Upside-Down Ginger Apple Cake Recipe

Clean eating recipe for Ginger Apple Coffee Cake!

This moist gingerbread cake with an apple and maple topping will hit the spot this fall. Just from taste, you would never guess that it is a bit better for you than most other cakes. All the more reason for you to give this recipe a try!

For such an elegant-looking cake, it is surprisingly easy to make too! Clean eating is mostly about using and consuming healthier, unrefined foods. While I do enjoy a clean recipe here and there, I do not eat regularly eat clean and I am no expert. I really do love finding a healthier recipe that is delicious though!

Most of these ingredients should be very familiar to you, and maybe all of them already are. The three that may be unfamiliar, or at least they were to me before I starting trying clean eating recipes every now and then, are safflower oil, Sucanat, and spelt flour.

Safflower oil contains healthy fats, vitamin E and is a great mild-flavored oil to use in baking and marinades. It is probably better to get the unrefined version, but there is also a safflower oil that is refined for high heat. I can usually find it near the other cooking oils at most grocery stores, or if your store has an section for natural or organic foods, you will probably find it there too.

Spelt flour is a sweet, mild-flavored, whole grain, non-wheat flour. It offers a tender, light crumb to baked goods. Spelt is more water-soluble and easily digested than wheat flour. It also has slightly more protein and fewer calories than wheat. Note that it is not a gluten-free flour though. Spelt can usually be found in the organic section of the grocery store or natural food stores. I find it in the bulk food aisle at my Smith’s.

Sucanat is an abbreviation for sugar-cane-natural. This unrefined sugar has a stronger molasses flavor than white sugar and it still has all of the nutrients found in natural sugar cane juice. This can also be found in natural foods stores or sections of stores. I found all of my ingredients at my local Smith’s Marketplace store. Amazon also carries these things, so try to compare prices before you buy.

This is one of those perfect desserts for the fall! The tart apple slices pair nicely with the moist gingerbread cake and sweet maple syrup topping. I will definitely make this cake again!

This recipe is from Clean Eating Magazine, October 2011.

I use my Wilton 8-inch cake pan for this recipe. It is pretty light-weight, but it gets the job done just fine and the price is quite nice.

Upside-Down Ginger Apple Cake Recipe

This moist gingerbread cake with an apple and maple topping will hit the spot this fall. Just from taste, you would never guess that it is a bit better for you than most other cakes. All the more reason for you to give this recipe a try!

4.62 / 5 ( 13 Reviews )

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Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour

Serves: 8

Adjust Servings: 8

US CustomaryMetric

Ingredients

• Olive oil cooking spray
• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup plus additional for topping
• 1 medium apple Northern Spy, Granny Smith, or Cortland, cored and thinly sliced
• 2 cups spelt flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• ¼ cup safflower oil
• ½ cup Sucanat
• 1 egg
• ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 cup low-fat plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons fresh grated ginger

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C
• Mist an 8-inch round cake pan with cooking spray.
• Drizzle bottom of pan with maple syrup, swirling pan to coat bottom.
• Arrange apple slices in a single-layer circle over the syrup, allowing each slice to overlap slightly, until bottom is covered.
• Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda,cinnamon, and salt.
• Set aside.
• In a large bowl, beat oil, Sucanat, egg, applesauce, yogurt, and ginger with an electric mixer until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Add flour mixture and beat until just combined.
• Pour batter over top of apples and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
• Let cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then invert onto a serving platter.

Nutrition

Calories: 293kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 9g | Sodium: 357mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 20g