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Italian Apple Cake

Italian apple cake with a tender, golden crumb and visible apple pieces, baked in a 9-inch round pan. The batter is mixed until pale and thick, then folded to keep the texture moist, finished with a heavy powdered sugar dusting.
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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: 420
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Italian Apple Cake
  • 3 large apples Peeled, cored, and diced.
  • 1.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 0.5 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.25 tsp salt
  • 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
  • powdered sugar for dusting For dusting before serving.

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Prep and bake
  1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan and line with parchment.
  2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl until evenly combined.
  3. Beat the eggs and granulated sugar with an electric mixer until pale and thick, about 3 minutes.
  4. Stream in the vegetable or sunflower oil slowly while mixing. Add the milk, vanilla extract, and lemon zest and mix until smooth.
  5. Fold in the flour mixture until just combined. Fold in the diced apples so they’re evenly distributed.
  6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean and the top is golden.
Cool and dust
  1. Cool the cake completely. Dust generously with powdered sugar before serving.

Notes

For the best texture, fold the flour gently until you no longer see dry streaks—overmixing can make the crumb tougher. Store covered at room temperature up to 2 days or refrigerate up to 5 days; freeze slices up to 2 months. For a lighter option, you can replace vegetable oil with an equal amount of neutral oil or melted coconut oil, keeping baking time the same.