Apple Spice Cake with Baked Apple Roses features our moist spice cake with chopped apples sprinkled throughout married with a cream cheese frosting. Then, to really put it over the top, we add a caramel swirl and chopped walnuts (optional) along with the frosting between layers, a caramel drizzle on top, and edible baked apples shaped as roses for decor. This is the epitome of fall dessert and is quite the show-stopper. The spice of the cake mixed with the sweet apples and frosting juxtaposed with the smooth, slightly salty caramel makes every bite of this dessert unforgettable. To top it all off, no piping skills are required! The baked apple roses are so easy to make, create the perfect rustic decor, and are delicious!
I love the way the apple roses look on this cake. They are simple yet sophisticated and you can be as creative as you would like. For instance, I decided to do two apples with the skin on and one without skin to alter their colors. You may even want to use a few different types of apples with the skin on to create variation. Additionally, I reserved a few pieces and brushed them with a mixture of food coloring and water for the greenery.
Apple Spice Cake with Baked Apple Roses Process
Although we provide detailed instructions in the recipe below, here are a few guidelines to help you along the way.
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 8-inch cake pans with vegetable shortening. Line the pans with parchment paper. Then, grease the parchment paper. Alternatively, spray cake pans with Pam Baking Spray (with flour). I typically use the baking spray and have not had any problems getting the cakes to release.
Mix Cake Ingredients
In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat together brown sugar, oil, and crushed pineapple. Slowly beat in eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Add in half of the flour mixture and beat on low until just incorporated. Then, add the sour cream and the remainder of flour mixture. Mix until just combined. Do not over-mix. Fold in the apples.
When deciding what type of apples to use, I typically favor Honeycrisp, if available. However, any of the following make excellent baking apples:
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- Honeycrisp – My favorite apple, hands down! Crisp texture that holds up extremely well while baking with a sweet albeit slightly tart flavor profile.
- Jonagold – A large apple with a tangy sweetness resembling honey. These are great for baking however, they do not store well so use them up quickly during the peak of the season in early fall.
- Braeburn – Very crisp and juicy texture with a mix of sweet and tart flavors. It is believed that this apple resulted from an accidental cross between a Golden Delicious and Red Delicious apple.
- Pink Lady – This apple retains its shape while baking and has a wonderful balance of sweetness to tartness. It does tend to favor the tart side than sweet.
- Granny Smith – A great baking apple that is tart, crisp, and sour.
Bake Cake
Pour into prepared pans and bake for 28-32 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs. You should see the cake start to pull away from the sides. Let cool in pans for about 5 minutes. Then, remove cakes from pans and let cool on cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting.
How to Make Firm Cream Cheese Frosting
I love cream cheese frosting with spice cake. It can be a bit tricky to work with though due to its soft consistency. This is because cream cheese contains more water in it than the same weight of butter. In order to achieve the right consistency, make sure your butter is room temperature but not too soft. You should be able to make an indent with your finger but not have it go all the way through. Similarly, the cream cheese should be cool. I typically remove my cream cheese from the fridge about 5 minutes prior to making the frosting. If you find the frosting is still too thin, place in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to firm up. There’s also the option to use buttercream frosting if you do not prefer cream cheese.
How to Make the Perfect Caramel
This caramel is soft, smooth, and delicious! In order to make this, we combine sugar into water until mostly dissolved. Cook over medium-high heat, without stirring, for approximately 12-13 minutes or until it turns a rich amber color. While this is cooking, warm the heavy cream in a small saucepan. After the sugar mixture has turned a deep amber, slowly whisk in the warmed cream and continue to stir for another 4-5 minutes or until smooth. (Pour the cream into the sugar slowly so that the mixture does not bubble over.)
Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and salt. (If the caramel is too thick, add a little more heavy cream, 1 Tbsp at a time, until you reach desired consistency. You may need to reheat the caramel sauce slightly to incorporate more cream – don’t worry, it will come together. Just keep stirring!) Some important tips to keep in mind:
- Do not stir – After the sugar has dissolved in the water, do not stir while it is heating. This develops the smooth consistency.
- Carefully monitor – Even though you do not need to stir the sugar/water solution, monitor it closely. When it begins to turn amber, it can very quickly change from the beautiful amber hue to burnt.
- Cool – The caramel needs to cool before being added to the frosting but yet still be pliable enough to spread. If you find it has cooled too much, pop it in the microwave for a few seconds until it is just warm enough to work with. Spread on cake and refrigerate immediately to set.
How to Make Edible Baked Apple Roses
These baked apple roses are gorgeous and so simple to make. They will typically last in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Here are the steps we take to make them.
