This Apple Sponge Eve's Pudding is a delicious Traditional British Apple Sponge Dessert. Often made with Bramley Apples. Dessert Apples will work just as well. With no need for additional sugar.
It uses the same basic recipe and method for this Victoria Sponge cake. But with the addition of a layer of stewed Apples, which is then topped with the buttery sponge.
Although Eve's Pudding is traditionally made with Bramley Apples, Dessert Apples will work just as well, as you're not introducing any additional sugar. If you choose a variety such as Bramley, which is a very sour variety, you may want to add sugar to taste. Although you may find enough sweetness in the sponge and any custard or cream that you serve with it.
Cinnamon goes really well with Apples. So if you have this spice or perhaps some mixed spice such as Speculaas in your cupboard. Add about half a teaspoon, or to taste, to the apples and give them a good stir to ensure all the flavours are mixed together. You can make your own mixed spice or speculaas recipe.
If you love puddings, you may also like to try this Date Sultana and Coffee pudding with a rich Toffee Sauce, using the same pudding dish which is great for an oven to table serving. Or this Cinnamon and Apple Cake packed with apples and topped with a Cinnamon Water Icing drizzle. Or this Sticky Ginger Cake with a ginger syrup glaze and Glacé Ginger topping. Real comfort eating any time of year.
What Ingredients Do I Need?
Just 6 staple ingredients are required to make this Apple Sponge pudding.
How to Make this Apple Sponge Eve's Pudding
How to Stew Apples
- Peel and core the apples and chop into junks. Place in a medium sized pan. Add a couple of tablespoons of water and simmer over a gentle heat until softened, but still chunky. If you want a smooth apple puree, that you can give to small children as a dessert, simply stew for a little longer then mash with a fork. Pour the stewed apples into the prepared dish. (Fig 1)
- Cover the stewed apples evenly with the cake batter. (Fig 2) Bake for about 40 mins. Or until baked. (Fig 3) Test the centre of the sponge in various places, with a cake skewer until it comes out clean.
- Serve on its own while still warm. (Fig 4) Or better still with freshly made custard.
Baker's Tips
- This pudding keeps well for a few days. I have a set of the Joseph and Joseph ovenproof dishes which also have a suitable storing lid.
Do I Have to Peel Apples Before Stewing?
- You don't need to peel the apples before stewing if you don't want to. I chose to peel mine because not everyone likes to find apple skins in their pudding. But you do need to core out the centre and remove any pips.
Can I Freeze Stewed Apples?
- Stewed apples will freeze really well in suitable containers for several months. Thaw out thoroughly before making this Apple Sponge pudding.
Alternative Fruits
- You can use this recipe with alternate fruits such as Plums or Rhubarb. Eventually, it'll become a pudding staple that you can rustle up in such a short time.
Keen to Bake More?
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Apple Sponge Eve's Pudding
Equipment
- Hand Mixer
- Oven proof dish
- Cake Skewer
INGREDIENTS
- 3 large dessert Apples approx. 500g of weight
- 115 g butter softened
- 115 g caster sugar
- 2 medium eggs
- ¼ teaspoons Vanilla extract
- 115 g self raising flour
Instructions
- Butter the sides and base of a medium-sized ovenproof dish measuring approx. 20cm/8” x 14cm/5.5” x 6cm/2.5” deep.
- Preheat the oven to 170 deg fan assisted.
- Peel and core the apples. Slice them into chunks. Gently stew with 2 tablespoons of water for a few moments until softened.
- Pour the stewed apples into the prepared dish.
- In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as you go along.
- Gradually add the eggs, one at a time, adding a little flour in between to help prevent curdling. Mix until well combined.
- Add the vanilla extract and remaining flour. Mix until well combined. Do not over beat as you will over stretch the gluten in the flour.
- Pour the cake batter evenly over the top of the stewed apples.
- Bake in the centre of the oven for 40 mins. Or until baked. Testing the centre of the sponge in various places, with a skewer until it comes out clean.
Notes
Baker's Tips
- This pudding keeps well for a few days. I have a set of the Joseph and Joseph ovenproof dishes which also have a suitable storing lid.
Do I Have to Peel Apples Before Stewing?
- You don't need to peel the apples before stewing if you don't want to. I chose to peel mine because not everyone likes to find apple skins in their pudding. But you do need to core out the centre and remove any pips.
Can I Freeze Stewed Apples?
- Stewed apples will freeze really well in suitable containers for several months. Thaw out thoroughly before making this Apple Sponge pudding.
Alternative Fruits
- You can use this recipe with alternate fruits such as Plums or Rhubarb. Eventually, it'll become a pudding staple that you can rustle up in such a short time.
Nutrition
Note: This recipe was first published in Feb 2019 and has since been updated with additional information.
Vanessa
Beautiful recipe. The sponge was delicious. To save time I used tinned apples and added passion fruit and lemon zest to the apple. Loved your recipe will be make again.
Clare
This was delicious, so light and fluffy. I have a gluten intolerance so I used GF flour instead and it turned out great!
Thank you for the recipe!
Clare
Violet
Hi,could you tell me what gas setting.thanks violet
Lynn
Sorry Violet, with not baking with gas I cannot be sure of the settings. But I would say a moderate to a moderately hot oven.
Carol
Hi - most cookery books have a conversion chart in them. Or if you don't have a recipe book, just ask Google!
Erin
hi there,
can you make ahead of time and reheat? Looks great!
Lynn
Yes, you can bake ahead and reheat later. When you do reheat, I suggest you cover the top with foil or baking parchment to help prevent the sponge from over baking and drying out. You may not need to bake it at the full baking time stated on the recipe, just until it heats through. You can also freeze for later too. I've done that a few times.
