This high altitude apple cider bundt cake is flavored with warm spices, applesauce and apple cider concentrate, then coated in cinnamon sugar for a sweet finish.
You might also love these high altitude recipes for apple fritter cake, baked apple cider donuts, and German apple cake.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Serve Warm from the Oven. I love a dessert that doesn’t have to cool for long before I can enjoy it, and this cake is delicious warm or at room temperature.
Cozy Fall Flavors. With the apple cider concentrate and warm spices, this cake is perfect for apple picking season.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
Cake
- Flour. All purpose flour gives the cake structure and strength.
- Spices. You’ll need baking soda to leaven the cake, salt to balance the sweetness, and a combination of warm spices such as cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cloves and ginger.
- Dark Brown Sugar. Adds sweetness, moisture and a hint of molasses flavor.
- Apple Cider Concentrate. This is a reduced form of apple cider that has been boiled down into a thick, sweet syrup to add lots of apple flavor without too much water. You can buy apple cider concentrate or boiled cider online, or you can make your own homemade boiled cider.
- Applesauce. Use unsweetened applesauce to add moisture, and just a little more apple flavor.
- Vegetable Oil + Milk. Moisture.
- Eggs. Add moisture and strength.
- Vanilla Extract. Flavor.
Cinnamon Sugar
- Unsalted Butter. Helps the cinnamon sugar coating to stick to the cake.
- Cinnamon Sugar.
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Thoroughly grease a 5-6 cup bundt pan with non-stick baking spray.
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and spices.
- In another bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, applesauce, apple cider concentrate, oil, milk, eggs and vanilla.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and whisk until combined, then pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake the cake for about 28-30 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack and cool for 15 minutes, then turn the cake out of the pan.
Cinnamon Sugar
- Melt the butter, then use a pastry brush to brush the warm cake with the butter.
- Combine the sugar and cinnamon, then press the cinnamon sugar all over the cake until it sticks.
- Serve the cake warm, or at room temperature.
Recipe Variations
For today’s apple cider bundt cake, I decided to give it a crunchy cinnamon sugar coating, just like on my popular snickerdoodle bundt cake. But there are so many delicious and pretty ways to frost a bundt cake.
- Buttercream Frosting. Frost the whole cake with buttercream, like on this maple pound cake.
- Piped Buttercream. Decorate the cake with some pretty piping, like on this sweet potato bundt cake.
- Vanilla Icing Glaze. Cover the cake with a drippy glaze, like on this donut cake.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
You can buy apple cider concentrate or boiled cider online, or you can make your own homemade boiled cider.
Store leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 3-6 months.
You can double today’s recipe and use a 10-12 cup bundt pan. The cake will likely need to bake for about 40-45 minutes.
I used an 8 inch Kugelhopf bundt pan, but any small bundt pan with a 5-6 cup capacity will work, such as the heritage bundt pan, brilliance bundt pan or lotus bundt pan.
You Might Also Like
Please check out my Amazon Shop for a curated collection of some of my favorite cake pans from trusted brands, baking tools, ingredients, pretty things and fashion finds. I recommend products that I buy and use every day!
Did you love today’s recipe? Please rate the recipe and let me know in the comments what you thought! Also, be sure to follow Curly Girl Kitchen on Instagram, and tag me when you try one of my recipes so I can see all your delicious creations!
High Altitude Apple Cider Bundt Cake
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Bundt Pan (5-6 cup capacity)
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 ½ cups + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- â…› tsp ground nutmeg
- â…› tsp ground cloves
- â…› tsp ground ginger
- ¾ cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ¼ cup apple cider concentrate
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- â…“ cup whole milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Cinnamon Sugar
- 1 ½ tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Thoroughly grease a 5-6 cup bundt pan with non-stick baking spray.
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and spices.
- In another bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, applesauce, apple cider concentrate, oil, milk, eggs and vanilla.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and whisk until combined, then pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake the cake for about 28-30 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack and cool for 15 minutes, then turn the cake out of the pan.
Cinnamon Sugar
- Melt the butter, then use a pastry brush to brush the warm cake with the butter.
- Combine the sugar and cinnamon, then press the cinnamon sugar all over the cake until it sticks.
- Serve the cake warm, or at room temperature.
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