‘Tis the season for Apple Cake, Apple Bread, Apple… EVERYTHING! Today I’m delivering a nut-free apple cake recipe for you! Driving down the highway the other day, back in North Virginia I saw a truck with a huge crate of apples in the back of it. My CSA Box is brimming with apples every week and they are divine! I used Green Apples for paleo apple cake because I love that they’re a little tart, but any apples will do!
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Sugar-Free Apple Cake Recipe
I know apples aren’t really keto or low carb… but they are delicious, in-season, and a whole food. I’m just living my life here. I opted for using Lakanto Golden to keep the sugar and total carb count down, granulated allulose would work too (you’d need to use 1/2 cup). However, this isn’t really a keto dessert, it really falls under paleo recipes. Which my blog has mostly that. Real food is my jam and the rest is just details. If you don’t do well with alternative sweeteners you could use maple sugar, coconut sugar or even brown sugar for this gluten-free apple cake.
Grain Free Apple Cake Ingredients
For Apple Topping
- 1 green apple, thinly slices
- 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon Lakanto Golden
For Apple Cake
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 cup ground flax seed (or arrowroot powder) – this helps hold this cake together.
- 1/4 cup Lakanto Golden – I like this sugar free sweetener, you can also use coconut sugar as a substitute
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- pinch of ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon grain-free baking powder
- 1 green apple, peeled and diced into small cubes – you can also use red apples
- 3 room temperature eggs
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
- 1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Why Does Your Apple Cake Look Like Bread?
Small cake pans aren’t that common. Yes, as a food blogger I have 6-inch cake pan, but most folks don’t. However… everyone has a loaf pan! They’re easy, and it’s convenient. But I didn’t call this recipe apple bread because the texture is really moist and spongy like a cake! READ THE RECIPE NOTES. You will see there is an option to use arrowroot (or tapioca) instead of flax meal which would yield a more bread-like recipe but bring the carb count up. I polled my Instagram followers on this. MOST folx preferred a starch-free cake that was moist, but I wrote in the variations because that’s how we roll around here.
Step by Step Paleo Apple Cake
- Pre-heat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a loaf pan. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, toss the thinly sliced apples with 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil and sweetener.
- Then arrange in an overlapping pattern in the loaf pan. Make it pretty, this will be the top of your cake. Save the bowl for the wet ingredients.
- In a large bowl whisk together the dry cake ingredient; coconut flour, flax seed (or arrowroot), cinnamon, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg.
- Whisk until well combined.
- Mix in the diced apple.
- In the bowl where you tossed your apples, whisk together the eggs, melted coconut oil, vanilla extract, and apple sauce. Whisk until smooth and foamy, you want to get air into the eggs to help the cake rise!
- Add your wet mix to the dry mix and fold in with a spatula until fully combined. Use a spatula to transfer the batter to the loaf pan.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes until a deep golden brown and firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes. Use a thin spatula or knife to run along the edges, make sure it’s not stuck to the pan before turning over onto a cutting board.
- Slice with a sharp knife and serve! Store wrapped airtight in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Enjoy this delicious apple cake, which is bursting with apple flavor!
Frequently Asked Questions
I haven’t tested this recipe with another flour, but rule of thumb for replacing coconut flour with almond meal is that you need 3x more almond meal than coconut flour.
You really need to whisk those eggs, and make sure you’re baking powder is fresh.
Yes, you will need a 6″ inch pan or double the recipe, and baking time will vary.
Not for this one.
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Gluten Free Apple Cake (Nut-Free, Dairy-Free, Paleo)
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 10 slices 1x
- Category: Seasonal
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Low sugar, an allergen-friendly apple cake that is spongy and moist and bursting with flavor!
Ingredients
For Apple Topping
- 1 green apple, thinly slices
- 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon Lakanto Golden
For Apple Cake
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 cup ground flax seed (or arrowroot powder, see notes)
- 1/4 cup Lakanto Golden
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- pinch of ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon grain-free baking powder
- 1 green apple, peeled and diced into small cubes
- 3 room temperature eggs
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
- 1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a loaf pan. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, toss the apple slices with 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil and sweetener. Then arrange in an overlapping pattern in the loaf pan. Make it pretty, this will be the top of your cake. Save the bowl for the wet ingredients.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together the dry ingredients; coconut flour, flax seed (or arrowroot), cinnamon, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg. Whisk until well combined, then mix in the diced apple.
- In the bowl where you tossed your apples, whisk together the eggs, melted coconut oil, vanilla extract, and apple sauce. Whisk until smooth and foamy, you want to get air into the eggs to help the cake rise!
- Add your wet mix to the dry mix and fold in with a spatula until fully combined. Use a spatula to transfer the cake batter to the loaf pan.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes until a deep golden brown and firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes. Use a thin spatula or knife to run along the edges, make sure it’s not stuck to the pan before turning over onto a cutting board.
- Slice with a sharp knife and serve! Store wrapped airtight in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Recipe Notes:
- Net carbs: 5.6g per slice (with flax and lakanto)
- The arrowroot starch will give the apple cake a more breadlike feel. A cumby loaf that’s not as spongy. Both are amazing, it’s a preference thing!
- Use whatever granulated sweetener works for you. For the color, I would stick to a golden/brown sweetener over a white one.
- Omit cinnamon for low histamine, use a mix of ground ginger and ground nutmeg
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 155
- Fat: 12.8g
- Carbohydrates: 14.5g
- Fiber: 2.3g
- Protein: 2.5g
Gabrielė says
Delicious cake! Thank you so much for this great recipe 😊
Susan says
I was looking for something with apples on the healthy side; this smells, looks and tastes amazing!!
Joan Johnson says
Hi Beautiful ❣️ Can I do partial almond flour instead of all coconut flour? My autistic guys are sensitive to the taste of coconut? ☺️
Cristina Curp, FNTP says
I havent tried it with almond flour, rule of thumb is 3x more almond flour than coconut flour though
Mary says
Could I substitute the eggs for flax seeds?
Cristina says
I don’t think that would work for this recipe
Magda says
How much of ground ginger and nutmeg exactly in place of cinnamon? (I’m allergic) Thanks!
Cristina says
1/2 tsp ginger, 1/4 tsp nutmeg
Mom2one says
God bless you for making this nut free and for providing low histamine options! If I wanted to just use stevia and/or coconut sugar, how could I go about this? The sugar alcohols wreak havoc on my gut. 🙁
Cristina says
You can use 1/4 – 1/3 cup coconut sugar 🙂 no prob!
Sara says
So good and comforting! Perfect with a cup of coffee in a cold day.
Cristina says
Thank you Sara!!!