Salted Caramel Apple Cake
A salted caramel apple upside-down cake is a moist butter cake with a gooey topping of caramelized apples with a buttery sauce, that gives a caramel flavor. Baked with the toppings on the bottom, the cake is inverted after baking to reveal a stunning, easy fall dessert. It is a popular holiday treat that combines the classic flavors of baked spiced apples with a hint of salt to balance the richness of the buttery caramel flavor.
An upside-down salted caramel apple cake is so good because it features sweet tender apples with a a rich buttery flavor of caramel, and a hint of salt in a delicious apple cake recipe. The “upside-down” baking method creates a beautiful presentation with the gooey topping baked into the cake and allows the apple and caramel juices to seep into the cake layers, creating a very moist texture.
For a salted caramel apple upside-down cake, the best apples are those that hold their shape while baking and have a balanced sweet-tart flavor. We have listed the apples below that work well for this cake. The “apple tips” provides the best ones to use, to prevents the fruit from turning to mush, while the tartness cuts through the richness of the cake.
What apples are recommended for an apple cake
For a balanced flavor profile: Use a mix of both sweet and tart apples for a more complex and nuanced flavor.
- Granny Smith: A classic baking apple that is reliably tart and holds its shape exceptionally well. It provides a sharp contrast to the rich caramel.
- Honeycrisp: This apple is famously crisp and juicy, with a honey-sweet and slightly tangy flavor. It retains its texture well after baking.
- Fuji: A sweet, crisp, and firm apple that will soften slightly while baking, without turning mushy.
- Pink Lady (Cripps Pink): A favorite for baking, this variety has a balanced sweet-tart flavor and a firm texture that keeps its shape.
- Braeburn: This firm apple offers a good balance of sweet and tart flavor with subtle spice notes.
If only using ONE variety of apple:
- For a bolder, tart flavor: Choose Granny Smith apples.
- For a sweeter cake: Go with Honeycrisp or Fuji apples.
Ingredients for Salted Caramel Apple Cake
- Butter
- Dark brown sugar
- Sea salt
- Golden Delicious apples (or mix in Granny Smith for a bit more tartness)
- Whole wheat flour ( you can also use all-purpose flour)
- Apple pie spice (or make your own using nutmeg, cinnamon, and allspice)
- Baking powder + salt
- Eggs + vanilla
- Whipping cream
- Maple syrup (optional, to add to whipping cream)
How to make Upside Down Salted Caramel Apple Cake
- Sauté the apples for 13 minutes, until tender or soft.
- Mix together the batter until it’s fluffy.
- Fan the sliced apples over bottom of prepared pan. Spread batter on top of apples, then bake!
- After cooling, run a small knife around pan edge, and invert the cake onto a plate.
My favorite … serve warm with whipped cream. YUM!
Sandy’s tips and substitutions:
- Use Granny Smith apples or a mix of your favorite fall apple varieties. SEE LIST ABOVE.
- You can use all purpose flour in place of whole wheat flour. The wheat flour makes the cake a little more dense.
- Make you own pumpkin pie spice: 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1/2 tsp allspice.
- Storage: Store the leftovers on the counter for up to 5 days. Reheat and enjoy with a small scoop of ice cream!
Serving
We love this cake served with Vanilla ice cream, regular whipped cream, or maple cream.
What is maple cream? Maple syrup whipped cream (sweeten the whipped cream with 2 Tablespoons of maple syrup) that is delicious on this cake!
More apple recipes you may enjoy:
Get the Recipe:
Salted Caramel Apple Cake
Ingredients
- 6 Tbsp. cold butter
- 1 ½ cups packed dark brown sugar
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- 5 Golden Delicious apples, cored, peeled, each cut into 8 wedges (or a tarter flavor if you prefer)
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour, you can also use all-purpose flour
- 1 Tbsp. apple pie spice, from McCormick’s but you can use nutmeg, cinnamon, and allspice
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- ¼ tsp. salt
- ½ cup 1 stick butter, softened
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- ½ cup whipping cream
- 1 cup whipping cream and 2-3 Tbsp. maple syrup for topping , optional
Equipment
- 10-inch round cake pan (I like Gold Touch for bakeware)
- Large skillet (Everyone should have a cast iron skillet!)
- Stand mixer (I use my KitchenAid stand mixer all the time)
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter the bottom of a 10-inch round cake pan with 4 tbsp. butter; sprinkle with 1/2 cup of dark brown sugar and the sea salt. (Optional to use parchment paper.)
- Heat remaining 2 tbsp. cold butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add apples and sauté for 13 minutes, until soft.
- In a large bowl, mix together the flour, spices, baking powder, and salt. Add in the butter, 1 cup of dark brown sugar, eggs, whipping cream and vanilla. Beat until smooth for about 2 minutes.
- Fan apples over bottom of prepared pan. Spread batter on top of apples. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes.
- Run a small knife around pan edge. Place a serving plate on top of the pan and turn plate and pan over together. Carefully remove pan. If any apples remain in the pan, place them on the cake.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
- Optional to whip 1 cup of whipping cream (add 2-3 Tbsp. maple syrup after whipped); serve on top, or serve with vanilla ice cream.
Notes
I am a huge fan of my Le Creuset skillet, and I always use my KitchenAid hand mixer for that yummy whipped cream!
Hello and welcome to my home and table!
I’m Sandy—lover of food, family, cooking, THE BIG BOARD, travel, and bringing people together. Through great recipes and connection around the table, we become better, stronger, and more courageous people. Feasting on Life is real, and every time we do it, we grow a little more. Read more...
Not only did this make my kitchen smell wonderful, the flavor was divine!
Hi Sandy,
Made this cake to share with coworkers in the Covid 19 crisis . It might be the last time we are together for a while. It turned out beautifully with very special sentiments just like your post. Thanks for the real life reminders . G
Does it matter if pan is glass or metal
No, either works.
I baked this cake today on a cool and windy day. Loved the flavor. Next time I’m going to add some apples to the batter.
Just made this and it perfectly delicious!!
Thank you.
This looks delicious. I’m wondering if this could be cooked in a cast iron skillet. I’ve a pineapple upside down cake in one before.
Yes, give it a try!
My daughter can’t have the heavy whipping cream. would too much change if u subbed it with full fat soy milk?
Erin, I’m really not familiar with cooking with full fat soy milk, so I’m not sure! Sorry! If it works, come back and tell me :)
Made this it was fantastic!!!!
Awesome! Thanks for sharing! :)
What a delicious cake! I wasn’t sure I’d done things right as there didn’t seem much batter to cover the apples, and it didn’t follow the usual “cream butter and sugar…” instructions. I didn’t have whole wheat flour so used all purpose. Also made my own spice mix, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1/2 tsp allspice. Despite my anxiety this turned out to be flavourful, light crumb cake which I served with maple syrup whipped cream. Yum!
How much cinnamon, allspice & nutmeg would replace the apple pie spice?
Would light brown sugar work just as well in this recipe?