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TL;DR (Quick-Answer Box)
- What it is: A dessert of moist cake layers sandwiching a creamy apple filling, resulting in a unique, custardy texture.
- Why you’ll love it: The combination of sweet, tender apples, boozy rum, and rich, butter-laden cake is the perfect cozy treat for autumn weekends or holidays.
- How to make it: Toss sliced apples with sugar and cream. Prepare the batter, then layer it with the apple-slice mixture in a springform pan, starting and ending with batter. Bake until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
Jump To
This drunken apple cake doesn’t quite resemble any type of apple cake of our childhood. It comprises layers of tender, thinly sliced apples surrounded by a not-too-sweet batter and is almost custard- or pudding-like in places. Tasting is believing.
What the Heck is a Kuchen Borracho, anyway?
Let me introduce you to one of the more delicious cultural collisions out there: the Kuchen Borracho. It translates to “drunken cake,” which, let’s be honest, already makes it infinitely more interesting than your average bake sale bundt. This boozy beauty hails from southern Chile, where 19th-century German immigrants brought their serious cake game and set up shop. The result? A glorious mash-up: tender layers of buttery cake cozied up against a lush apple filling spiked with enough rum to make your aunt blush. Think classic German pastry meets Latin American love of all things sobremesa—and alcohol. It’s not just dessert. It’s dessert with a passport and a penchant for the bottle.
Featured Review
This recipe was spot on in every way. All aspects of instructions were completely accurate, from timing to visuals. My only suggestion is to serve it the following day! While we all enjoyed it after a festive, family dinner, it was even better with age. How’s that for a pleasant surprise? The texture improved and the flavor became more intense. Another reason this one’s a winner!
Michelle Stein
More Autumnal Apple Cake Recipes
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If you make this recipe, or any dish on LC, consider leaving a review, a star rating, and your best photo in the comments below. I love hearing from you.–David
Featured Review
Delicious! 🙂 I stocked up on my organic Vermont apples and finally created this cake. I used gluten-free flour, which lessened the baking time by 28 minutes. (I find that GF flour creates a softer, moister texture.) I used dark rum, as another recipe I found on Leite’s required the same, and it gave the cake a smoky alcohol taste that was yummy. After the cake cooled, I covered it with plastic wrap, which made it even moister. This cake will only last a few days!
Randi K
Drunken Apple Cake ~ Kuchen Borracho
Equipment
- 9-inch (23-cm) or 9 1/2-inch (24-cm) spring-form pan, at least 2 3/4 inches (7 cm) high
Ingredients
For the filling
- 1 1/2 pounds tart apples*, (about 5 medium)
- Generous 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
For the cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 11 tablespoons (5 1/2 oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pan
- Generous 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 5 tablespoons rum (any rum will do quite nicely) or Calvados
- 5 tablespoons cold water
Instructions
Make the apple filling
- Peel and core the apples. Cut each apple into 8 wedges and then cut each wedge lengthwise into slender slices.
- In a bowl, combine the sugar and cream. Gently stir in the apples.
Make the batter
- Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Butter a 9-inch or 9 1/2-inch springform pan at least 2 3/4 inches high and dust it with flour, tapping out any excess.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large bowl with an electric mixer or by hand, beat the butter and sugar until smooth and creamy.
- Add the lightly beaten eggs to the butter mixture in 4 batches, scraping down the sides of the bowl and beating well after each addition.
- Gently fold in the flour in 4 batches, adding the rum and water with the third batch. Stop mixing as soon as the last batch of flour is incorporated.
- Scrape 1/3 of the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface. Spoon half of the apple and cream mixture evenly over the batter, leaving a 1/2-inch plain border around the edge and smoothing the slices so they're neat and level.
- Scrape another 1/3 of the batter on top of the apples and cream and smooth the surface, spreading the batter all the way to the edge of the pan. Spoon the remaining apples and cream evenly on top of the batter, and then top with the last of the batter, smoothing it all the way to the edge of the pan, which will be quite full.
- Bake the cake for 1 1/2 hours, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 to 20 minutes, then release the sides of the pan and transfer the cake to a wire rack to cool.
