I've made many apple cakes but this is by far the best!
Ingredients
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pan
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ¾ cups natural cane sugar
1 cup apple cider *(see note)
¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¾ cup unsweetened applesauce
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs, room temperature
Instructions
1. Preheat oven, prep pan, and whisk together dry ingredients: Generously butter and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan; use a pastry brush to be sure to get into all the crevices. In a large bowl, whisk together both flours, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.
2. Whisk together wet ingredients:
In another bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 cups sugar, cider, oil, applesauce, vanilla, and eggs.
3. Add wet ingredients to dry; transfer to pan:
Add egg mixture to flour mixture; whisk until combined. Transfer batter to prepared pan.
4. Bake and cool; mix sugar and cinnamon:
Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until a tester inserted in center comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet; let cool 15 minutes. Meanwhile, mix together remaining 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.
5. Invert cake; brush with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar:
Invert warm cake onto rack. Brush with melted butter, then sprinkle liberally with cinnamon sugar. Let cool completely before serving.
NOTE: To enhance the flavor or the cider in the cake, I generally simmer 3 cups of cider until it is reduced to about one cup. The reduction will look syrupy but that is ok, it won’t have any impact on the cake.