Description
This Slow Cooker Caramel Apple Pudding Cake is a deliciously moist, comforting dessert packed with fresh apples and featuring a homemade hot caramel sauce that forms as it cooks. Easy to prepare with minimal effort, it’s perfect for cozy gatherings or anytime you crave a sweet treat without fussing over the stove or oven.
Ingredients
Scale
Cake Batter
- 1 cup whole wheat flour (or all purpose flour, about 125g)
- 3/4 cup brown sugar (about 150g)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 cup buttermilk (or regular milk)
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large baking apples, peeled and diced
Caramel Sauce
- 1 cup brown sugar (about 200g)
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup hot water
Instructions
- Prepare the Slow Cooker: Lightly grease a 3–4 quart slow cooker to prevent sticking. This ensures easy removal of the finished cake and simplifies cleanup.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, combine the flour, ¾ cup brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Stir these dry ingredients together until evenly mixed, which provides a balanced base flavor and proper leavening for the cake.
- Add Wet Ingredients and Apples: Stir in buttermilk, canola oil, and vanilla until the mixture is smooth but thick. Fold in the peeled and diced apples to distribute them evenly in the batter. Spread this batter evenly across the bottom of the greased slow cooker.
- Prepare the Caramel Topping: In a separate bowl, whisk together 1 cup brown sugar and 1 tablespoon corn starch until well combined. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over the cake batter in the slow cooker, which will create the caramel layer during cooking.
- Add Butter and Hot Water: Melt the butter in the hot water and carefully pour this liquid over the brown sugar mixture in the slow cooker. This helps dissolve the sugar and forms the luscious caramel sauce that simmers beneath the cake.
- Cook the Cake: Cover the slow cooker and cook on high for 2.5 to 3 hours. The cake will set and become moist on top, while the caramel sauce forms underneath. The sauce will be thin initially but will thicken if allowed to rest before serving.
- Rest and Serve: For a thicker caramel sauce, let the cake sit in the slow cooker for 10–20 minutes after cooking with the lid off. Serve warm, optionally with ice cream or whipped cream for an indulgent dessert experience.
Notes
- This dessert is wonderfully simple and requires minimal hands-on time—just prep and slow cook for a warm, comforting pudding cake.
- The cake gets its signature caramel sauce by cooking in the slow cooker without needing separate sauce preparation.
- You can substitute all-purpose flour for whole wheat if preferred for a lighter texture.
- Allowing the cake to rest after cooking thickens the caramel sauce and enhances flavor.
- Use baking apples like Granny Smith or Honeycrisp for the best flavor and texture balance.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 405 kcal
- Sugar: 63 g
- Sodium: 174 mg
- Fat: 9 g
- Saturated Fat: 3 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 79 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 12 mg
