This Apple Cider Bundt Cake is moist, tender, and packed with just the right apple flavor with just a hint of spice. It's the perfect dessert from late summer all the way through fall. The secret is boiled cider, cooked down to pack in all that apple goodness, then layered in three times, including a glaze made with that same intense flavor so every bite is bursting with apple!
Just like a bunch of our Thanksgiving recipes, you can make this ahead and tuck it in the freezer until the big day!
This cake is perfect when the summer heat is finally starting to back off - or when you're just wishing it would - and it carries beautifully through that cozy transition into Thanksgiving.
After lots of trial and error with apple cakes that were either bland, dry, or overloaded with big apple chunks (not our thing), we cracked the code: a moist cake with just the right amount of apple flavor. It's lightly touched with cinnamon and nutmeg, but not so much that it turns into a spice cake with apple. If there are any local apple orchards near you, grab a bottle or tow of fresh pressed apple cider (unfiltered juice - not the spiced kind), you'll be glad you did!
We are crazy about bundt cakes around here and a couple other yummy ones are this pumpkin chocolate chip or our all-time most loved chocolate bundt cake. Being so easy to serve to a crowd, bundt cakes are a favorite on our popular list of Game Day recipes!
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Why this recipe is great
- Perfect amount of apple: Our secret is to take apple cider and simmer it down to concentrate that sweet flavor. Then using that concentrated juice in the batter, the syrup, and the icing.
- Moist & tender: There's just nothing better than a soft, fluffy cake with that perfect, melt-in-your-mouth crumb.
- Great for making ahead: Having a really tasty dessert that can be refrigerated or frozen for make-ahead connivence is a life saver.
Apple cider bundt cake ingredients
Most of the ingredients are pantry staples, but here are a few important notes.
- Apple cider: This recipe uses unfiltered apple juice that is also referred to as apple cider. It does not use spiced cider which has added cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves in it. While we love that, this recipe has less spice and more pronounced apple flavor.
- Flour: All-purpose flour has just the right amount of structure for a bundt cake.
- Sugar: White sugar, light brown sugar, and powdered sugar bring sweetness to each of the parts of the cake.
- Oil: Any neutral oil like, canola, avocado or vegetable oil, are great choices.
- Buttermilk: Great for adding moisture and a bit of tang.
- Heavy cream: Just the right thickness to keep your icing smooth and creamy without turning into a runny mess.
- Eggs: Large eggs are the standard for baking recipes.
- Vanilla: Something about pure vanilla extract just pulls together all the flavors in the batter.
- Spices: A little cinnamon and ground nutmeg for a hint of autumn.
- Salt: Kosher salt is our go-to to cut the sweetness and round out the flavors. .
Helpful kitchen tools
How to make apple cider bundt cake
Start by preheating the oven to 350ºF. Spray a 12 cup bundt cake pan with non-stick baking spray. Set aside.
Bring 2 cups of fresh apple cider to a boil. Reduce the heat and then let it simmer until it's reduced by half - until 1 cup remains.
Pour ½ cup of the boiled juice into a measuring cup and stir in the cinnamon and nutmeg. From the remaining cider in the pan, set aside 2 tablespoons.
That should leave you with three portions: ½ cup spiced cider, 2 tablespoons for the frosting, the rest to drizzle over the cake.
Place both the white sugar and the brown sugar along with the eggs, salt and baking powder in the bowl of a stand mixer. Combine for 1 minute on medium before turning off the mixer and scraping the sides of the bowl.
Add in the room-temperature buttermilk, oil, vanilla and the spiced apple cider mixture from above. Mix again on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape the bowl a second time.
Add in the flour on top of the wet ingredients. Mix on low for 2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl one last time. Don't forget the very bottom of the bowl.
Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan, bake for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean.
Place the hot cake pan on a wire rack and allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes.
Use a skewer to poke holes evenly across the warm cake, but only about ¾ of the way down. Don't poke all the way through.
After all the holes are evenly spaced around the cake, pour the remaining cider evenly across the top. Make sure to get the apple liquid around the outside edges and middle. Allow the cake to finish cooling in the pan until it is completely cool. Then flip out onto the wire rack.
Once the cake is cool make the apple cider glaze. Place 2 tablespoons of apple cider, the powdered sugar, heavy cream, butter, and vanilla in a small mixing bowl or large measuring cup.
Whisk all the ingredients together until it is smooth. Grab a small piping bag and filling with the apple icing.
Snip off the the end of the bag and drizzle the icing back and forth across the top of the cooled cake.
Hint: To ensure that the cake slips out of the pan without any worries, it is critical that every grove and crevice in the pan gets a generous coating of baking spray. This is the kind of non-stick spray that contains flour.
