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Mouthwatering Gluten Free French Apple Cake

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If you loved French pastries before going gluten free, you are going to want to make this Gluten Free French Apple Cake recipe again and again! This easy French Cake recipe is buttery, yet crisp around the edges, and it melts in your mouth!

If you love apples as much as we do, check out ALL of my yummy Gluten Free Apple recipes!

A gluten free French apple cake on a plate. A cake pan is behind the plates.

(This post was updated with new pictures and a video from a 2015 post.)

Who misses French pastries? How about French apple cake?

I do!! How long has it been since you could enjoy such a treat?

Mr. Fearless Dining and I been to France a couple of times over the years, many years ago before we realized we were gluten intolerant. We used to eat a lot of pastries, hang out in French cafes, and we enjoyed every single bite.

If you want to try different amazing gluten-free apple cake recipes, my Gluten Free Fool Proof Apple Cake and my Gluten Free Caramel Apple Cake recipes are worth making!

Gluten Free French Apple Cake partially eaten sitting on a blue plate. A fork is holding a piece of the apple cake.

It never occurred to me that I could bake something yummy that would take me back to those days.

A photograph on Pinterest for a French Apple Cake recipe caught my eye. Following the link, I ended up at the most incredible blog, Hungry Rabbit. Check it out and pass it along to all of your friends who can eat gluten. They will thank you for it! The recipes are incredible.

I drooled. This apple cake recipe that Ken created is just that good. When Ken said I could post my gluten free version of this recipe, I was so excited to share this recipe with you.

The top view of a gluten free French apple cake on a plate. More cakes in a tin are behind the cake.

This Gluten Free French Apple Cake recipe is the only apple cake recipe you will ever want to eat again!”

This will be the gluten-free recipe you make to impress your friends, or maybe you should keep all to yourself :-). It truly is the best apple cake recipe EVER!

Which gluten free flour is best for baking?

In this recipe, I used a gluten free multi-purpose flour from Authentic Foods. Authentic Foods Multi-blend flour has a super fine grind, which allows for this cake to be so light. You could use other gluten free flours, but the texture and fineness are really important.

I also love Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten Free Flour blend and Jules GF flour for this recipe.

  • Don’t use a heavy rice-based gluten free flour blend unless it is superfine.
  • Also, I don’t recommend any flour blend with bean flours. They are way too heavy and dense for this recipe.
A fork cutting into a French Apple Cake.

What are the best apples to use for this recipe?

Although any apple will work in this cake recipe, it is best with tart apples like:

  • Pippin apples
  • Granny Smith
  • Braeburn
  • Honeycrisp

Steps to make this French apple cake:

whisked dry ingredients in a glass mixing bowl

Add all dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk to blend them together.

adding wet ingredients to a mixing bowl

Pour the wet ingredients into a mixing bowl. Whisk to blend.

a bowl with the wet ingredients poured into the dry ingredients.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir to mix.

stirring apple cake batter in a bowl

How thick should the gluten free batter be?

This is what your batter will look like as you stir in the peeled and chopped apples.

a baking pan with apple cake batter in each cup

How do you prevent the cakes from sticking to the pan?

Baking TIP: Line your extra-large muffin tin with parchment paper. Spray with coconut oil. This will help prevent sticking.

Add parchment paper circles to the bottom of each deep cake section. Add the gluten free apple cake batter. Bake at 350F degrees for 25 minutes until done.