- Prep – Wash, dry, and peel apples (you may leave some with skin on if desired for variation). For this cake, I decided to do two apples with the skin on and one without skin to alter their colors. You may even want to use a few different types of apples with the skin on to create variation. I also reserved a few pieces and brushed them with a mixture of food coloring and water for the greenery.
- Slice – Slice apples into thin strips and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- Dip – Heat honey in the microwave for approximately 15-20 seconds. Mix cinnamon into honey and brush onto apples slices (or dip slices into mixture). For some of the smaller pieces, I mixed a tiny amount of water with pastel green food dye and brushed that on before adding the honey mixture. I used these for leaves. (Honey not only sweetens the apples but works to prevent them from browning. A compound found in honey deactivates the enzyme responsible for turning apples brown.)
- Bake – Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes and then let cool for 5 minutes.
- Assemble – Press apple slices together at the tips to create a long strand (it’s ok if they don’t stick together – they will hold when rolling into a rose). Roll the strand into a rose and finish shaping with fingers. Place in the refrigerator to set.
How Should I Store this Cake?
Because this cake has a cream cheese frosting, store covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To keep cake that has been cut fresh, stick a piece of wax paper (or plastic wrap) on the exposed section prior to covering and storing.
Can Apple Spice Cake with Baked Apple Roses be frozen?
Yes! This cake can be frozen frosted or unfrosted for up to 3 months (do not freeze with caramel and baked apple roses). Be sure to wrap well and label with the cake name and date. When ready to use, thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then bring to room temperature prior to decorating or serving.
Tips
- Measure correctly – I highly recommend using a kitchen scale when baking. Because baking measurements need to be exact, using a scale helps to measure as precisely as possible. It quite honestly was a complete game changer for me when I first started using one! I would be lost without it now.
- Room temperature is important! When certain ingredients (eggs, cream cheese, butter, etc.) are listed as room temperature, there are scientific reasons behind this. At room temperature, these ingredients blend together better and result in a smoother batter. Ultimately, you will end up with a better final product!
- Level cakes – Whenever baking cakes in round pans, I use these cake strips to achieve a perfectly flat top instead of a domed top. This eliminates the need to trim the cake prior to decorating. They are very easy to use…simply soak them in water when you begin assembling your recipe. By the time you are ready to bake the cake, wring them out and place around cake pans. Perfectly level cakes…huzzah!
- Checking too early – Try to not open the oven door too often while baking as this could cause issues with the cake rising. The sudden influx of cool air could actually stop the rising process and cause the cake to collapse.
- Cream cheese frosting – To achieve firm cream cheese frosting, make sure your butter is room temperature but not too soft. You should be able to make an indent with your finger but not have it go all the way through. Similarly, the cream cheese should be cool. If you find the frosting is still too thin, place in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to firm up.
- Caramel – Carefully monitor sugar/water solution while heating but do not stir. The caramel needs to cool before being added to the frosting but yet still be pliable enough to spread. If you find it has cooled too much, pop it in the microwave for a few seconds until it is just warm enough to work with. Spread on cake and refrigerate immediately to set.
- Baked apple roses – The honey mixture we add to the apples not only sweetens them but works to prevent them from browning. A compound found in honey deactivates the enzyme responsible for turning apples brown. These will last 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
My Preferred Tools
You may already have many of these items in your kitchen. I recommend the following for this recipe:
- Kitchen Scale – precisely measure ingredients
- Stand Mixer – to mix batter
- Cake Pans – to bake cake
- Cake Strips – to achieve level cakes
- Cooling Racks – to cool cake and dishwasher friendly!!
- Wooden Cake Stand – to display cake
- Cake Turntable and Spatulas – excellent for decorating cakes
- Wilton Decorating Kit – piping tips, bags, couplers, and more for decorating cakes
- Master Decorating Kit – ultimate cake decorating tip set
- Cake Scraper Set – use these to scrape icing and create fun, easy designs on your cakes
- Cake Boards – sturdy, cardboard cake boards used to pick up your cake
If you liked this recipe, try our
- Autumn Spice Cake with Pineapple Flowers
- Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl Bundt Cake
- Pumpkin Cheesecake with Salted Caramel
- Jewish Apple Cake
Apple Spice Cake with Baked Apple Roses
Apple Spice Cake with Baked Apple Roses features our moist spice cake with chopped apples sprinkled throughout married with a cream cheese frosting. Then, to really put it over the top, we add a caramel swirl and chopped walnuts (optional) along with the frosting between layers, a caramel drizzle on top, and edible baked apples shaped as roses for decor. This is the epitome of fall dessert and is quite the show-stopper.
