tablespoons/ 12 ounces) of unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ¼ teaspoon table salt (Or, ½ teaspoon kosher salt)
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• ½ cup apple cider reduction, at room temperature (reserved from step #2 in cake recipe instructions)
• 4–5 cups (455 - 570 grams) of powdered sugar
• 1 recipe Chocolate Ganache

For the Apple Roses (optional, for decoration):

• 3 red apples
• 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
• mint leaves for decoration (optional)

Make the Apple Cake or Cupcakes:

1. Grease three 8-inch round cake pans with vegetable shortening or butter. Line the bottoms with a round of parchment paper and coat the paper with a bit of vegetable shortening or butter. Coat the inside of the pans with flour. (Here's how to prevent cakes from sticking.) If making cupcakes, line a couple of muffin pans with paper liners. *This recipe will make a total of 36 cupcakes.
2. If making cake layers: preheat the oven to 325° F ( 162° C) If making cupcakes: preheat the oven to 350° F (176° C).
3. Pour the apple cider into a 12-inch skillet (or larger) and set it over medium-high heat. Let the cider boil until it’s reduced to 1 cup (8 ounces). Towards the end, the cider will begin to reduce very quickly, so keep a close eye on it, pouring it into a measuring cup from time to time to measure.
4. Pour ½ cup (4 ounces) of the cider reduction into a medium size bowl. Add the brown sugar and butter, and stir to combine. Let sit until cooled to room temperature. Reserve the remaining ½ cup (4 ounces) of cider reduction for the Apple Cider Buttercream.
5. Once cool, add the eggs, orange zest, vanilla, and almond extract to the cider and brown sugar mixture. Stir vigorously with a wire whisk to combine, whisking until smooth.
6. In a separate bowl, add the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg. Stir to combine.
7. Add the lemon juice to a separate bowl and stir in the shredded apples, tossing them around in the lemon juice to coat.
8. Add the cider and sugar mixture and the shredded apples to the flour mixture and stir to combine – stirring just long enough so that all the dry ingredients are moistened and the mixture is homogenous.
9. Divide the batter between the prepared cake pans or cupcake pans.
   If baking cake layers: bake for 35-40 minutes, until the cakes are pulling away from the sides of the pans, and a toothpick stuck in the center of one of the layers comes out without any evidence of raw batter. If baking cupcakes: bake for 23-25 minutes, until a toothpick stuck in the center of one of the layers comes out without any evidence of raw batter.

Make the Apple Cider Buttercream:

1. Add all the buttercream ingredients to the bowl of a Stand Mixer, starting with just 3 cups of powdered sugar. (You can also use a hand mixer.) Beat on medium-high speed until completely blended and smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl from time to time.
2. Continue to beat in as much powdered sugar as you need to create a thick frosting that’s stiff enough to hold its shape. If using it to fill layers of cake, it should be fairly stiff so that the cake layers don’t slip around when stacked.
3. Ice the cake or cupcakes with the buttercream, spreading it in between each layer of cake, and covering the top and sides of the cake. Place the iced cake or cupcakes in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before topping them with Chocolate Ganache.

For the Chocolate Ganache:

1. Follow this recipe to make chocolate ganache.
2. Let the ganache cool to room temperature, stirring it from time to time. This will take 10 - 20 minutes. Do not try and cool it faster by placing it in the refrigerator. Doing so will result in a ganache that is goopy and does not pour smoothly.
3. Remove the cake from the refrigerator and pour the chocolate ganache over the top of the cake, letting some of it drip over the sides. If making cupcakes, spoon about a tablespoon of ganache over the top of each buttercream frosted cupcake.

Make the Apple Roses:

1. Have the blanched apple slices ready before pouring the chocolate ganache over the top of the cake. You want the chocolate to be soft when placing the chocolate roses into the ganache. *See the video and step-by-step instructions with photos above this recipe.
2. Slice 3 red-skinned apples in half, cutting around the core. Using a sharp knife or mandolin, cut each half into ¼-inch slices.
3. Add the sugar and three cups of water to a large saucepan. Set it over high heat and bring it to a boil. Add the apple slices to the boiling sugar water all at once and stir gently. When the water comes back up to a rolling boil, remove the pan from the heat and drain the apple slices in a colander set in the sink.
4. Let cool slightly then lay the apple slices out on a paper towel, blotting them with another paper towel to remove any excess moisture.
5. Lay 2 or 3 slices of apple on a work surface in a horizontal line so that their edges overlap. Roll the apple slices up into a rosebud and place them into the freshly poured chocolate ganache. Repeat to create as many apple roses as you like.
6. If using, press mint leaves into the ganache next to the rosebuds.

Other Frosting recipes that are a delicious match for this cake

1. Mascarpone frosting is exceptionally light and creamy. It's not as sweet as most kinds of frosting and the flavor and consistency are like a richer, thicker version of whipped cream. This is also one of the easiest and quickest kinds of frosting to whip up, taking only about 10 minutes to make.

2. This White Chocolate Ganache Buttercream tastes just like the inside of a really good white chocolate truffle. It's impossibly rich, and so smooth and satiny that it literally melts on your tongue.

3. This Cream Cheese Buttercream recipe is the perfect blend of cream cheese and butter. It's rich and flavorful thanks to plenty of vanilla, a touch of tangy sour cream, and just the right amount of confectioners sugar.

"Honestly, this recipe is killer. Every time I make it, 100% someone will ask me for the recipe. Thanks for this! It's my go-to frosting!" - Brittany

4. Italian Meringue Buttercream is my all time favorite frosting for cakes and cupcakes. It's silky smooth, incredibly creamy, and absolutely gorgeous to work with. Even better, this buttercream tastes really delicious.

5. I created this Milk Chocolate Buttercream Frosting for Chocolate Truffle Cake because I wanted to cover the cake in something that tasted like the creamy center of a milk chocolate truffle. And that is exactly what this frosting tastes like.

It's impossibly light and creamy with those subtle hints of caramel and vanilla that you only get with really good milk chocolate.

6. For all its simplicity, chocolate ganache is one of the most useful and delicious confections in any baker's repertoire. Making chocolate ganache is about as easy as it gets and there are endless ways to use it.

7. If you need me, I'll be off in the corner licking the bowl because this is maple buttercream made with brown butter and white miso just might be the best thing I've eaten all year. For all its simple sophistication, this brown butter frosting is deeply complex and very adult. All by itself, miso includes a rich bouquet of sweet, salty, umami, sour, bitter, and astringent flavors. And browning butter magically transforms it into something nutty, rich, and intensely toasty.

For more of my recipes, visit alittleandalot.com and ofbatteranddough.com.

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