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Apple Cider Cake

Apple cider cake with warm spices baked into tender layers, finished with fluffy cream cheese frosting and a caramel drizzle. The apple cider is reduced for concentrated flavor, then folded into the batter for a moist crumb.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 12 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 430
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For cider cake
  • 2.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1.5 tsp baking powder
  • 0.5 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.25 tsp nutmeg
  • 0.25 tsp allspice
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 1 lb unsalted butter, softened
  • 1.5 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 cup apple cider reduced to 1/2 cup
  • 0.5 cup sour cream
For cream cheese frosting
  • 8 oz cream cheese
  • 0.25 cup butter
  • 3 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 tbsp cider apple cider for frosting
Caramel drizzle for finishing
  • 1 caramel drizzle

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan
  • 1 cake pans

Method
 

Prepare the cider and oven
  1. Reduce apple cider to 1/2 cup, then cool completely.
  2. Preheat oven to 350F and grease two 9-inch pans.
Mix the dry ingredients
  1. Whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and salt until evenly combined.
Make the cake batter
  1. Beat unsalted butter and brown sugar until very fluffy.
  2. Add eggs and vanilla, then beat until smooth.
  3. Beat in the reduced, cooled cider.
  4. Alternate adding the flour mixture and sour cream, mixing just until the batter is smooth.
  5. Divide the batter between the two prepared 9-inch pans.
Bake and cool
  1. Bake for 35-40 minutes at 350F, until the centers spring back when gently touched.
  2. Cool the cakes completely before frosting.
Frost and finish
  1. Beat cream cheese frosting ingredients until fluffy.
  2. Frost and stack the layers.
  3. Drizzle with caramel drizzle so it cascades down the sides.

Notes

For the best texture, cool the baked cake layers completely before frosting so the frosting stays thick and doesn’t melt. Store assembled cake covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days; freeze unfrosted layers up to 2 months (thaw overnight in the fridge). For a lighter option, replace half the butter in the frosting with full-fat Greek yogurt to keep it tangy while reducing richness.