This flavourful Dorset apple cake is simple to make, delicious, and beautifully moist from chunks of apple. Add a dollop of cream for a real treat! Naturally Vegetarian and can be keto friendly if it fits within your macros.
This traditional Dorset apple cake is an easy bake, filled with chunks of moist Bramley apple. So easy to make by hand, with no need for a mixer. If you cannot get traditional English Bramley apples substitute a tart eating apple in their place. We made as a loaf cake, but it would be equally good made in a deep round tin, or as a tray bake.
The cliché that you need a holiday to recover from a holiday is a truth for me. I find flying both exhausting and exasperating. It’s the endless hanging around that gets to us: waiting for the bus from the car park, going through security, waiting for the plane, waiting for the luggage. There’s a wonderful freedom to staying in the UK and just flinging everything in a car and setting off to take a holiday; bucket and spade fashion, at the seaside in a self-catering cottage.  Taking the car also means no limits on luggage so all the comforts of home (mainly tech) can be packed in the back.
There are so many other advantages to renting a cottage too. Yes, it’s not quite the lap of luxury offered by a hot-and-cold-running-flunkies hotel, but I find it a lot more relaxing not to have an audience when I’m on holiday, and being able to do things like meander down to breakfast in a dressing gown and not be tied to a hotel dining room timetable.
Having your own kitchen when you are away means you can buy your pick of the fresh local food. A few years ago we bought freshly caught fish nearly every day from a fishmonger on the beach, who was supplied by the village day boats, then we cooked it in our cottage. One night we popped to the local pub, and having decided to book for dinner the next night for Ed’s birthday, we ordered a lobster.  It turned out the local lobster man was at the bar, and our supper was duly ordered then and there from him. Not the experience, or connection you get to your food when staying in a hotel, and we enjoyed our lobster so much more having met the man who caught it.
Using cottages.com, it’s easy to find your perfect self catering holiday cottage, and see what you’re getting for your money, and having browsed the site we are dreaming of selling up and moving to the countryside. All their cottages are graded and inspected to Visit Britain and Visit Scotland standards so you can be assured of a comfortable stay.
Images of properties on cottages.com
For our holidays in the UK we almost always head west, to Devon, Cornwall or Dorset enjoy a combination of exploring the local countryside, discovering quality local food producers, and overindulging in cream teas (paying, of course, close attention to the cream or jam first shibboleth).
The West Country is also the home to many orchards with a consequent diversity in the ways to enjoy an apple from ripe perfection straight off the tree to juice, cider, or as we’ve made here, in a traditional Dorset Apple Cake. It’s a straightforward recipe: mix the ingredients (with no need for a mixer) and bake and can be whipped up with little notice, so it’s a real winner in the taste vs time stakes. What bliss to find ourselves somewhere like one of these cottages, with a slice of freshly baked cake and lashings of cream.
Store the Dorset apple cake in an airtight tin, the cake should keep for 3 – 4 days. To freeze wrap; either the whole cake, or slices, in foil. Leave wrapped at room temperature for a few hours to defrost.
Traditional Dorset Apple Cake Variations
- To make as a Dorset apple traybake use a 6″ x 6″ tin and bake for 25 – 30 minutes
- Make a gluten free Dorset Apple Cake by substituting your favourite gluten free flour
- Spice it up with a pinch of ground mixed spice, cinnamon or all spice
- The some recipes for Dorset Apple Cake contain sultanas – substitute for any fried fruit
- Remove some of the flour and replace with the same volume of ground almonds
- Make a boozy Dorset Apple cake with cider by using cider in place of the milk
- Swap the butter for oil and leave the egg out to make a Dorset apple cake without eggs
- 1 1/2` cups self-raising flour (225g)
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (115g) diced and chilled, plus extra for greasing
- 2/3 cup light brown sugar (115g)
- 1 large egg beaten
- 6-8 tbsp milk
- 2 cups Bramley or Granny Smith apple (225g) peeled, cored and diced
- 2/3 cup sultana (100g)
- 2 tbsp demerara sugar optional
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Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4. Grease and line a deep 15cm (1lb) loaf tin with baking parchment.
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Mix the flour and cinnamon together in a large bowl. Add the butter and rub into the flour using your fingers, until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Stir in the light brown sugar. Beat in the egg followed by 6 - 8 tbsp of milk – you want to achieve a smooth, thick batter.
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Add the apples and sultanas and mix to combine. Scrape the batter into your prepared tin and gently level out. Sprinkle over the demerara sugar and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
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Allow to cool in the tin for 15 minutes and then carefully turn out onto a wire rack to cool further. Best served still warm with a little custard.
