I don't know who Ligita is, but I want to thank her from the bottom of my hungry little heart for this Quick Apple Cake recipe.
When I read through it, I was a little puzzled because it's made in a pie plate and the apple mixture is topped with a thick cake crust.
So it's a cake, baked in a pie plate that ends up rather like a cobbler!
The apples are thinly sliced and tossed in a lemon, sugar, cinnamon mixture, then topped with a lightly sweet cake batter.
It ends up with a luscious apple filling and a tender cake layer, along with a slightly crunchy top.
We had it warm with a scoop of Blue Bell Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and it was oh, so tasty.
This cake (pie, cobbler) has a familiar warm apple cake flavor with a different twist. The browned butter really adds a different dimension to the cake layer, so make sure and don't skip that step.
It's easy to throw together and, besides having to wait impatiently for it to cool, it's a quick dessert. Delicious.

Ligita's Quick Apple Cake
Combination Apple Cake Apple Cobbler - delicious!
Ingredients
- 3 C tart apples, cored and thinly sliced
- 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- ¾ C plus 3 tbsp. granulated sugar
- ¾ C butter, cut into pieces
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 C sifted all-purposed flour
- Vanilla Ice Cream, (optional, but highly recommended!)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter the bottom and sides of a 9" pie plate.
- Toss the sliced apples in a bowl with the cinnamon, lemon juice and 2 tbsp. of the sugar. Spread the apples evenly in the pie plate.
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; cook until the foam is lightly golden brown, about 5 minutes. Watch carefully to avoid burning. Remove immediately from the stove top and pour into a bowl, leaving any sediment and as much foam as possible in the pan.*
- Stir the ¾ cup of sugar into the butter. Slowly stream the egg into the bowl while stirring. Gently stir in the flour until blended. Spoon the batter evenly over the apples and spread into a layer. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 tbsp. sugar.
- Bake until lightly golden and crusty, about 40 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack. Cut into wedges and serve from the pan warm or at room temperature, with vanilla ice cream.
Notes
Tips and Stuff
I used Fuji apples. Granny Smith would be another good apple – make sure it’s a firm cooking apple. (Takes 3 medium or 2 large)
*When pouring the browned butter into the bowl, pour through a sieve or use a pan lid to get just the liquid out. Some of the foam will come with it – that’s OK, but make sure the sediment from the browning remains in the pan so it won’t be bitter.
Cool at least 30 minutes to let the apple mixture firm up.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1 gramsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 244Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 80mgSodium: 135mgCarbohydrates: 21gFiber: 2gSugar: 10gProtein: 3g
Nutrition Values are Approximate
OMG. BEEN MAKING THIS FANTASTICAL DESSERT FOR OVER 26 YEARS. ITS THE GREATEST “PIE” EVER. IF I DONT HAVE ICE CREAM ON HAND I MAKE WHIP CREAM WITH GINGER. WHEN MY SON CAME BACK FROM MILITARY DUTY IN THE MIDDLE EAST, I MADE YHIS, HIS FAVORITE DESSERT….HE ATE THE ENTIRE PIE IN ONE SITTING….BEST RECIPE. E V E R !!!!
Lol, Kathy - he must have been stuffed. I just love the crust on this one! Thanks for your comment. Love the story.
Thanks Sherlynn. Just finished the last piece today! It got better every day. Hope you try it.
Susan, oh my, great pic! It looks delicious! I need to try this for sure, Sherlynn