This Butter Cake with Chunky Cinnamon Apples is effortlessly impressive, makes your kitchen smell like an autumn dream, and is proof that you don’t need to spend hours baking to create something truly fabulous. Imagine a tender, buttery sheet cake, made with a jazzed-up butter recipe cake mix, baked to absolute golden perfection. Served with a glorious layer of chunky, stovetop cinnamon apples, this simple cake is moist, flavorful, and everything you want on a crisp fall day. And since apples are always around, this is the kind of sweet treat you’ll find yourself baking again and again, no matter the season.
A few months ago, I decided that it was finally about time to get off my tuckus and try making an apple version of my Butter Cake Mix Summer Peach Shortcake, using the new industry-standard-size boxed cake mix. (Insert eye roll here.) If you’ve been following along for a while, you’ll remember that in my recipe post for this Peach Crumble Pound Cake (Cake Mix Recipe), I ranted and raved about the cake mix industry’s need to mess up every single recipe ever previously created in the world using a boxed cake mix by reducing the size of their boxed cake mixes. Making an apple version of the original shortcake gave me the perfect excuse to test out new ingredient measurements and make sure that they would yield an edible, light, airy, and moist butter cake.
Anyway, I originally made this cake thinking I would spread the sweet chunky cinnamon apples over it for a bunch of my friends to enjoy at an outdoor dinner party. Then, at the last minute, in a rare moment of kitchen wisdom, I decided that I really didn’t want the cake to get soggy, because mushy, wet cake is no one’s idea of a good time. So, instead, I kept the butter cake and the cinnamon apples separate and let everyone serve themselves. Well, y’all, I learned something interesting at that dinner party. Some of my friends went straight for the apples, without any cake; some just wanted plain cake, and some actually ate the cake as intended, with the apples spooned over the cake. Honestly, however you decide to dig in, you’re in for a real treat with this cake mix recipe. P.S. Y’all, this simple little recipe may just win my dessert of the year award.
Ingredients:
Butter Cake:
- 1/2 Teaspoon Unsalted Butter, Cold
- 1 Cup of Sour Cream
- 2 Eggs
- 1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
- 1/4 Cup Unsalted Butter, Melted
- 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
- 1 (13.25-oz.) Box Butter Recipe Yellow Cake Mix
Chunky Cinnamon Apples:
- 8 Cups of Peeled, Cored & Chopped Apples (5 Apples)
- 3/4 Cup Light Brown Sugar, Packed
- 2 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1/2 Teaspoon Sea Salt
Directions:
Butter Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Liberally grease a 9 x 13-inch glass baking dish or a metal cake pan with cold, unsalted butter; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix the sour cream, eggs, heavy whipping cream, butter, and vanilla together for 1 minute on medium speed.
- Add the cake mix; mix on low speed until incorporated.
- Increase speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared glass baking dish or metal cake pan. Spread the batter out evenly with a silicone spatula.
- Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until a knife or toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before serving it with the chunky cinnamon apples.
Chunky Cinnamon Apples:
- Place all the ingredients in a stainless-steel or non-reactive metal pot. Cook for 15 minutes, over medium heat, stirring often.
- Allow the sauce to cool before serving it over the cooled butter cake.
Suggestions:
- For shiny metal or glass pans, bake at 350 degrees. For nonstick pans, bake at 325 degrees. I used a 9 x 13-inch glass baking dish to bake this butter cake.
- I suggest checking the cake after 25 minutes of baking to test for doneness. Every oven bakes differently.
- Use crisp, firm apples for this recipe. Braeburn, Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, Fuji, Jonagold, or Granny Smith apples will all work well for this recipe.
- Since the apple mixture contains vinegar, use a stainless-steel or non-reactive metal pot.
- Do not top the butter cake with the chunky cinnamon apples until you are just ready to serve it, or the cake will become soggy.
Improvements:
- Garnish the apple-topped cake with finely chopped pecans or walnuts.
- Bake cupcakes instead of a sheet cake. You will need to bake them for approximately 14 to 19 minutes, or until a knife or a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cupcake comes out clean.
- If you’re a fan of cinnamon, add a 1/2 teaspoon to the cake batter.
- Serve this butter cake with ice cream. This Classic Vanilla Ice Cream (Easy No Egg Recipe) or this Buttermilk Double Vanilla Ice Cream would be perfect served with this shortcake.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 Teaspoon Unsalted Butter, Cold
- 1 Cup of Sour Cream
- 2 Eggs
- 1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
- 1/4 Cup Unsalted Butter, Melted
- 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
- 1 (13.25-oz.) Box Butter Recipe Yellow Cake Mix
- 8 Cups of Peeled, Cored & Chopped Apples (5 Apples)
- 3/4 Cup Light Brown Sugar, Packed
- 2 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1/2 Teaspoon Sea Salt
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Liberally grease a 9 x 13-inch glass baking dish or a metal cake pan with cold, unsalted butter; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix the sour cream, eggs, heavy whipping cream, butter, and vanilla together for 1 minute on medium speed.
- Add the cake mix; mix on low speed until incorporated.
- Increase speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared glass baking dish or metal cake pan. Spread the batter out evenly with a silicone spatula.
- Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until a knife or toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before serving it with the chunky cinnamon apples.
- Place all the ingredients in a stainless-steel or non-reactive metal pot. Cook for 15 minutes, over medium heat, stirring often.
- Allow the sauce to cool before serving it over the cooled butter cake.
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