Ingredients
- SPICE CAKE:
- 3 cups (360 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 ½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- ½ tsp ginger
- 1 ¾ cups (370 g) light brown sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 (8 oz) can crushed pineapple with juice
- 4 eggs, room temp
- 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (227 g) full-fat sour cream, room temp
- 2 cups (3-4 apples) apples, peeled and chopped
- CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
- 16 oz (2 blocks) full-fat cream cheese
- ½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, softened
- 4 cups (480 g) confectioners’ sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup chopped walnuts, optional
- CARAMEL DRIZZLE:
- 1 cup (198 g) granulated sugar
- 3 Tbsp water
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- 5 Tbsp salted butter, room temp
- ¼ tsp salt
- BAKED APPLE ROSES:
- 3 apples, thinly sliced
- 4 Tbsp honey
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- Water & Food dye (optional)
Directions
- Step 1 PREP APPLE ROSES: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Wash, dry, and peel apples (you may leave some with skin on if desired for variation). Slice apples into thin strips and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Heat honey in the microwave for approximately 15-20 seconds. Mix cinnamon into honey and brush onto apples slices (or dip slices into mixture). For some of the smaller pieces, I mixed a tiny amount of water with pastel green food dye and brushed that on prior to adding honey mixture. I used these for leaves.
- Step 2 BAKE APPLE ROSES: Bake for 20-25 minutes and then let cool for 5 minutes. Press apple slices together at the tips to create a long strand (it’s ok if they don’t stick together – they will hold when rolling into rose). Then, roll the strand into a rose and finish shaping with fingers. Place in refrigerator to set. Baked apple roses will last 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
- Step 3 PREP: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 8-inch cake pans with vegetable shortening. Line the pans with parchment paper. Then, grease the parchment paper. Alternatively, spray cake pans with Pam Baking Spray (with flour). Soak cake strips in water if using them.
- Step 4 CAKE: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat together brown sugar, oil, and crushed pineapple. Slowly beat in eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Stir in vanilla. Add in half of the flour mixture and beat on low until just incorporated. Then, add the sour cream and the remainder of flour mixture. Mix until just combined. Do not over-mix. Fold in the apples.
- Step 5 BAKE: Wring out cake strips and fit onto cake pans (if applicable). Next, pour batter evenly into prepared pans and bake for 28-32 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Let cool in pans for about 5 minutes. Then, remove cakes from pans and let cool on cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting.
- Step 6 CARAMEL: In a medium saucepan, stir sugar into water until mostly dissolved. Cook over medium-high heat, without stirring, for approximately 12-13 minutes or until it turns a rich amber color. While this is cooking, warm heavy cream in a small saucepan. After sugar mixture has turned a deep amber, SLOWLY whisk in warmed cream and continue to stir for another 4-5 minutes or until smooth. (Pour the cream into the sugar slowly so that the mixture does not bubble over.)
- Step 7 Remove from heat and stir in butter and salt. (If caramel is too thick, add a little more heavy cream, 1 Tbsp at a time, until you reach desired consistency. You may need to reheat the caramel sauce slightly to incorporate more cream – don’t worry, it will come together. Just keep stirring!) Cool to the point where it is still pourable but will not melt the frosting before adding to the cake. (If it cools too much and cannot be poured, briefly microwave just until it is easier to work with again.)
- Step 8 FROSTING: Beat together cream cheese and butter (make sure butter is not too soft) in a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer until smooth, approximately 3 minutes. Add in confectioners’ sugar, salt, and vanilla. Beat on low until sugar is incorporated (about 1 minute) and then increase speed to medium and mix until fully combined. If too thin, place in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to firm up. You should be able to spread frosting but it should not be runny. This makes enough to cover a three-layer 8-inch cake.
- Step 9 ASSEMBLY: Place first layer of cake on stand or plate. Add an even layer of frosting, a swirl of caramel, and sprinkle ½ cup walnuts, if applicable. Add another layer, frosting, swirl of caramel, and last ½ cup walnuts. Finally, add last layer and frost top and sides. Refrigerate until frosting is set (cake may be refrigerated in between frosting layers to make decorating easier). Then, add the caramel drizzle and apple roses as décor.
- Step 10 STORAGE: Store cake covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To keep cake that has been cut fresh, stick a piece of wax paper or plastic wrap on the exposed section prior to covering and storing.
- Step 11 MAKE AHEAD: After cake has cooled completely, you can wrap the cake layers individually in plastic wrap and store at room temperature overnight. Frosting can be covered and stored in the refrigerator overnight. When ready to assemble, let the frosting warm slightly at room temperature and give a quick whip.
- Step 12 FREEZE: This cake can be frozen frosted or unfrosted (without caramel and apple roses) for up to 3 months. Be sure to wrap well and label with the cake name and date. When ready to use, thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then bring to room temperature prior to decorating or serving.
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