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Italian Apple Cake

Italian apple cake with a tender, moist crumb and diced apples baked until golden, then finished with a generous powdered sugar dusting. Made by mixing pale, thick eggs and sugar before folding in flour and apples for a rustic sliceable texture.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Italian
Calories: 410
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Dry ingredients
  • 1.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 0.5 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.25 tsp salt
Wet ingredients
  • 3 eggs
  • 0.75 cup granulated sugar
  • 0.5 cup vegetable or sunflower oil
  • 0.25 cup whole milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest
Apples and finishing
  • 3 apples peeled, cored, and diced
  • powdered sugar for dusting

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Prep and preheat
  1. Preheat the oven to 350F, then grease a 9-inch round cake pan and line with parchment so the cake releases cleanly.
Mix dry ingredients
  1. In a bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt until evenly combined and no streaks remain.
Beat eggs and sugar
  1. Beat the eggs and granulated sugar with an electric mixer until pale and thick, about 3 minutes, until the mixture looks lighter and slightly foamy.
Add wet ingredients
  1. Stream in the vegetable or sunflower oil slowly while mixing, then add the whole milk, vanilla extract, and lemon zest until smooth and glossy.
Fold in apples
  1. Fold the flour mixture into the wet ingredients until just combined, then fold in the diced apples so you don’t overmix.
Bake
  1. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 40-45 minutes at 350F, until a toothpick comes out clean and the top is golden.
Cool and dust
  1. Cool completely before serving, then dust generously with powdered sugar for a snowy finish.

Notes

For the best texture, fold dry ingredients just until you no longer see flour, and stop as soon as the batter looks cohesive. Store covered in the fridge for up to 4 days; freeze slices for up to 2 months and thaw overnight in the refrigerator. For a lighter option, substitute half the oil with unsweetened applesauce while keeping the same bake time.