The Caker Jordan Rondel's apple maple crumble cake

Photo / Jenna Baydee

Ingredients

Crumble topping

½ cup	oats
½ cup	white flour
½ cup	brown sugar
¼ cup	flaked almonds
¼ tsp	baking powder
½ tsp	cinnamon
¼ tsp	salt
¼ cup	melted butter

Cake

150g	salted butter, room temperature
150g	caster sugar
3	free range eggs, room temperature
1 tsp	vanilla extract
125g	plain flour
75g	almond flour
2 tsp	baking powder
2 tsp	ground cinnamon
140g	plain, unsweetened yoghurt at room temperature
1½ cups	chopped green apple (1cm cubes)

Maple icing

150g	butter, softened
250g	icing sugar
100g	cream cheese
2 tsp	maple extract (substitute ¼ cup pure maple syrup)

Assembly and decorations

Cake layers

Maple icing

Spray roses

Freeze-dried apple bits

Crumble topping

Directions

1. For the crumble topping: Preheat oven to 170c fan bake.
2. Combine all ingredients apart from the butter in a large bowl, once combined stir in the melted butter until well incorporated.
3. Crumble mixture onto a lined baking tray and bake for 15 minutes or until golden and crisp. Allow to cool fully at room temperature.

1. For the cake: Reduce the oven to 162c fan bake. Line 2x 9" cake pans with baking paper circles.
2. To make the cake, in the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter, sugar until pale, light and fluffy. Leave the mixer going for at least 3 minutes at high speed!
3. Crack eggs into a clear jug and check for shell before beating the eggs one by one into the butter mixture along with the vanilla.
4. Gradually fold in the almond flour, flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt and mix until just combined. Finally fold through the yoghurt.
5. Scrape the batter into your cake pans and spread out to the sides. Evenly dot in your chopped apple chunks.
6. Bake for approximately 20-30 minutes. The cake is ready when golden in colour, springy to the touch, and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
7. Allow the cake to cool for around 10 minutes in the pans before turning out onto a cooling rack.

1. For the maple icing: In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter by itself until smooth.
2. Add the powdered sugar and beat on high until seriously light and fluffy. Leave the mixer going for at least 3 minutes at high speed!
3. Gradually add the cream cheese. Do not overdo this step.
4. Finally fold in your maple extract, add more at your own taste.

1. To assemble and decorate: Once the cakes are completely cool, transfer one layer to your serving plate and ice this layer with a pallet knife. Cover with half of the crumble and press down into the icing.
2. Carefully place the other layer on top of your iced layer.
3. Neatly ice the top of the cake and sprinkle over the other half of your crumble topping. Decorate with spray roses and freeze-dried apple bits, placing them wherever your hand guides you.
4. Serve at room temperature. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days.