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Apple Bundt with Brown-Butter Vanilla Bean Glaze

5.00 Mitt(s) 2 Rating(s)2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 52 votes, average: 5.00 out of 52 votes, average: 5.00 out of 52 votes, average: 5.00 out of 52 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5

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Level: Easy

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Description

This cake is packed with apple cinnamon goodness, and is as moist a cake as you’ll find anywhere. It’s topped off with a thick and silky buttery caramel-flavored glazing, beautifully speckled with vanilla bean seeds.

Ingredients

  • FOR THE CAKE:
  • 1 Tablespoon Butter, Plus Some Flour For Preparing The Pan
  • 4 whole Medium Sized Apples, Peeled, Cored, And Shredded Using The Big Holes On The Grater, To Equal About 3-1/2 Cups Of Shredded Apples (I Used 2 Granny Smith, 1 Gala, And 1 McIntosh)
  • 1 Tablespoon Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice
  • 1-⅓ cup White Sugar, Divided
  • 3 cups All-purpose Flour
  • 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
  • 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoons Mace
  • ¼ teaspoons Nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • 1 cup Brown Sugar
  • ½ cups Vegetable Oil
  • ½ cups Applesauce
  • 4 whole Large Eggs
  • ½ cups Apple Cider
  • 2 teaspoons Vanilla
  • FOR THE GLAZE:
  • 3 Tablespoons Half-and-half, Or Less As Needed
  • 2 cups Sifted Powdered Sugar
  • ½ whole Vanilla Bean, Scraped For Its Seeds
  • 4 ounces, fluid Butter
  • 2 teaspoons Vanilla

Preparation

For the apple bundt cake:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare a 12-cup bundt pan by smearing butter over every little nook and cranny of its interior. Then add some flour and tilt your pan so flour sticks to all of the buttery surface. Set pan aside.

Stir the shredded apple with lemon juice and 1/3 cup of the white sugar. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, mace, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the remaining 1 cup white sugar, brown sugar, oil, applesauce, eggs, apple cider, and vanilla. Mix to combine. Then add the flour mixture and combine once again. Add the apples and mix until the apples are evenly distributed. Pour into the prepared bundt pan and bake for 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out of the cake clean. Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto your serving platter.

Note: If you are going to top the cake with the glaze, start making the glaze immediately, while the cake is still warm! Another option for serving this cake would be to finish it with a simple dusting of powdered sugar once it is cool. A dollop of slightly sweetened whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream would also be very good.

For the brown-butter vanilla bean glaze:

First, pour half-and-half into a small bowl and set aside. This is just to take the chill off, while you prepare the rest of the glaze.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the sifted (don’t skip the sifting!) powdered sugar and vanilla bean seeds. Set aside.

In a large saucepan over medium-low heat, warm the butter until golden brown. It should smell delicious and toasty. If it smells burnt, you went too far! This should take about 6 to 8 minutes. Carefully pour browned butter into the powdered sugar and vanilla bean seeds, leaving the darkened butter sediment behind. Add 2 tablespoons of the half-and-half, then add the vanilla. Stir vigorously until smooth. You want the glaze to be somewhat thick, but easily pourable. If it seems too thick, add the remaining tablespoon of half-and-half. Pour the glaze over the cake while both the glaze and cake are still warm. The glaze cools quickly, so don’t delay!

Let the glaze set. Then slice and enjoy!

The cake fares well on the counter for a few days, covered with a cake dome.

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2 Reviews

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Jennifer on 10.28.2011

Absolutely delicious & perfect for the fall! I was worried it would be dry but it was a super moist, flavorful cake. I didn’t have vanilla bean so I made a simple maple glaze for the cake. Next time I will defiitely need to try the vanilla bean glaze.

Profile photo of Linda Hielscher

Linda Hielscher on 10.3.2011

I finally got around to making this bundt cake and wow, this is a keeper. The Apple Bundt cake is very tasty, moist and has exceptional apple goodness. This is a perfect Fall cake. What takes this cake even further is the vanilla bean glaze. Oh my, there is nothing better than brown butter and vanilla beans. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. Now I’ve got to share this cake with my neighbors before I eat the whole cake myself.

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