Praline Crunch Apple Cake

This Praline Crunch Apple Cake is a super moist cake, loaded with apples, topped with a brown sugar icing and an AMAZING, crunchy praline topping that’s just as good on it’s own as it is in this cake!

It’s that time of year again when apples are everywhere! Apples are definitely my favorite fruit to bake with…maybe because apple season is in the fall and I am a huge fall enthusiast with the cozy clothes and cinnamon smells…

With all the apples that we are about to have on hand in the coming months I partnered with KitchenAid in the #KitchenAidContest (more on that in a minute). I decided to take a classic-ish type recipe and give it a fun update. Apple Cake certainly isn’t a new invention. BUT topping it with ridiculous brown sugar icing and a whole boat-load of crunchy Praline topping…well, suddenly things get interesting.

Adding the sweet, buttery, crunchy Praline topping seriously is the best. I might have doubled the batch and snacked on it for a few days by itself.

The cake itself is loaded with apples, and I mean loaded, which makes it a super soft cake packed with cinnamon flavor. I poured a sweet, caramely brown sugar frosting on top and then topped that with the Praline Crunch. It’s a WOW dessert for sure!

Praline Crunch Apple Cake

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• Author: Cookies & Cups

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Cake

• 4 eggs
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced thinly

Praline Crunch

• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 8 ounces chopped pecans
• 6 ounces coarsely chopped Nilla Wafer cookies (about a cup and a half)

Frosting

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 cups powdered sugar

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Instructions

Cake

1. Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. Coat a 9×13 inch pan with baking spray and set aside.
2. In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment mix the eggs and sugar on high speed for 5 minutes. Turn mixer to medium and add in the oil, vanilla, salt, cinnamon and baking powder and mix for another minute. Turn mixer to low and add in the flour until just mixed in and finally add stir in the apples.
3. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 45-55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Leave the oven on to make the Praline Crunch

Praline Crunch

1. While the cake is cooling line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl combine the butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt.
3. Stir in the pecans and cookies and coat with the butter mixture.
4. Spread evenly onto the prepared pan and bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.
5. All the praline crunch to cool on the pan and then break into smaller pieces.

Frosting

1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat melt the butter and brown sugar together. Allow the mixture to come to a boil and then reduce the heat to low, boil and stir for 2 minutes. Add in the milk, return to a boil and then remove from the heat immediately. Allow this to cool for 15 minutes. Next whisk in the powdered sugar and pour/spread onto the cooled cake.
2. Top the frosting with the praline crunch.

Frosting

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Notes

The Praline Crunch can be made up to a week in advance. You can also use coarsely chopped graham crackers in place of the Nilla Wafers.

Store the cake airtight for up to 3 days.

Now to the Apple Challenge…

KitchenAid is are inviting YOU to show how to take simple to extraordinary! They just want you to create a UNIQUE apple recipe and submit a photo and description of your dish!

Food Network Kitchens will select the top 4 recipe submissions and the 4 finalists will win a trip for 2 to NYC to push their limits in a live cook-off to cook their dish to be judged by FN chef Geoffrey Zakarian. 1 winner will receive the grand prize of a suite of KitchenAid Black Stainless Steel Appliances and a private cooking lesson with Geoffrey Zakarian. The contest runs 8/17 – 9/14.

I am OBSESSED with the new KitchenAid black stainless steel. LITERALLY OBSESSED. I am kinda-sorta hoping my kitchen appliances will all break so I can makeover my kitchen!

Anyhow, make this Apple Cake for inspo…and then create your own apple dish to enter in the #KitchenAidContest! Good luck and if you win I am TOTALLY coming over to stalk your new kitchen!
From the first-ever black stainless steel to the first-ever five-door refrigerator, KitchenAid pushes the limits with our appliances, so our home cooks can do the same with their cooking. See the revolutionary new line of KitchenAid appliances or visit the Kitchenthusiast™ blog for recipes, tips and more.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of KitchenAid. The opinions and text are all mine.