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First-of-Fall Apple (or Pear) Bundt

Servings: 10 servings
Author: Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients

For the Apples (or pears)

  • 2 large apples (about 1 pound / 455g) peeled and cored
  • 1 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

For the Cake

  • 2 3/4 cups (374g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
  • 1 1/2 cups (300g) brown sugar
  • 3 large eggs at room temperature
  • 1/2 cup (120ml) pure maple syrup
  • 1 cup (240ml) neutral oil
  • 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup (120ml) full-fat buttermilk (well shaken before measuring) at room temperature
  • Confectioners’ sugar for dusting optional

For the Caramel

  • 8 Tbsp (4 oz; 113g) unsalted butter
  • 1 cup (200g) brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup (60ml) evaporated milk, half-and-half or cream
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Instructions

  • Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350℉.
  • Choose a 10-cup Bundt pan, preferably one that doesn’t have a complicated design; coat it with baker’s spray or butter it, dust the interior with flour and tap out the excess.
  • Cut the apples into small chunks. Try to keep them less than 1/2 inch, but don’t fuss over neatness here; even a rough chop will work. You should have between 31/2 and 4 cups of chunks (but again, precision’s not necessary).
  • Put the apples, sugar, flour and cinnamon in a large bowl and toss together to coat the apples; set aside.
  • Whisk the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt together.
  • Working in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the brown sugar and eggs together on medium speed for about 3 minutes.
  • Still working on medium, and scraping the bowl and beater(s) as needed, blend in the maple syrup, followed by the oil and then the vanilla.
  • Turn off the mixer, add half of the flour mixture and mix on low speed until the dry ingredients are almost incorporated.
  • Pour in the buttermilk, and mix just until incorporated, then add the remainder of the dry ingredients and mix just until they disappear into the thin batter.
  • Give the apples a quick stir, scrape them into the batter—include any syrup that has accumulated—and mix them in with a flexible spatula. Pour the batter into the pan.
  • Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until the cake just starts to pull away from the sides of the pan and, more important, a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. The batter may have baked a bit higher than the center opening, but that’s fine.
  • Transfer the cake to a rack and let it sit for 10 minutes, then unmold it onto the rack and allow it to cool to room temperature.
  • If you won’t be finishing the cake with the caramel glaze, dust it with confectioners’ sugar, if you'd like.
  • Optional Caramel:
  • Put the butter, brown sugar, milk (or half-and-half or cream) and vanilla in a medium saucepan set over medium heat.
  • Bring to a boil and keep at a bubble, stirring, for 2 minutes.
  • Use the caramel immediately as a glaze for the cake (put the cake on a rack set over a baking sheet or a piece of parchment paper and pour over the caramel) or as a sauce over slices of cake, or over ice cream, if you’re serving it.
  • The caramel can also be covered and refrigerated—warm gently before using.

Video

Notes

A word on apples: Choose the apples you like best. I usually grab one that’s tart and one that’s sweet. I don’t think McIntoshes are right for the cake because they soften so significantly under heat. And I find Granny Smiths a bit dry for the recipe, but if you love them, use them—they’ll add a touch of sharpness to the mix
A word on the caramel: This old-time recipe makes a caramel that thickens but doesn’t harden as it cools. You can use it as a drizzle to decorate the cake or as a sauce. If you choose to use it as sauce, why not go all out and top a slice of the cake with ice cream, then pour over the hot caramel sundae style?
Recipe from Dorie’s Anytime Cakes by Dorie Greenspan. Copyright 2025 by Dorie Greenspan. Used with permission by Harvest, an imprint of HarperCollins. All rights reserved. Illustrations by Nancy Pappas.