Apple Butterscotch Snack Cake

Baked and ready to serve in under an hour, but it's the brown sugar frosting for me.

Hi Bakers!

This Apple Butterscotch Snack Cake should be the one you make on repeat all season long. It’s quick, easy, and jam-packed with fall flavor. When the craving strikes, you can be sitting down eating a warm slice of this apple-studded cake within the hour!

My daughter recently asked to have a baking day. We settled on a Texas sheet cake, subbing sprinkles for the toasted nuts. Finished and frosted in under an hour, she was thrilled.

I got to thinking - how can a cake so quick and easy be so delicious? And how can I make something similar for fall?

I love decorative layer cakes and find so much joy in creating the recipes for our Birthday Cake Club. But for everyday snacking, I crave something much more simple. Less buttercream, fewer layers, and so much less fuss.

This cake ticks off all the boxes for a simple snacking cake:

• Moist

• Full of flavor

• Baked and frosted within an hour

• Minimal pans/dishes

• Mostly pantry staple ingredients

The cake batter comes together without a mixer and bakes up quickly in a quarter sheet pan. The butterscotch frosting is cooked on the stove while the cake finishes and cools. Spread and swirl on the frosting then serve straight from the pan!

I love this old fashioned frosting. It tastes of brown sugar caramel and has a candy, fudge-like texture that reminds me of the filling of Bordeaux See’s Candy.

Also known as penuche, the frosting starts by melting butter and brown sugar. The two are cooked together on the stove for just a couple of minutes, like making butterscotch. Sifted confectioners’ sugar thickens the frosting so that it can be swirled about. The frosting sets as it cools and has a crackle finish when sliced.

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Apple Snack Cake

The Ingredients:

1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch nutmeg
Pinch salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
½ cup (120ml) buttermilk
1 large egg
½ cup (120ml) unsweetened applesauce
½ cup (55g) finely diced apples

The Method:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease the bottom and sides of a quarter sheet pan and set aside.

• Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, spices, and salt.

• In a separate bowl, stir together the melted butter, buttermilk, egg, and applesauce. 

• Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir until incorporated (there should still be streaks of flour visible). Tip in the diced apple and fold to combine.

• Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly with a spatula.

• Bake for 17 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack.

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Butterscotch Frosting

The Ingredients:

6 tablespoon unsalted butter
¾ cup (165g) brown sugar
3 to 4 tablespoons milk, at room temperature, divided
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Pinch salt
1 ½ cups (195g) confectioners’ sugar

The Method:

• Place the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and set over medium-low heat. Melt the butter.

• Once melted, whisk in the brown sugar. It will likely split and separate at first, but that is okay. Increase the heat to medium and allow the mixture to come to a boil. Continue to boil for about 2 minutes. 

• Remove the brown sugar mixture from the heat and carefully whisk in 3 tablespoons of milk.

• Put the saucepan back on the stove and bring back to a boil for about a minute.

• Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla and salt. Pour the mixture into a heat-safe bowl.

• Sift the confectioners’ sugar into the brown sugar mixture. Stir to combine with a rubber spatula. 

• If the frosting thickens and stiffens up too quickly, you may add another tablespoon of milk. The frosting should be soft, like the consistency of peanut butter. 

• Pour the frosting onto the cake. Spread and swirl the frosting with an offset spatula. The frosting will begin to set as it is spread out, so work quickly and stop swirling before it becomes grainy.

• Allow the frosting to set before slicing. It may still crack when sliced, but will be delicious nonetheless.

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Baker’s Notes:

• If the frosting splits or turns grainy, it is possible to reheat it over a double-boiler and try again. Stir until smooth. 

• Similar to a whipped ganache, the frosting will begin to set as it is spread onto the cake. Be sure to stop agitating the frosting before it turns grainy and hard.

• You may peel the apple if you wish or just bake with the skin on. The pieces should be diced finely enough that the peel should not get in the way. 

• I’ll admit that I don’t always sift my confectioners’ sugar, but this is not the time to skip this step. If lumps end up in your frosting, they will be difficult to smooth out.

• The frosting may be made while the cake bakes and poured over the top while the cake is still warm.

Serving and Storage:

• It is much easier to get a clean slice if you wait until the cake is cool and the frosting sets, but still tastes great if served warm. 

• Store leftovers wrapped in plastic/foil or in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

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Apple Butterscotch Snack Cake

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