More Delicious French Pastry Recipes to Try:

Tools You Need To Make This French Cake Recipe:

  1. Deep jumbo muffin tray. The depth of each cavity in this muffin pan is perfect for these apple cakes.
  2. Authentic Foods Multi-Blend Flour. This flour is milled super-fine and is a great flour to make these cakes taste so good.
recipe love
Gluten Free French Apple Cakes

Gluten Free French Apple Cakes

Yield: 6
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes

Easy classic gluten free French apple cakes

Ingredients

  • 3 large pink lady apples, peeled and sliced thinly
  • 4 tablespoons dark rum, I used Myers Dark Rum
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 cup Authentic Foods Multi-Blend Gluten Free Flour
  • 1 cup organic white sugar, plus one tablespoon of sugar
  • 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 9 tablespoons butter
  • 3/4 cup organic whole milk, or raw milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Spray either a 9 inch cake pan or a pan with 6 three inch cake sections with coconut oil.
  3. Cut parchment paper to line the bottom of the pan(s) and spray bottom with coconut oil.
  4. In a small sauce pan, cook butter on low heat until slightly browned. (About 5 minutes) Stir often.
  5. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
  6. In a small sauce pan, add two inches of water and apple slices. Cook apple slices on low heat until they soften. Keep an eye on them so they don't get mushy.
  7. Drain water from apples, toss with 1 tablespoon of the dark rum and lemon juice, and let cool.
  8. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together gluten free flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and sugar.
  9. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, browned butter, vanilla, and remaining three tablespoons of dark rum.
  10. Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and blend carefully.
  11. Gently fold in apples.
  12. Pour into pan(s).
  13. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of sugar onto each mini cake (or 1 tablespoon of sugar onto a whole cake.)
  14. Bake for 30-45 minutes, depending on pan size. Less time is needed if you are baking 6 three inch cakes.
  15. Remove from oven and let cakes cool on a cooling rack.
  16. Enjoy while warm.
  17. Reheat if having it later.

Notes

I used Authentic Foods multiblend in this recipe. I have also tested the recipe with Bob's 1 to 1 Gluten Free Blend and King Arthur Gluten Free Measure for Measure.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 538Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 145mgSodium: 548mgCarbohydrates: 72gFiber: 3gSugar: 49gProtein: 8g
Please note this nutrition information is calculated by a recipe plugin and is an estimate based on the ingredients used in this recipe.
© Sandi Gaertner
Cuisine: American / Category: Gluten Free Dessert Recipes

P.S. if you know of a good gluten-free croissant recipe, please let me know.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lisa

    Question about reheating these little gems – please share what your family does, thanks so much for the recipe! Oh, Google GFJules for a croissant recipe.

    Reply

  2. Lynne

    This sounds delicious. Can it be made gluten AND dairy free as I want to make it for a friend but she can’t have either.

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      Hi Lynne, I have not tested this recipe with vegan butter or coconut oil, so I am not sure if it will work. In theory it should work though. If you try it please do come back and let us know how it turned out.

      Reply

  6. Sue

    These were a hit at the birthday party. The cake turned out more custard like than cake-like, but it was so good we didn’t mind at all. We made it with half the amount of sugar and it was just right.Thanks for the delicious recipe!

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      Thank you so much for coming back to let me know how much your family liked this recipe Sue. Can I ask which gluten free flour blend you used?

      Reply

  7. Theresa

    These look absolutely perfect for my book club meeting this week. Since it’s Fall, I was looking for a recipe with apples.
    Can I make these as mini muffins? The ladies tend to prefer small bites.
    Thank You!

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      Hi Theresa, of course you can make these as mini muffins. I would definitely keep an eye on the baking time as you will need much less?

      Reply

  9. Dannii

    I adore apple desserts. This reminds me of something we had on our first night in Paris from a little bakery.

    Reply

  10. Natalie

    These mini apple cakes look so delicious and I love the golden color! So tempting and the texture seems amazing!

    Reply

  11. Claudia Lamascolo

    I love an Authentic recipe like this one and its so bakery worthy. I am going to get the bobs mill brand and try these this week I already know I am going to love them

    Reply

  12. Conceição

    Hi! I just made the Gliten Free French Apple Cake and it is absolutely delicious! I have done work in France for the past 34 years where I go twice a year and you sure capture the flavors of the French Bakeries! I do have a question. When using Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free flour should we still add the xantham gum? I used it but my cupcakes look a lot bigger than the ones in your picture. Thanks!