- Slice and serve the cake warm or at room temperature. Your drunken apple cake will keep at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Notes
*What You Need To Know About Selecting An Apple For This Drunken Apple Cake
To define a “type” of tart apple that’s perfect for this recipe is sort of like trying to define a particular “type” of artistic genius like Michelangelo or da Vinci. Can’t really be done in so many words. That said, some relatively common types that fall somewhere on the tartish side of appledom include Golden Delicious, McIntosh, Northern Spy, and Tydeman. Better yet, ask your local apple guy at the greenmarket—chances are you’ll end up with the perfect local variety, quite possibly something of the vintage heirloom variety. Just be mindful not to confuse “tart” with “sour.” Save the mouth-puckering Granny Smiths and Greenings for another recipe.
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Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
Did you know only 68% of the recipes we test make it onto the site? This recipe survived our rigorous blind testing process by multiple home cooks. It earned the Leite’s Culinaria stamp of approval—and the testers’ reviews below prove it.
Easy to make, even easier to love, this kuchen has everything going for it—looks, taste, ease of preparation. The apples bake up into a really flavorful filling and the surrounding cake is moist inside and crispy good on the top. The rum gives it a very subtle boost. Licking the bowl is a plus for this one!
This could easily serve 10 to 12 people if you hide the cake after you serve it, otherwise guests will attack whatever is left and eat it before you can say Johnny Appleseed.
This drunken apple cake is a winner! it is such a simple recipe yet produces a dessert that looks like it comes right from the bakery and tastes wonderful. It’s not too sweet and has a nice texture from the cream. This cake is perfect for autumn and will most definitely have a place on my dessert table at Thanksgiving.
I only had a 9 1/2-inch springform pan and I was glad I used it because I needed the extra room for the apples.
This cake looks awesome and I am definitely going to make it this weekend. My house here in CT backs up to an apple orchard so there are plenty of fresh apples to use. Do you think this cake would freeze well? I would definitely make a couple and freeze for the holidays! Thanks for all your wonderful recipes and stories – I eagerly look forward to the weekly email.
Marilyn, we’re thrilled to hear you’re going to make this cake—and we envy you that apple orchard! I’m a little worried about freezing the cake, for two reasons. First, this cake has a sort of unique custardy, cakey texture, and I’m not certain how that would fare if you froze it. Second, I fear the apples, if frozen, would exude some of their juices when the cake thaws, marring the cake’s lovely and unique texture. Perhaps instead you could hold a drunken apple cake-making party with your friends? Everyone comes and picks apples and makes cakes in your kitchen, then goes home with their baked good after having spent a lovely afternoon in the company of you and everyone. Sort of an early holiday gift?
Sounds like a perfect idea, Renee, and we might just have to sample a few different rums while we’re cutting up all those apples to see which would be the perfect one for this cake!!! Drunken Cake, Drunken Cooks!
Can’t wait to hear the stories that will no doubt come of that afternoon, Marilyn!
My Granddaughter wanted to take something to her boyfriend’s home for Thanksgiving that she helped make. We made the Drunken Apple for her. I used a layer of the apples on top and sprinkled some sugar on it before baking, it just sparkled, also did the Cream Anglaise for the sauce. It looked so good! Well, last night the Dad called to rave about how they just loved it. I didn’t make one for us, but I’ll make as one of our desserts for Christmas so we can enjoy it, too. Thanks for this recipe–we both made some happy friends with this dessert.
I baked this terrific cake but was wondering if I was supposed to include all of the cream with the fruit layer? It wasn’t entirely explicit in the recipe and I wasn’t quite sure how it was going to all hang together with so much liquid! In any case, it was really delicious. Thank you.
So glad you enjoyed, pastrystudio! Yes, you did the exact right thing by incorporating all of the cream into the layers. I tweaked the wording of the recipe, per your suggestion, so the instructions are more explicit. That said, we’ve heard nothing except effusive comments about the results of this recipe. I encourage you to also try the Nutmeg Cake, also from the same book.