How to make an ultra-moist apple coffee cake with yogurt, almonds and butter. Jump to the Apple Almond Coffee Cake Recipe or read on to see our tips for making it.
This is my kind of cake — there’s no need for frosting and it’s only one layer. I love cakes that are quick to make and that let me dig in even when it’s still a little warm. We wanted it to be ultra moist so there’s lots of extras thrown in, helping with that. There’s yogurt, butter, three eggs and a whole apple. The cake isn’t light, it’s more dense in the middle — something you really want to eat with a fork.
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Recipe updated, originally posted January 2010. Since posting this in 2010, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear. – Adam and Joanne
Apple Almond Coffee Cake Recipe
- PREP
- COOK
- TOTAL
When it comes to the apple, choose a variety that’s more tart than sweet. We go straight for Granny Smith for this cake since we love how tart they are.
You Will Need
1 cup whole almonds
1 medium baking apple like Granny Smith
1 large lemon
1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon allspice
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Powdered sugar for serving
Directions
1Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 9-inch cake pan.
2While the oven preheats, place the almonds onto a baking sheet and slide into the oven, stirring occasionally, until lightly toasted and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add the toasted almonds to a food processor and pulse until chopped very small.
3Zest the lemon and set aside. Peel, core and dice the apple. Squeeze the juice from half of the zested lemon over the apples to prevent browning. Toss the apples with 2 tablespoons of flour. (Save the second lemon half for after the cake has baked).
4In a large bowl, whisk 1 1/2 cups of flour with the baking powder, salt and allspice. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs with the sugar until frothy and lightened in color, about 1 minute. Whisk in the yogurt, melted butter, lemon zest, almond extract and vanilla until well blended.
5Switch to a large rubber spatula. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with eggs then add the dry ingredients in 3 parts, stirring gently until they disappear and the batter is smooth. Fold in the apples and about three-quarters of the almonds.
6Pour batter into the pan and smooth the top. Scatter the top of the cake with remaining almonds. Bake 30 to 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer the cake, still in the pan, to a cooling rack. Squeeze the juice from the leftover lemon half over the top of the cake. Cool then serve slices of cake dusted with powdered sugar.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
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Awesome coffee cake. So easy and love any recipe with apples and almond. Thanks for all the great recipes.
Thank YOU for the kind words! Makes my day to hear you enjoyed the recipe.
the recipe was amazing, I substitute the almonds with walnuts, brown sugar instead of white and used cream instead of yogurt. It turned out amazing. I will try next time with pears, or other nuts.
So easy to make, tastes wonderful. Perfect for a coffee break. Thank you so much for the recipe!!
We use plain, unsweetened yogurt, too. You could omit the lemon juice at the end or add a little more sugar to the batter — maybe 2 to 4 more tablespoons? Using a sweeter apple could work, as well. Maybe Fuji would be better for you.
I made this as an item this morning for brunch. Served it still warm and it was delicious. Sweet but not too sweet-moist and juicy with a lot of flavor. Tasted fantastic with a dollop of fresh whip cream. Kudos to the creator. I’m adding this one to my favorite recipes.
what kind of flour do you require plain or self raising?
All-purpose flour.
I gave this a big shout out today over at BAH. Hope I did you y’all justice in my interpretation of this lovely cake.
Hey guys, I made this last night in anticipation of this morning’s snow day. Paired with some bacon and eggs, and tons of coffee, this fueled us up for more shoveling.
Thanks for an inspired breakfast.
We are so happy you liked it, thanks Wendi!
this cake looks delicious..granny smiths are my fav! I can’t wait to try it out!!!
Gorgeous, gorgeous cake…and your kitty is just precious!
I just stumbled across your blog, and I love it. Your photos are amazing! This coffee cake sounds wonderful, too.
First – your kitty is beautiful!! We have a Marmalade too! Our Marmalade is quite a bit larger!
Great recipe and beautiful photos.
We will be sure to let Marmalade know of your compliment! Thanks for commenting!!
~Adam and Joanne
I love this recipe. I am a huge almond fan. I might try it with pears:)
Great looking cake. What do you think would be lost if I had to omit the chopped almonds? Would there be any gain by using almond flour in place of any of the ap flour?
Marmalade posed so beautifully for you. I can only capture my Shadow when he’s unaware of what I’m doing…he’s camera shy.
Almond flour is a great idea. The nuttiness of the almonds really do complement the apple and allspice in the cake. We personally enjoyed the bits of crunch given from the coarsely chopped almonds, but if you wished to omit them, we think the cake would still be delicious especially since you still have that splash of almond extract.