everyone’s favorite fall fruit (sorry pumpkin) is here to make the ultimate dessert. this vegan apple crumb cake is going to be a hit with everyone you share it with!
This vegan apple crumb cake has a few components to it but it is so easy to make! It has a soft, sweet cake on the bottom. Then it has diced sweet apples that get baked in the middle. Finally, it is topped with a crumb topping. Resulting in quite possibly one of the best cakes you will ever make.
What Dairy Substitutes Should I Use?
People tend to like know what dairy free brands I am using in recipes. So, here is a little run through. You can use pretty much any brands you like and have accessible to you.
- Non-Dairy Milk: Ripple unsweetened original. This is my favorite non-dairy milk it is pea protein based. You can use oat, rice, almond, soy, cashew – anything will work here.
- Vegan Butter: Earth Balance baking sticks. I like the sticks because it does make it easier to bake with. You can use Miyokos, Country Crock vegan butter.
- Vegan Sour Cream: My go-to is Tofutti. However, I tried Forager vegan sour cream for the first time and I did really enjoy it!
- Egg Replacer: Bob’s Red Mill egg replacer has been my go to for many years. You can also use Ener-G egg replacer, The Neat Egg or a homemade flax or chia seed egg.
Why Do I Have To Use Organic Sugar?
In this recipe you will find we use not 1, not 2, but 3 sugars. If you look in the ingredients I will note them all as needing to be organic. Unfortunately, in the US some sugars are processed with bone char thus making them not vegan-friendly. However, organic sugar is not processed with bone char making it safe to use.
Apple Choice
Did you know there are 7,500 varieties of apples?! Yes, quite a bit! I was always told the best baking apple is Granny Smith. While I do love them for baking I also enjoy using Honeycrisp which is what I used here. In my opinion, you can really use any apple you want.
The Crumbs
While the soft cake on the bottom is just delicious, the star of this cake are the crumbs on top. Easily made with all purpose flour, brown sugar, vegan butter, and cinnamon. If you want to be extra bold you can make double the amount of crumbs for topping. The key to a good crumb topping is to keep the clumps big and form them with your hands. First, use a knife to cut the butter into the flour, sugar, cinnamon mixture. Then squeeze with your hands to push the vegan butter into the dry ingredients, resulting in big clumps. These are the best crumbs to pick off the top of the cake.
More Fall Desserts
Vegan Apple Crumb Cake FAQ
- Can this be made gluten free? I did not test this recipe using gluten free flour. However, if you would like to use Gluten Free All Purpose Flour let me know how it works.
- Is the batter supposed to be very thick? Yes. It should be a bit thicker than normal cake batter.
- How long does this cake last? Up to 4 days wrapped on the counter. I suggest warming it up before enjoying.
- Can I freeze this cake? Yes. You can warm it up in the oven.
- Is there anything else I can add to this cake? If you want more a spiced cake feel you can add in cloves, nutmeg, and allspice. If you want to add some walnuts or pecans into the crumb topping that would be delicious too.
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Vegan Apple Crumb Cake
Ingredients
Crumb Topping
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- ⅔ cup organic brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ cup vegan butter, cold
Cake
- ¼ cup vegan butter melted
- 1 vegan egg replacer
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¾ cup non-dairy milk
- ⅓ cup vegan sour cream
- 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
-
¾ cup organic sugar
- 2 medium sized apples [around 180 to 220g] peeled and chopped *these are not in the batter but layered on top
Sugar Glaze
- 3 tbsp organic powdered sugar
- 1-2 tsp water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Prepare the crumb topping by adding all the dry ingredients into a bowl. Use a knife to cut the butter into the dry ingredients. Then use clean hands to crumble the butter in to make big clumps.
- Prepare the vegan egg according to the package directions.
- Use a whisk or spoon to mix the vegan egg, vegan sour cream, vegan butter, non-dairy milk, and vanilla extract and mix together.
- Then add in flour, baking powder, and sugar.
- Mix the batter until it looks thick like frosting. Do not overmix the batter once it is combined.
- Line a 9 inch square baking dish with parchment paper. Add the batter to the bottom and spread it around. It will be low, but it rises a lot in the oven. Then add the apples on top, and finally cover with the crumb topping.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes or until the crumb topping is browned and toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool for at least half hour to an hour.
- Make the sugar glaze by whisking the together to make a thick glaze. You can add more or less water to get it to your desired consistency. Then drizzle on top of the cake.
- Cut the take into however many pieces you like. I did 16 smaller squares.
Video
Is the baking powder mixed with the apples instead of the batter? (as shown in the recipe) 🍎
hi Joan, no the baking powder goes into the cake. I have now placed baking powder above the apples on the list but I did write in the steps that the baking powder will go in with the flour and sugar! Hope you enjoy if you try!
Can you use a flax egg in place of the egg replacer?
yes any egg replacer you like 🙂
Love the look of this cake, but we don’t really use egg replacer here in Scotland (or at least, I don’t!). Do you know how much flax seed you’d need to use? 🏴
Hi Alison thank you so much! It would just be 1 tablespoon of flax seeds with 3 tablespoons of water. Hope you enjoy!
Hi! This cake is my absolute favorite!!! I don’t currently have vegan sour cream on hand – could I use homemade cashew sour cream? Thanks for the amazing recipes always! 🧡
Hi K I am so glad you like it so much! Sure that should be fine! Enjoy! <3
Hello, I was wondering if you think vegan yogurt could replace the sour cream?
Hi Carol, sure that would be fine!
Can I use eggs instead? How many would I need to use?
Hi Raina I am using the equivalent of one egg however, as my page is vegan I do not test my recipes or try anything with animal products and I encourage people to try these recipes as intended without the animal products!
Hi Francesca! I finally made this cake today! I used spelt flour and vegan soy yogurt. I think I may have over mixed my crumb topping or it may have been the flour so I’d probably use all purpose in the future if you want true large crumbs but I didnt mind it was still a nice texture topping. And definitely don’t skip the glaze! Thank you so much for the recipe! I really appreciate all your hard work and willingness to share your recipes with the world ❤️
Hi Carol! Oh yay I am so so glad you enjoyed it. Thank you so much for the kind words and taking the time to leave a comment and review it means so much xo
This is one of the best apple crumb cakes I’ve made. Thank you Francesca for the recipe — it’s a keeper!
Hi Karen! Oh yay I am so happy to hear that. Thank you so much!! I really appreciate it!
This is definitely a keeper and will be made often. Not sure if the coffee made the cake taste better or the cake made the coffee taste better!😉. Thanks for this recipe.
Hi Bev! Oh yay I am so happy to hear you enjoyed it. Thank you so much for trying it. Haha I think either way it all works together!