- We substituted chopped apricots for the sultanas, and topped with a few flaked almonds.
- To make this gluten free substitute the flour for gluten free flour
- To make this keto friendly, calculate your macros to see how much you can consume
- This recipe is 10 Weight watchers Smart Points
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Post featuring the Dorset Apple Cake commissioned by cottages.com. All opinions our own.
Ceri @Natural Kitchen Adventures
Not actually sure I’ve tried a Dorset Apple Cake before – yeah I know! Though I love apple and cake (and Dorest!), so I’m sure I’d love this, and a trip to a cute cottage too! Lovely.
Helen
We really enjoyed it, lovely on its own, and it would be perfect with some cream.
Emily
A lovely looking cake and some great classics there too. I would love to visit Dorset x
Helen
I love Dorset, it is west, but not so west that it is a massive drive.
Sarah, Maison Cupcake
That does look lovely! I often bake on self catering holidays, it’s great we can look up recipes online whilst we’re away now!
Helen
This is a really good recipe as you don’t need to whisk butter and sugar. Super easy to mix.
Choclette
Oh, how I dream of a week away from it all. Heading to the UK hills or coast makes for a less stress free holiday and I’m all for it. If we get to have a nice apple cake into the bargain, so much the better.
Helen
I love heading to the coast.
Claire @foodiequine
Love your recipe – anything with apple and cinnamon is a winner in my book. I’m a big fan of self catering. We stayed in a lovely property this weekend – brought a banana loaf with us and stopped at a farm shop enroute for supplies. Wonderfuly relaxing.
Helen
That sounds absolutely perfect and divine.
Kate | The Veg Space
I’m with you on the self-catering vs. flying abroad debate – give me a cosy seaside cottage over a swanky hotel any day! Your apple cake looks so delicious – perfect with a nice cup of tea.
Helen
We love our holidays in the UK, especially when we head West.
Valentina
This looks so yummy and I love the photos. Wishing I had a slice with my coffee right now. :-)
Helen
We rather did enjoy it. I do love a cake that doubles up for tea, coffee or for a pudding.
Kirsten @ Treat Yourself Sweeter
Oh! You hit the nail on the head… a holiday is lovely, but coming home is too. I LOVE the look of these cottages and if we are going away, this is the type of thing I choose. It is like a home away from home (although, those are prettier than mine!) I agree… it is so good to have all the comforts of home when you go away, then you can do what you are meant to do… relax! (hehe and cook an absolutely mouth watering cake like this… Oh, I love apple cake!) Buying, sampling and cooking the local produce is one of the best things about traveling!
Helen
I agree. One year we stayed about 100m from where the fishermen prepared their crab – and had one almost every day. Blissful.
Helen at Casa Costello
Now that looks a stunning cottage – I thought I was the only person that likes to bake on holiday. I’m even attempting it in a caravan in the summer. Love the addition of flaked almonds to your cake – Divine with a good strong brew!
Helen
On holiday is the only time I do like to bake!
April @ Girl Gone Gourmet
We love vacation rentals and choose that over hotels for most of our trips. My boyfriend is English and we make trips to the UK pretty often – will definitely check out cottages.com for our next trip! And that cake… looks like the perfect treat :)
Helen
You have to have the classic English holiday cottage experience.
Tina Dawson
Isn’t it amazing how a simple location change can bring about such intense relaxation! Oh, how I wish I could be in this amazing cottage! I love self-catering cottages, most times, dining out is the most stressful part of a vacation for me thanks to my dietary restrictions. I love places where I can still continue to cook for myself.
Helen
I had not thought about self catering being ideal for those with dietary restrictions! I can see it is ideal.
Sarah Bailey
Oh my goodness this sounds absolutely amazing, I’m not sure I have ever been to Dorset but those cottages are so pretty and with food like that I’m definitely up for going! x
Helen
I love a self catering cottage and amazing local food.
Tamara
Helen, I think cottages.com may be like VRBO.com which we use yearly to find vacation rentals! My husband has spoken at Oxford 3 times, and raves of the Cotswolds. Maybe we can find a home through cottages.com? I always prefer cooking “in” most nights and utilizing the fresh local ingredients while on vacation. Your Dorset Apple Cake looks fabulous!
Helen
Maybe you need to come with him next time and make a trip of it. The Cotswolds are so beautiful, picture perfect English villages just as you would imagine.
Rebecca Swanner | Let's Eat Cake
I’m from the other side of the pond, but I think this is something I have to try! The cottages look fantastic too. Next time I’m in England, I’ll have to check them out. One question though, what is sultana? Not sure I’ve seen that in the supermarket here.
