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We made this New England Apple Cider Cake using fresh #Walmart Produce as part of a sponsored post for Socialstars.
I’ve mentioned before that my husband Jack has been pouring through my mother’s old recipe box – and he has jokingly accused me of ‘holding out on him’ because there are so many good recipes inside!
My mother definitely had a sweet tooth, as is evident by the heavy proportion of handwritten recipes for sweet dessert recipes – like this New England Apple Cider Cake – compared to the fewer number of savory recipes in her recipe box!
And with six kids at home, plus full-time jobs held by both of my parents, easy recipes that could feed a large family were also a plus! This New England Apple Cider Cake is very easy to make and very delicious – chock full of sliced Granny Smith apples in a simple, sweet cake that gets great flavor and moisture from cinnamon, heavy cream and apple cider! This cake also has a delicious, creamy apple cider glaze that gets drizzled over the top when served! (I could eat that with a spoon!)
Back then, both of my parents also knew how to spend their money wisely…and I learned well by watching them. I’m always looking for a good value on anything I buy, and Walmart is a great, affordable place to shop for quality, farm-fresh produce – including the Granny Smith apples you’ll need for this recipe!
Right now, your local Walmart store has a wide selection of in-season produce (including apples!) and it’s all backed by their 100% satisfaction guarantee! Walmart works with local growers to ensure that all of their produce is picked at the peak of freshness, but if – for any reason – you aren’t happy with the Walmart produce you’ve purchased, simply return your produce back to the store with your receipt for a full refund.
Click here for more information about Walmart Produce that is in-season right now (including a great variety of farm-fresh apples) plus delicious recipes using in-season Walmart produce!
We love seeing what you made! Tag us on Instagram at @afamilyfeast or hashtag #afamilyfeast so we can see your creations!
New England Apple Cider Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 cup apple cider
- 2 cups Granny Smith apples (3 large or 4 small apples)
- 1 whole lemon
- ¼ cup softened butter (4 tablespoons or half a stick)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup heavy cream
- Enough vegetable shortening to grease a 9×9-inch baking pan
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
For the Glaze
- 1 cup apple cider
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1–2 tablespoons heavy cream or milk
- Vanilla Ice Cream, optional for serving
Instructions
- Place the first cup of apple cider on the stove and bring to a boil and boil until reduced to ¼ cup. Set aside to cool.
- Core and peel the apples and then cut each into 16 slices (fewer slices if using smaller apples). Have a bowl of water that has a whole lemon squeezed into it. Place apples into water and then onto a plate to dry and set aside. This will keep them from turning brown.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until well mixed.
- With the mixer running, add one egg at a time beating until smooth. Scrap sides and beat until light and fluffy, about three minutes.
- In a medium bowl, sift flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Measure out cream and add cooled reduced cider to cream.
- With the mixer on low, alternate adding the flour mixture and the cream/cider mixture until well combined. Scrape sides and mix until smooth.
- Grease a 9X9 square pan liberally with vegetable shortening and pour in the batter.
- Arrange the apples, outer edges up into the top of the batter.
- In a small bowl or cup, mix the sugar with cinnamon and sprinkle over the top of the cake and place in the oven for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.
- While the cake is baking, make the glaze.
- Place the second cup of apple cider on the stove as before only reduce down to two tablespoons. Watch it that it doesn’t evaporate too far.
- Place the confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl and add the reduced cider along with one tablespoon of milk or cream and stir. Add the last tablespoon of milk or cream a little at a time until desired consistency. It should be thick but runny enough to drizzle off the end of a spoon.
- When the cake comes out of the oven, cool to room temperature and cut into nine squares.
- Drizzle the glaze over each portion letting it run down the sides and serve.
- Serve with vanilla ice cream if desired.
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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
You may like these other posts featuring Walmart Produce:
Quick Skillet Chicken with Grapes
Any thoughts or suggestions on converting this to gluten free?
I’d try one of the one to one gluten-free flours – Bob’s Red Mill or King Arthur brands. Let us know how it comes out!
Most of your recipes look delicious but an 8 x 8 pan is just too small and not worth the bother for my family. Why not more 9 x 13 recipes?
Hi George – Thanks for your feedback! Most of our readers complain that our recipes make too much – so your complaint is a first! We do have quite a few 9×13 cake pan recipes as well as bundt cakes and in a lot of instances, and 8×8 can be doubled to fit a 9×13 pan (baking time will likely increase a bit). This recipe was found in my mother’s old recipe box so we shared it as it was originally written. Thanks for taking the time to write to us.
I wanted to love this. It comes out beautiful from the oven. But it came out so dry. 😔 I actually even thought to add sour cream/Greek yogurt to the batter or oil instead of butter but I wanted to follow the recipe. Also, I maybe wouldn’t have reduced the apple cider too much for the glaze, maybe down to a quarter cup just like the cake. When reducing it to 2 tbsp it came out like a syrup & turned hard like candy.
★★
Thanks for your feedback Ana – every oven is different and different cake pans also conduct heat more quickly. Sounds like your cake might have over baked if it was dry. I’m not sure why your glaze turned hard.
Wow, this was excellent!! It’s a coffee cake base with cinnamon sugar apples on top with a apple cider glaze. I reduced the amount of sugar inside the cake to a 1/2 cup instead of 1 cup, and it was plenty sweet. Could probably do half the amount of cinnamon sugar as well.
This went excellent with vanilla ice cream and coffee.
★★★★★
Thank you!
Tasty! I did add a handful of pecans on top of the apples before topping with the cinnamon sugar. If making again I think a bit of vanilla in both the cake and the glaze would be good.
★★★★
Thanks for the suggestions Mary Beth!
This is such an amazing recipe the kids devoured it they added raspberries to the top of the cake and the glaze and I also turned this recipe into pineapple and cherry as well it’s amazing thank you I’ve never made a cake so well as this recipe
★★★★★
Wow Joie – so glad to know that this batter can be adapted to other fruits!
everyone loved this. it is worth the time it takes to reduce cider and make this. new family favorite
★★★★★
So glad to hear that the recipe was a hit Jennifer!