Apple Cake Filling
A couple of weeks ago, I made a salted caramel apple cake, and the real star of the show was its apple cake filling!
It’s perfectly sweet, full of warm spices, and the perfect consistency to fill a cake.
The cake recipe was pretty detailed, so I wanted to make a post sharing just the apple filling. I also hope this will encourage people to get creative and use this filling with their favorite cake and cupcake recipes.
This filling would be incredible with my vanilla cake recipe or even my cinnamon cupcake recipe. The sky’s the limit!!
What Type of Apples Should I Use in this Recipe?
There isn’t really a single right answer to this question! I personally love using Honeycrisp or Granny Smith apples in this apple cake filling recipe, but that’s mostly because they’re my favorite apples to eat.
In general, as long as it’s a firmer apple variety (like Red Delicious, Gala, Pink Lady, Fuji, Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, or Golden Delicious), it should work great!
You can even mix and match the apples you use in this recipe! The most important thing is that you use 4 large, firm apples that weigh about 800 grams or about 1.75 lbs.
Getting the Consistency Just Right For a Cake
While cooking down the apples does thicken the mixture, it doesn’t make it quite thick enough to add to cake.
If you’ve ever tried to add a bunch of jam between the layers of a tall cake, you know that you need a thick filling or else your cake layers slide all over the place!
I like to call it the slip and slide, and it makes cake decorating a nightmare.
You also need a cake filling to be thick to ensure it won’t ooze out the sides of your cake once it’s stacked and frosted.
Even with the help of a piped ring of frosting (i.e. a frosting dam), the filling can still ooze out as the cake settles.
Trust me, I’ve had my share of oozing fruit-filled cakes, and nothing is worse!!
Thickening this Apple Cake Filling with Cornstarch
This recipe is designed to make a really thick filling once it’s fully cooked and has cooled.
It ends up being just about as thick as jelly. The secret to making this apple cake filling so thick is cornstarch!
This recipe adds a cornstarch slurry (a mixture of cornstarch and water) to the partially cooked-down apple mixture.
Using a slurry rather than adding cornstarch directly into the filling makes it so much easier to incorporate the cornstarch into the filling.
Tips for Making the Best Apple Cake Filling
- Dice your apples into 1 cm, uniformly-sized pieces. It makes them easier to cook down.
- Don’t over-cook your apples! You want them to be soft, but not falling apart. If they get too soft, the mixture will start to resemble apple sauce, and that is not what we’re after with this recipe.
- Make the apple cake filling at least a day in advance to allow it to properly thicken and develop its flavor.
- Save leftover filling to fill cupcakes, add to thumbprint cookies, or even to top ice cream!
Making This Cake Filling in Advance and Storage Tips
This apple cake filling can be made up to a week in advance if stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
I don’t recommend freezing this filling; it gives it a strange texture.
Give the filling a stir with a rubber spatula before adding it to your cake to make it easier to spread.
Let Me Know What You Think
If you try this apple cake filling recipe, I’d love to hear what you think! Please leave a rating below, and a comment to let me know your thoughts.
Apple Cake Filling
Ingredients
Apple Filling
- 4 large Honeycrisp apples 1000g
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter 113g
- 1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar 300g
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon 5g
- 1/4 tsp fine salt 1g
- 1/4 cup water 60g
- 1/4 cup cornstarch 30g
Instructions
Apple Filling
- Make the caramel apple filling first because it needs time to cool down. Peel 4 large apples (about 1000g before being peeled and cored), remove the cores, and cut them into small pieces (roughly 1 cm cubes).
- Add the apple pieces, 1/2 cup unsalted butter, 1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, and 1/4 tsp salt into a large skillet. Heat over medium-high heat, and stir occasionally. Cook until the mixture begins to bubble, then reduce the heat to medium.
- In a small bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup of water and 1/4 cup of cornstarch to make a cornstarch slurry. This will help thicken the filing. Pour into the apple mixture and cook for 5-10 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Cook just until the apples are soft – I like to test them with a fork!
- Transfer the filling into a large bowl or tray (the wider it is, the faster it'll cool down) and chill in the fridge. Once fully cooled, the filling can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week (it doesn't freeze well). Be sure the filling has reached room temperature and thickened before you use it.
Video
Notes
Tips for Making the Best Apple Cake Filling:
- Dice your apples into 1 cm, uniformly sized pieces. It makes them easier to cook down.
- Don’t overcook your apples! You want them to be soft, but not falling apart. If they get too soft, the mixture will start to resemble apple sauce, and that is not what we’re after with this recipe.
- Make the apple cake filling at least a day in advance to allow it to properly thicken and develop its flavor.
- Save leftover filling to fill cupcakes, add to thumbprint cookies, or even to top ice cream!
Nutrition
Other Posts You Might Like:
can you use this filling for pies?
I’m trying to find the salted caramel apple cake but the hyperlinks in this blog seem to be broken. The link in the blog text takes me to a raspberry cake and the “suggested post” for apple pie cake takes me to a post for gluten free cupcakes. Is the apple cake post still available?
Hi Courtney,
So sorry about that!! I’ve updated the links in the post and the recipe can also be found here: https://chelsweets.com/salted-caramel-apple-cake/
Hope that helps, happy baking!!
Reread your instruction tips for making the best filling. You mention use fresh lemon juice to enhance the tartness of the raspberries this is Apple filling no raspberries in it.
Hi Margie,
Oopsies, that’s a typo!! Just updated the recipe card, thanks for letting me know. Happy baking!
Can’t wait to use this filling on my spice cake tomorrow. The kitchen smelled amazing and the filling tastes fantastic. I did cook it an extra 10 minutes and added a touch more cornstarch as I was worried it might not be thick enough.
Hi Marcia,
I hope your cake turned out amazing, it sounds delicious!! Cook time can vary based on the type of apple you use and the size they’re cut to, so I’m glad you adjusted as needed 🙂 Thank you for sharing!
@Chelsweets,
It turned out fantastic, frosted it with a cooked, less sweet frosting.
Yay!! So happy to hear that Marcia 🙂
Hello!
I’ve made this filling for the caramel spice cake and it was delicious!
I’m now looking to make it dairy free as it is for a person with a dairy allergy. Do you think it’s possible? I’m worried the flavors will be off with dairy free butter
Hi Caroline,
So happy you loved it with the caramel spice cake — that combo sounds amazing!! For a dairy-free version, you can absolutely swap in a plant-based butter. I’d recommend using a good quality vegan butter stick (like Earth Balance or Country Crock Plant Butter) rather than a tub, since it behaves closer to regular butter. The flavor will be slightly different, but with the spices and apple, it should still taste delicious and very close to the original. If you want to round out the flavor, a little extra vanilla can help too. Hope that helps, happy baking!!