When December rolls around, one thing becomes inevitable: fruit cakes popping up in every store like holiday-themed confetti. And honestly? Even one fruit cake is one too many for me. Something about their gummy texture and mysterious mix-ins doesn’t spark any holiday joy.
This month’s Foodie Extravaganza theme? Yep, fruit cake. I nearly bowed out of the challenge, but then I had a delicious idea: why not reinterpret fruit cake in a way I’d actually want to eat? So I did. I swapped candied mystery bits for juicy apples and warm spices, and the result? A cinnamon apple cake that disappeared almost as fast as I made it. (Okay, I shared generously—but my family didn’t hold back either.)
If traditional fruit cake makes you cringe, I think this cozy, fragrant cake might win you over. Scroll to the end of this post for 8 more fruit cake creations that reimagine the genre.
Ingredients
Ingredient Quantity
Butter, softened ½ cup
Brown sugar ½ cup
White sugar ½ cup
All-purpose flour 2¼ cups
Oat flour 1 cup
Eggs 2
Salt 1 tsp
Baking soda 1½ tsp
Ground cinnamon 3 Tbsp
Ground ginger ½ tsp
Unsweetened applesauce 2 cups
Diced apples 3 cups
Chopped pecans 1½ cups
Powdered sugar 1 cup
Milk 2 Tbsp
Vanilla extract 1 tsp
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking pan thoroughly.
Cream together the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy.
Beat in eggs one at a time.
Stir in salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and ginger.
Gradually add both flours and mix until fully incorporated.
Mix in the applesauce.
Gently fold in the apples and pecans.
Spread batter evenly into the prepared pan.
Bake for 50–60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
While cake cools, whisk together powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Adjust consistency with more sugar or milk as needed.
Transfer glaze to a piping bag (or a zip-top bag with the corner snipped) and decorate cooled cake.
Slice, serve, and watch it disappear!