Glazed Chunky Apple Coffee Cake Swirled with Brown Sugar, Cinnamon and Toasted Walnuts or Pecans!

Loaded with apples and swirled with a scrumptious mixture of brown sugar, cinnamon and toasted nuts, this cake makes an ideal treat to enjoy with your coffee on these brisk Fall days!  For an awesome Autumn dessert, try it with my Butter Pecan Glaze and/or a premium vanilla ice cream.

This versatile coffee cake also makes a delectable quick, light breakfast, with or without a cup of your favorite yogurt...it's especially good with pumpkin yogurt!                                                                                                                                
                                       I Think I Need A Coffee Break...

                                                Care To Join Me?


As adapted from The Baking Chocola Tess' Awesome Country Apple Fritter Bread and Lui in Cucina's Apple Cinnamon White Cake

Approx. 6 servings

Ingredients
The Cake

• 1/3 c. packed dark or light brown sugar (I used light)
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 c. coarsely chopped toasted walnuts or pecans* (I used walnuts in the cake photoed in this post)
• 1 1/2 c. all-purpose, sifted flour (I used White Lily)
• 1 3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 2 medium-sized, any variety of apples (I used Gala), cleaned, peeled, cored and coarsely chopped (mixed with 2 TB granulated white sugar & 1 tsp. cinnamon...optional*)
• 2/3 c. granulated white sugar
• 1/2 cup room-temperature butter (I used salted)
• 2 room-temperature large eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. whole or 2% reduced fat milk (I used 2% reduced fat)
• Butter-flavored non-stick cooking spray for the pan

The Glaze*

• 1/4 c. powdered sugar
• 1/2 TB whole or 2% reduced fat milk (I used 2% reduced fat)

Directions
The Cake

1. In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar and cinnamon with a fork and stir in the nuts*.  Set aside.
2. In a separate small or medium bowl, whisk the flour and baking powder together and set aside.
3. Prepare the apples and mix with the 2 TB white sugar* and 1 tsp. cinnamon* in another small or medium bowl and set aside.
4. Using your electric mixer, beat the white sugar and butter together until smooth and creamy.
5. Coat a 9" x 5" loaf pan with the cooking spray.* (I used a Teflon pan and also sprayed.)
6. Preheat the oven to 350º. 
7. Beat the eggs one at a time into the sugar and butter mixture, until blended...then add the vanilla.
8. Using low speed, blend the milk into the batter until smooth. 
9. Pour and spread evenly half of the batter into the prepared pan (about 1 1/2 c.).
10. Scatter half of the apples (about 1 1/8 c.) over the batter.
11. Sprinkle half of the brown sugar, cinnamon and nut mixture over the apples.
12. Lightly pat the apples and the nut mixture into the batter.
13. Repeat steps 9 thru 11 using the remaining cake batter, apples and the nut mixture.
14. This time, lightly pat the apples into the batter and, with a knife or spoon, swirl the nut mixture through the apples.
15. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, approximately 50-60 minutes.  
16. Let cool at least 15 minutes (or overnight) before glazing or removing (carefully) from the pan.

The Glaze

• Whisk the powdered sugar with the milk until well blended, then drizzle over the top of the apple cake.  (Ideally glaze the cake after it's completely cooled; or if you glaze it while still it's warm, remake the glaze and drizzle over the cake again once it's cooled*.)

                                          It's Just Haunting Me...        

                                 Simply Have to Have Another Slice!   

*Tips

1. I inadvertently did not mix the apples with the 2 TB granulated sugar and 1 tsp. cinnamon that Kim at The Baking Chocola Tess recommended.  Since the original recipe from Lui in Cucina did not use this step, I'm going to call it optional...Kim's version looked terrific and my cake came out wonderful!
2. To toast the nuts for the batter, see the directions included in my recipe for Light and Refreshing Orange Salad Enhanced with Pomegranate and Tossed with Toasted Pecans. 
3. If you're not using a Teflon or glass loaf pan, I would recommend Kim's suggestion to line the pan with foil and spray the foil with the non-stick cooking spray for easier release.
4. To achieve the bumpy top of the Apple Fritter Bread that Kim made, she offered this:  "The bumpy look is attributed to the apples on top; but when I swirled, I started at one end and made 4 curves zigzagging back and forth down the middle to the opposite end, staying away from the edges and on the last curve, looped on around and came back doing the curves the opposite way.  I also added the extra glaze stripes after it had cooled completely for a more dramatic effect."                      

Enjoy this apple cake on these cool Autumn days as a delectable and comforting breakfast, snack or dessert with a good cup of coffee!

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