Gluten Free and Vegan Jewish Apple Cake

Do you love Jewish apple cake? 
This gluten free Jewish apple cake is moist, easy to make, and delicious! It is very allergy friendly as it is egg free, dairy free, gluten free, soy free, and nut free as well and it does taste good!!



I don't bake much anymore, and I gave my Kitchen Aid mixer to my daughter- in- law, Wendy.  Now on the rare occasion that I do bake, I need a recipe that is simple able to be mixed by hand.

It doesn't get easier than this apple cake.  I mix the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another. Then I pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix with a fork or spoon. I pour the batter into a greased pan. 

I decided to use the bundt pan which looks really pretty. This recipe fills the bundt pan to about half and makes a small cake that serves about 8-10. I haven't tried to double the batter, but I have made the batter twice and mixed them when I wanted a bigger cake.

We will eat this for the Jewish New Year. In addition to eating apple cake, we will to ceremoniously be dipping apples in honey. 

Apples play a major role in celebrating the Jewish New Year along with pomegranates, dates, and figs. Traditionally, we make sweet food in hopes of a sweet new year. In previous years I have posted  Rosh Hashanah recipes for 

• apple and honey citrus salad dressing 
• beets and pomegranate salad
• and mini honey cakes.

Cake Recipe: 

Ingredients: 

1 1/4 cups of gluten free flour ( I use Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Gluten Free Flour )
3/4 cup of sugar or coconut crystals(see my notes) or any dry sweetener equivalent of your choice
1 and 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder ( I always buy aluminum free) 
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/3 cup of oil
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 cup (or more if batter is too thick) almond milk  unsweetened)
2 cups of diced apple 
1/2 cup of coconut crystals sugar (or sugar of your choice)
1 and 1/2  tablespoon of cinnamon


Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Mix 1/2 cup of coconut crystal sugar and the cinnamon. Toss the apples in half of the cinnamon and sugar mixture and set aside.

Mix gluten free flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium size mixing bowl. In another small bowl mix the oil, applesauce, vanilla, and almond milk. 
Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and mix with a spoon until batter is smooth. If it is too thick, add a little more almond milk.  Put 3 tablespoons of apple mixture on the bottom of the greased bundt pan. Pour half the batter on top and then another layer of apple. Pour the remaining batter on top and sprinkle with remaining cinnamon and sugar.  Bake for 50 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

I'm Getting Ready for Fall

It wouldn't be Rosh Hashanah without some other traditional foods like my Mock Chopped Liver  and my  Gluten Free Matzo Balls .


My husband's family is from the Middle East. The Sephardic and Mizrachi Jews actually have a Rosh Hashanah Seder. Their custom is to say a prayer over each of the symbolic foods. Then the food is passed around the table for each person to taste. 

Symbolic Foods for Rosh Hashanah 

 A new seasonal fruit- We recite a blessing of appreciation giving thanks for something new for the season-we usually use pomegranate seeds or fresh figs since they both come out around this time of the year!

2. Pomegranate seeds- symbollic that we should be fruitful and multiply- my mother-in-law always warns us to be careful not to consume too many pomegranate seeds on Rosh Hashanah, as you may have as many children as the seeds you eat! Others say the pomegranate has 613 seeds- the same number as the good deeds ( Mitzvot)  Jews are required to abide by.

3. Leek patties - Chopped up leeks made into patties- so that your enemies/or your bad habits should be chopped up and kept far away from you. This is a Sephardic Jewish custom.

4. Dates- Sephardic custom for a sweet new year- European custom is apples with honey

5.  A fish with the head and the tail - symbolic that we should always be at the head not the tail in all our endeavors. ( not at my table- I use a head of broccoli)

6. Black Eyed Peas- symbolic that our good deeds and fortune should increase like the number of peas- This is a custom that originated in Mizrachi ( Middle Eastern Jews) , Sephardic ( Jews from Spain, and is practiced with Jews in the Caribbean Islands as well.

My Notes: 
1. I used Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Gluten Free Flour - 22 oz - 2 pk from Amazon but it is also available in many supermarkets. I find I get the best results.

2. Coconut sugar crystals are lower in glycemic value than regular sugar and contains more nutrients. It is available at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and I have seen it in most supermarkets in the health food or gluten free isles.

On the holiday, I'll put the honey in the center bowl and apple slices  on the perimeter of the plate for dipping apple slices into the honey for a sweet New Year.

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Also shared at Garden Tip Blog Party: Apple Recipes