Pumpkin Apple Struesel Cake
Moist, dense, earthy - this cake combines the best of what fall has to offer - pumpkin, apples, and warm spices. Served warm with whipped cream or at room temperature all by itself, this cake is a winner every time.
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons butter
- 4 cups apples peeled, cored and diced, measured after chopping
- 3 Tablespoons brown sugar Try using Sucanat or Coconut Sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 cup brown sugar Sucanat or coconut sugar
- 4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter room temperature, cut into pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice
- 2 large eggs beaten
Instructions
For the Apples
- In a medium skillet, melt 3 Tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Add the apples and cook for about 5 minutes, or until apples begin to brown.
- Add 3 Tablespoons brown sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon and cook for several minutes more (about 3).
- Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
For the Struesel and Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch spring-form pan.
- Combine flour, 4 Tablespoons butter,1 cup brown sugar and salt in a large bowl.
- Cut in the butter, by hand or by mixer, until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
- Set aside 2/3 cup of the dry mixture to be used for the streusel.
- In a medium size mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin, sour cream, 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, pumpkin pie spice and baking soda, whisking to combine. Stir the pumpkin mixture into the dry cake ingredients.
- Add the eggs, mixing well.
- Transfer the batter into the buttered spring form pan.
- Scatter the cooled apples evenly over the top.
- Sprinkle the reserved crumb topping over the apples.
- Place the spring-form pan on a baking sheet or aluminum foil. Bake at 350 degrees until the topping is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean – about 1 hour and 10 minutes.
- Cool the cake on a rack for 20 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the spring-form pan to loosen the sides before removing.
- Serve the cake warm, with whipped cream, or at room temperature. . . Enjoy!
Notes
Be sure to read the recipe through before you begin. Although simple to make, the process varies from the normal method.
Try using Sucanat or Coconut Sugar (it does not taste like coconut, is very sweet, and is very low on the glycemic index) in place of brown sugar. Either of these bring a whole new level of flavor and yumminess to this cake.
You could make this cake with all purpose flour in place of whole wheat flour, but there is no comparison in the final product. The wheat flour takes the cake to a whole new level of delicious.