This apple cake from Romania is quite straightforward but delicious! It is so moist and flavorful that it will undoubtedly become a family favorite, just like it is in mine! The time spent cutting and peeling the apples takes up the majority of the preparation time. Although I often use Golden Delicious apples, any combination of apples will do.
| Prep Time: | 20 mins |
| Cook Time: | 55 mins |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 15 mins |
| Servings: | 12 |
| Yield: | 1 9×13-inch cake |
Ingredients
- 5 apples, peeled and cored
- 3 eggs
- 1 ½ cups white sugar
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9×13-inch pan. Cut the apples into 1-inch wedges; set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk eggs and sugar together until blended. Mix in baking soda, oil, cinnamon, and vanilla. Stir in flour until just incorporated. Fold in apples and walnuts. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly; this cake is best served warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 393 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 50 g |
| Cholesterol | 47 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Protein | 5 g |
| Saturated Fat | 3 g |
| Sodium | 124 mg |
| Sugars | 31 g |
| Fat | 20 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
This is almost the same exact as my mom’s recipe. Growing up, she would make this for us. Except the apple were cubed into small pieces. Being romanian, I appreciate and love this simple cake. As an American, I understand that this may be too plain of a cake for some. This is not a overly sweet cake. But simple and good for the fall and winter season.
Loved it! Followed recipe with the addition of 1 tsp. of salt. Nice and moist and not too sweet. Did not add the nuts but will try adding raisins and/or dried cranberries next time. Will definitely make it again.
Very nice apple cake. I did add a pinch of salt and grated some ginger into the apple for a bit of spice.
Made it today and it came out great. I did add a pinch of salt to balance the flavors. Next time I would slice the apples a bit thinner and use a touch of the sugar and cinnamon used in this recipe to coat the apples while they sit waiting to be added. I used a 10 inch round spring form pan. And baked for about 47 minutes. When mostly cooled I added drizzled a glaze over the cake
The only reason I didn’t give this five stars is that it NEEDS SALT. I made a note to myself to put in some salt based on another critique, but I forgot. Now I am SURE it needs salt. I would be too embarrassed to serve this to connoisseurs but luckily it’s for some folks who appreciate any home-cooked food. Also, make sure to check with a toothpick no later than 50 minutes. I checked at slightly less than 50 and it was already done. Phew. I added frozen cherries and cut down slightly on the apple and this is a delicious combo.
Easy to make, tastes fine. Good, but not over the top fabulous. Nice with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Fastest, easiest, tastiest cake I’ve ever made! At first I was worried that there wasn’t enough batter to go with the apples I had sliced and ready. It barely covered them. But this cake baked up to a beautiful golden color with a crisp top and moist, rich cake underneath. Honestly, this is a perfect cake for dessert, coffee time, party…any time. It’s fabulous. I didn’t, and wouldn’t, change a single thing in this recipe. Just try it!
I love this recipe! I have made it time and time again and it never fails. I have also substituted the apples for different fruits and also the flavouring i.e. I made a pear cake with almond flavouring. I always substitute the walnuts with dried fruit-whatever i happen to have. So tasty, so versatile. I’m happy to keep on making it.
This cake was the first I made in many years. I left out the nuts because I don’t like them. I had family over for dinner(‘our pod’), and served this as dessert. Everyone had 2 large slices. Two days later my daughter asked if I could bring the rest over. I had to tell her I brought the rest to work and now it’s gone. My daughter is still a picky eater at 35, so for her to ask for more, is a testament to how tasty this cake is. A few weeks ago we had a potluck at work. I made this and EVERYONE complimented me on the cake. It wasn’t too sweet but had plenty of flavor. There weee many desserts but this recipe was the first to go.
Easy to make and rave reviews from everyone!
It’s a wonderful recipe. I reduced half mount of the sugar, used butter instead of vegetable oil and baked around 45 minutes. It turned out great. I might be able to reduce more sugar next time.
What a great cake and so easy to do. I added a little more cinnamon to go with the large amount of apples, yum!! My apples were very large and I used five of them so I was a little concerned about the ratio with the cake mix, but it worked out great. Love the slight crunch left in the apples and it’s not overly sweet, which I prefer.
Very easy to make, especially since I did not peel the apples. I did not have walnuts so omitted them. I mixed coffee extract and vanilla extract together. I also used canola oil to make it healthier. The cake got great reviews from everyone in my house. I will be making this again and passing along the recipe.
This is simple to make and came out perfect!
Yum! I was looking for an easy way to use up a lot of apples, and this did the trick. I used 4-5 medium apples (lost count after toddlers started helping me!), subbed applesauce for oil, and did half white sugar and half brown sugar. This was fully cooked after about 50 minutes. It tastes VERY appley and isn’t too sweet. Thanks for the recipe!
I’ve made this amazing moist cake several times in a Bundt pan or muffin tin. I always use Granny Smith apples. First time I made it my friend couldn’t get enough and must have eaten half of it! In his memory I call it Peter’s cake. Thank you so much for sharing.
Why 2 stars for a fantastic cake – the recipe itself. Recipes that don’t specify ingredient quantities based on weight or liquid measure do the cook a huge disservice. To specify 5 apples when they can hugely vary in size is a recipe for disaster. I used what I had – large – and ended up with a massive pile of apples and the batter barely coated the apples. Thankfully I decided to make another ½ batch of batter. I still used a 9×13 pan and it baked beautifully.
We loved this cake. It is a quick to make (I used one 20-oz. can of sliced apples, drained, in place of fresh), tasty spice cake. That being said, as written, I think it would be terribly bland. As I was mixing the cake, my granddaughter was waiting for the spoon so she could lick the batter. She took one taste and asked if I had forgotten something. I looked at the list — no. It had everything in it. So I tasted the batter myself and realized it was very bland and needed some salt. I added 1/2 tsp. after finding an online recommendation to add 1/4 tsp. per cup of flour. It was perfect for us. If you are used to low-sodium or are trying to cut back, this recipe might be just right for you — or you might want to add 1/4 tsp. of salt. Also — my toothpick came out dry at the 42 minute mark. Keep an eye on the time! With the addition of the salt, I think this is a 5-star cake. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Delicious! I omitted the walnuts due to allergies. It is very moist and light. I will definitely make this cake again!
This is an easy and great tasting cake. It is really moist. I used my canned apples drained. I decided it would taste even better with a caramel sauce.
Great recipe. I cut my apples into ~1 inch cubes instead of wedges inadvertently. I will have to try wedges next time, but the recipe as a whole is delicious and light. It didn’t come out overly sweet, some of my family ate it as a breakfast cake.