Dairy Free Apple Cake
This dreamy dairy free apple cake is a must-make for fall! Soft, tender and perfectly moist, it’s filled with fresh apples, warm cinnamon spice and topped with an oat streusel. Finished with a drizzle of glaze, it’s fantastic for the holidays or as an everyday treat. Nut free.
Ready for a super snack-able cake?
One that’s totally acceptable to enjoy for breakfast but also doubles as dessert?
Well then say hello to this incredible dairy free apple cake.
Filled with sugar and spice and everything nice, it will fill your home with all the magical smells of fall.
It’s soft, fluffy and perfectly moist … thanks to plenty of chopped fresh apples + a good amount of unsweetened applesauce.
And features the most dreamy oatmeal crumble topping and a sweet sugary glaze to bring it all home.
Tips & Tricks
- First things first. When measuring out your flour, fluff it in the bag then scoop into your measuring cup with a spoon and level off. If you dunk the cup directly into the bag, you’ll likely use too much.
- When measuring out your applesauce, use a dry measuring cup. It won’t level off correctly in a liquid one.
- You’ll need about 2 ½ to 3 small-ish apples to get the listed 1 ½ cups diced.
- And finally, on its own, the cake base is lightly sweet. But with the streusel topping and the drizzle of glaze, I find it all combines into the perfect level of sweetness (so I recommend not skipping any part!).
Substitutions
- If you choose to use coconut oil instead of the avocado oil in the cake base, please be sure that all your ingredients are at room temperature. If they are cold, you run the risk of the batter hardening up. Additionally, melt the oil first and then measure out the correct amount. Once melted, allow to cool for about 5 minutes before using (or you might scramble the egg).
- Honey should work fine in place of the maple syrup, although I haven’t tested this myself.
- If desired, a neutral oil can be used in the streusel topping instead of the melted dairy free butter. I tested it this way once and it works just fine, however I personally felt like the flavor from the butter really adds something here.
- You can absolutely use a different dairy free milk (or even water or orange juice) in the glaze.
How To Store
Counter: The cake will keep either loosely covered with foil or in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. You can store sliced or whole.
Freezer: You can also freeze the cake in an airtight container for up to 3 months. When ready to enjoy, thaw in the fridge then bring to room temperature or rewarm gently.
If the cake is already glazed, please note that the glaze will melt slightly if you warm up slices before serving. Still totally delicious.
Additional Dairy Free Dessert Recipes:
- Pumpkin Apple Crumb Cake
- Dairy Free Blueberry Cake
- Dairy Free Lemon Drizzle Cake
- Dairy Free Carrot Cake
- Dairy Free Banana Cake
- Dairy Free Chocolate Cupcakes
Did you make this recipe? Rate and review it down below. I’d love to hear from you.
Dairy Free Apple Cake
This dreamy dairy free apple cake is a must-make for fall! Soft, tender and perfectly moist, it’s filled with fresh apples, warm cinnamon spice and topped with an oat streusel. Finished with a drizzle of glaze, it’s fantastic for the holidays or as an everyday treat.
Ingredients
For the streusel:
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- ⅓ cup coconut sugar (or lightly packed brown sugar)
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅓ cup dairy free butter, melted and cooled slightly
For the cake:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- ¼ cup avocado oil (or another neutral oil)
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups peeled and diced sweet and crisp apples*
For the glaze:
- ¾ cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 tablespoon oat milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a 9×9 inch baking dish with parchment paper, cutting big enough pieces so that the paper hangs over the edges of the pan forming a sort of sling. Grease lightly with nonstick spray then set aside.
For the streusel:
- In a small bowl, mix together the flour, oats, sugar and cinnamon until well combined. Add in the melted dairy free butter and mix again until combined and everything is evenly moistened. Set aside.
For the cake:
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, applesauce, maple syrup, oil and vanilla until well combined and smooth.
- Add the wet ingredients to the bowl with the dry and mix until just combined. Gently fold in the diced apples. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan, then sprinkle the top with the streusel.
- Bake for about 40 to 45 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Set the pan on a wire rack. Let cool completely, then use the parchment overhang to lift out of the pan.
For the glaze:
- Whisk together the confectioners’ sugar and oat milk in a small bowl. Adjust the quantities if needed to get the glaze to your desired consistency.
- Drizzle over the cooled cake. Let the glaze set, then slice and serve.
Notes
*I like either honeycrisp or gala apples in this cake. Also, be sure to dice your apples and not just chop them (you want them to be on the smaller side).
To keep nut free - be sure to use a dairy free butter that doesn’t contain nuts.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 16 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 230Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 33mgSodium: 167mgCarbohydrates: 36gFiber: 1gSugar: 18gProtein: 3g
Nutrition data shown is an estimate provided by an online calculator and is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered a substitute for a medical professional’s advice.