How to store
Since bundt cakes are tall, my preference is to store them in an cake carrier or on a covered cake stand. This one will store at room temperature for 2-3 days, but stays more moist when stored in the refrigerator.
How to serve
While this tender cake is delicious served as is, here are some other great suggestions:
- Drizzle with store-bought or homemade caramel sauce.
- A scoop of vanilla or cinnamon ice cream is always a good idea.
- Try this microwave pecan sauce.
- The maple sauce from these blondies is heavenly.
- A dollop of homemade whipped cream.
- Swap out maple glaze for the apple glaze in this recipe.
- Try with brown butter frosting.
How to freeze
This cake actually gets even more moist after chilling or freezing, so it's perfect for making ahead. If you want to freeze it, let it cool completely and skip the icing for now. Cover with plastic wrap, then in foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. When you're ready to serve, keep it wrapped and let it thaw at room temp for 5-8 hours. Once it's fully thawed, mix up the icing and drizzle across the top.
FAQs
Yes! Spiced cider is delicious in this but has a much stronger spice flavor. We were going for a mildly spiced cake. Just be sure to simmer as the directions call for the unfiltered apple juice.
Although many recipes say that it is ok to use homemade buttermilk, we have not found our cakes to turn out the same when using it. For this reason, it is recommended to stay with store-bought buttermilk.
Tips & tricks
- This recipe does not call for spiced apple cider. It calls for unfiltered apple juice that is also know as apple cider. Getting from an orchard is the best, but if getting in the grocery store, use the Simply brand.
- To decorate as pictured, place frosting in a piping bag or a zip bag that has a square edge. If it is the new kind of zipbags that have a "bottom" on them, it won't work. Snip off the very bottom edge of the corner of the bag and go back and forth across the top of the cake.
- Be sure that the dairy and eggs are at room temperature.
More apple recipes
For more sweet and savory ways to use up apples, try these:
Recipe
Moist Apple Cider Bundt Cake (With Apple Glaze)
Equipment
Ingredients
Boiled Cider
- 2 cups apple cider
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Batter
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 3 eggs room temp
- 1 cup buttermilk shaken and room temp
- ½ cup reduced cider with spices in it from step 1
- ½ cup oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 cups flour
- ¼ cup apple cider from step 1
Apple Glaze
- 1 tablespoon butter softened
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 tablespoon boiled cider from step 1
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Boiled Cider
- Pour 2 cups of apple cider into a small saucepan and bring it to a boil. Let it simmer until it's reduced by half-you should end up with about 1 cup. While the cider is still hot, pour ½ cup into a small bowl and stir in the cinnamon and nutmeg to bloom the spices. From the remaining cider, set aside 2 tablespoons. Now you should have three portions: ½ cup spiced cider, 2 tablespoons for the frosting, the rest to drizzle over the cake.2 cups apple cider, 2 teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Batter
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 10-12 cup bundt cake. Generously spray the inside of the cake pan with baking spray.
- Combine both sugars, salt, baking powder, and eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the bowl.1 ½ cups granulated sugar, ½ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 3 eggs
- Add in buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and cinnamon/cider mixture and mix on medium for 1 minute. Scrape down the bowl.1 cup buttermilk, ½ cup oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla, ½ cup reduced cider with spices in it
- Add in the flour. Mix on low for two minutes.3 cups flour
- Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 50-55 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Use a skewer to make holes around ¾ the way down. Once holes are evenly distributed around the cake, pour the remaining cider (should be about ¼ -⅓ a cup) over the cake evenly. Allow it to finish cooling in the pan.¼ cup apple cider
- Once the cake has cooled completely, flip over onto a wire rack.
Apple Glaze
- Make the glaze by placing all ingredients in a small bowl. Whisk for 30 seconds or until the mix is thick and smooth. Pour over the top of the cake. If you want to decorate it as shown in this post, see notes below.1 tablespoon butter, ½ cup powdered sugar, 1-2 tablespoon boiled cider, 1 tablespoon heavy cream, ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract
Notes
- This recipe does not call for spiced apple cider. It calls for unfiltered apple juice that is also know as apple cider. Getting from an orchard is the best, but if getting in the grocery store, use the Simply brand.
- To decorate as pictured, place frosting in a piping bag or a zip bag that has a square edge. If it is the new kind of zipbags that have a "bottom" on them, it won't work. Snip off the very bottom edge of the corner of the bag and go back and forth across the top of the cake.
- Be sure that the dairy and eggs are at room temperature.
Add Your Own Notes
Nutrition
All nutrition information is provided by a third party and is an estimate only. Use your own nutritional calculator for more specific measurements.
Misty says
This recipe is the perfect dessert for the fall season!