Helen
Good question. It’s a white raisin.
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry
I was just thinking actually that this summer I am going to focus on a UK vacation with the kids and would love to check out cottages.com for accomodation.
Helen
We love our UK holidays. Go West and find a beautiful cottage.
Rhian Westbury
This apple cake looks really nice and I am not normally a fan of fruit cakes x
Helen
I am not so keen on the really heavy dried fruit filled cakes either, but this one is perfectly light and works well as a pudding.
Claudia | Gourmet Project
I love anything UK, and these loaf looks and sounds delicious!
Helen
I love all our regional recipes. So much history.
Trish
I love staying in cottages while on vacation! So much better than a sterile-esque hotel, totally void of any character. I’ve never been to the UK, but have always wanted to go. And staying in a cottage in the UK sounds like a dream!
Helen
I agree. You need to come to the UK for a few weeks and rent a cottage.
Harriet from Toby & Roo
That looks delish – we go to Center Parcs all the time and I’m defo going to have to make this next time! H x
Helen
It is the perfect holiday bake as the batter does not need whisking.
Elodie
This looks and sounds incredible! I need to give it a try at the weekend.
Helen
It was delish, and did not last very long.
MsPrettyLThings
Dorset is absolutely lovely and I’ve rented a cottage before – it is so much nicer staying in your own little place and sometimes making cakes!
Helen
I do like a hotel for a few days, but I want to at my own food by the end of it.
Leanne
I’ve heard of carrot cake but not apple! I’ve not gone on a cottage stay before but I’d Def consider it with a bunch of friends for a relaxing break away.
Helen
This one is a must bake.
Melanie Edjourian
I would love to go on holiday in a holiday cottage with my little ones.
Helen
We love holiday cottages, a perfect little home away from home.
Tara | C&CO.
I never really go on UK holidays, love this though!
Helen
Some of my best holidays have been in the UK, in a self catering cottage. Just blissful.
Fashion and Style Police
The cottage looks very beautiful. Thanks for giving me a UK holiday idea x
Helen
I love my holidays in the UK.
The Nice Nest
Dorset Apple Cake is a family favourite. We stay in cottages when we holiday in the UK, especially out of camping season. We have never been disappointed and I like the freedom to do what we want, when we want.
Helen
We loved the cake, such an easy bake.
Ali
I love staying self catering and pottering about the kitchen making things on holiday – especially cake!
Helen
Baking when on holiday is so relaxing!
Cassandra Mayers
I always eat dorset apple cake on holiday in weymouth, its lovely! Thanks for the recipe :D
Helen
I did adapt the recipe to swap in the sultanas, but so easy to make.
Hannah
I always love doing self catering when I go away as it gives me so much time to try cooking and baking new things!
Helen
We love it too. Mainly as we can have breakfast in our dressing gowns.
Agata
Wonderful looking cake! I’ve never baked an apple cake like this before. Loving huge chunks of apples in it.
Helen
I think that the huge chunks make it suitable to be served as pudding as well as cake!
Anosa
As much as I agree with you on the ease of holidaying in the UK than flying around for some reason I prefer jetting around the entire experience is always fun for me even the waiting, the delays and the queues lol but i would love to holiday in a cottage one day
Helen
I do enjoy flying, but used to travel so much for work that it really became very tedious. I love Britain, it is so beautiful and there is so much to see
Jacqueline Meldrum
Oh I do love a good apple cake. We are staying in a cottages.com cottage at the end of May in the Scottish borders, I’m really looking forward to it and I will be cooking, but I can’t imagine I’ll do any baking. We aren’t away long enough.
Helen
This is a lovely recipe, and so quick to make.
john
I’ve tried loads of Dorste Apple cake recipies and think this might be the one for me.Any advice for cooking in 3 oven aga? J
Helen
Hi John,
I know nothing about Agas at all. Which ever one you would usually bake a cake in I guess.
Fiona Garret
This Dorset apple cake looks utterly delicious with the chunks of fruit set inside. Can just imagine it served with clotted cream.
Bryan B
We love having self catering holidays in cottages about the UK. Find it a lot easier with the children than in a hotel. Your cakes looks fantastic.
Susan Robinson
I love the flavour of Bramleys. Perfect for cakes and pies. Such an easy cake mix, particularly with it not needing a mixer.
Norma K
The idea of finding your own little haven in a cottage in the country sounds blissful. With local foods, and your own space.
Hannah
Dorset apple cake looks amazing! Can I have it with custard please?