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      I am thrilled you liked my recipe :-). Thank you so much for your note. If your gluten free flour blend has Xanthan Gum, you don’t need to add any additional. Take care, Sandi

      Reply

  14. Beth

    Hi! I’m fairly new to baking in general, especially gluten free baking. Is there something that I can substitute for the rum? I was wanting to make this for thanksgiving breakfast, but I have a family member who’s recently stopped drinking & I don’t want to tempt them any! (Altho I know the alcohol is cooked out, there will still be the flavor.) thanks!!

    Reply

  17. Julia

    These little apple cakes are so gorgeous and they look elegant. Just perfect for a fancy dinner party! It’s always fun to recreate familiar and favourite tastes with twists and I’m glad you were able to do it for this recipe.

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      My daughter just asked me to make these for her birthday party because they are so good…hoping that means your son will love them too 🙂

      Reply

  19. Camilla Hawkins

    Well done, your cakes look amazing, baking gluten free treats is quite tricky I’ve found and have so far only managed pancakes!

    Reply

  20. Amanda

    The texture of these French Apple Cakes looks absolutely perfect, Sandi! What a wonderful dessert for fall, especially after a trip to the orchard. I’m going to have to check out these gluten free flours!

    Reply

  21. Kathie Craun

    Hi. I am making the carameliorate apple cake. Can I substitute lactose free milk for the almond milk? Thank you for your time.

    Reply

  22. Nancy

    These look so delicious! I can’t use brown rice flour. I know this is a long shot but would you know the measurements if I just used white rice flour, tapioca, potato starch, cornstarch and xanthan gum?

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      Hi Nancy, If you can’t use brown rice flour, I would recommend sorghum flour. It is less starchy than white rice flour. Plus it is a bit healthier. Thank you so much for your email 🙂

      Reply

  23. Sue@frugalgifts2give

    These look fantastic! I’m just finding out that I’m gluten sensitive and I’m looking for a good gluten-free recipe to try. This one is certainly on the top of my list! Thank you! I love your whole site!!

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      Thank you so much Sue, please let me know if there is anything I can help you with. I remember when we got our diagnosis…it was overwhelming. Feel free to email me at sandi@fearlessdining.com if you have questions.

      Reply

  24. Michelle | A Dish of Daily Life

    I’ll have to check out Authentics Foods flour. I’ve been buying their pancake mix for years! This apple cake sounds so scrumptious!

    Reply

  25. Shirley @ gfe & All Gluten-Free Desserts

    Those look so exceptional, Sandi! I love Pink Lady apples, too. 🙂 Thanks for sharing them on Gluten-Free Wednesdays with us all!

    Shirley

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      Thanks Kira. You can click on Hungry Rabbit’s link in the article to find a version that is not gluten free.

      Reply

  28. Mardesia @ Keeping Your Cents

    I don’t follow a Gluten-Free diet, but these look amazing. A nice cup of coffee added and it would be the perfect way to end the evening.

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      Hi Faith, I think the alcohol is just for flavoring. I suspect it will be fine if you use tart apples so the apple flavor really stands out. Please let me know how they turn out!

      Reply

  31. Lori

    Sandie I love your recipes. I have a question though do you know if it’s possible to make rice flour by grinding up the rice such as you do with coconut or almond I’m just concerned as it is so much harder, but after searching the net I find many suggest at least part rice flour, thanks in advance for your imput.

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      Hi Lori, I have to assume you can grind the rice flour yourself. The key is to make sure you grind it to a super fine grain. Let me know how it works.

      Reply

  32. Barbara | Creative Culinary

    Love this and I know my GF friends will too. I know Ken and he does make beautiful treats!

    Reply

    • Sandi Gaertner

      Thank you Barbara. Ken is a baking wizard 🙂 I saw he is participating in a NY school fundraiser coming up.

      Reply

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