Erin
thank you so much lynn!
Sharon monahan
Can you make cake batter in advance to bake later ?
Lynn
Hi Sharon. Thanks for the question. I'm afraid the answer is no, you cannot bake cake batter to bake for later. The reason for this is down to the raising agent in the flour. As soon as it mixes with liquid it starts to work. That's why you need to have your tins and dishes ready to bake and your oven preheated. If you leave the cake batter for too long, even for a few minutes, the raising agent will have stopped working. If you want to save time with your baking, get all the ingredients prepped and weighed ahead of time. You could leave the diced apple in water to stop them from oxidizing. Or you could stew the apples first and keep them in the fridge for a could of days if you can't bake the pudding straight away.
Another thing to remember, you may lose all the air bubbles in the cake batter too, if you leave it too long.
sharon monahan
thank you 🙂 I have just taken it out of the oven looks good
Brian J.
Great recipe, made it a couple of times now and successful every time!! Just going to experiment with different fruits,thanks
Lynn
Hi Brian. I'd love to hear what other fruits you use.
BrianJ
Ive done it with cherries out of a jar and today am doing it with tinned peaches. We can get the cherries from Aldi over here(I am based In Spain)
Susie
I only have a small efficient oven on kitchen worktop .....elements top and bottom, So i use little tins instead of Pyrex ..I’m nervous of using Pyrex in such a small oven .. So i guess this will be fine
Lynn
Use whatever you think best and what will fit in your oven. You may need to adjust the baking times.
Cindy
Delicious recipe! Just the right sweetness. Do you turn it out of the baking dish to serve or leave it in? I turned it out but the apples were kind if boring looking. Perhaps if I baked it a bit longer they would caramelize? I look forward to trying this with plums!
Lynn
Cindy. Leave the pudding in the dish and serve it from there just as I do in the main picture. I wouldn't bake it any longer or the sponge will become too dry and over baked. It will keep in the fridge in the same dish for a few days if you have any leftovers. It will work nicely with any fruit and you can add a handful of raisins when you stew the apples.
Janet
Hi Lynn, when making the cake batter, do you need to whisk the eggs first before adding them?
Lynn
No, you do not need to whisk the eggs before adding them to the batter. Just crack them open and add them to the butter-sugar mixture, adding a little flour between each one to help prevent the cake batter from curdling. Then add the remaining flour and mix until well combined.
Jacqueline
Delicious. Just made this using the apples collected from my neighbour’s tree. ( gifted not stolen!!! So easy to make, had a nervous moment when I read best to cool apples, mine were still warm - but no worries. Sponge is perfect. Baked in oven, didn’t use fan, so for my oven baking time was just under 50 mins. Thank you.
Lynn
How lovely to have a neighbour with an apple tree.
Jo
This pudding is great with a bit of cocoa powder added to make chocolate sponge!
Lynn
What a great idea Jo. Thanks for sharing the tip.
Paul O Meara
I followed your recipe exactly but unfortunately the centre of the sponge did not bake It was a dark brown on top and baked perfectly at the sides. I’ve tried other sponge recipes before in this pudding but always with the same result. Uncooked in the middle. Help
Lynn
Hi Paul. I'm very sorry to hear that your sponge isn't baked in the middle. There could be a couple of reasons for this. 1) Try not to have the sponge mixture too thick over the top of the Apples. Using different pudding dishes can often result in the sponge being a deeper layer on top of the apples.
If this is the case, you will need to bake the pudding longer than the recipe suggests, which is why I always say 'until baked'.
2) Oven temperature, I always recommend investing in an oven thermometer to make sure your oven is up to temperature before you bake. Many ovens, including mine, will often take an extra 10 mins to get up to the required temperature, even though my oven thermostat says differently.
The next time you bake leave your pudding longer in the oven. Make sure your oven comes up to temperature first, if unsure, switch it on well before you start baking to make sure.
After the suggested baking time, use a skewer to test the centre of your sponge, if it comes out clean it's done, if not return it back to the oven until it's baked. To help prevent any burning on the sponge, cover your dish with a sheet of baking parchment.
I hope it all goes well the next time.
Paul O Meara
Thanks very much Lynn for your helpful comments. I’ll let you know how I get on the next time
Lynn
You're welcome Paul.
Dympna
It was lovely. Followed the instructions to the letter. Maybe I would use just a little less sugar in the sponge....
Lynn
I'm pleased that you like the recipe.
Ian Stewart
Do you have to let the apples cool after stewingIan
Lynn
Thanks for asking the question, Ian. Yes, I would let the apples cool a little before adding the cake batter on top. I'm guessing that by the time you have made the cake batter, the stewed apples should be cool enough by then.
Margaret
My grandchildren love this sponge. A big hit with everyone. Second tine making it. thank you
Lynn
I'm so pleased to hear this. Thank you.
Marcia
Made this today, cooked for 35 minutes at 170, and it was perfect. I cooked it in an oval pyrex dish. I also added sugar and cinnamon to the apples, delicious.
Lynn Hill
Wonderful. I've made it again for tea. I added a handful of raisins with the apples and used dark brown sugar. It had a delicious toffee flavour.
Nithya
Amazing recipe !! I’ve managed to learn to make a decent sponge so this was a lovely upgrade to that learning . Perfect for the Apple we had leftover in the fruit basket!! Thank you for it!!
Lynn Hill
Hi Nithya. Welcome to the world of baking. I'm pleased that you like this recipe. It's so adaptable too. Use any fruit. Rhubarb would be great at this time of year. Good luck with all your baking.
Meg Clifford
What temperature? I don't know anyone with a fan assisted oven in the states. What is the Fahrenheit temp please?
Lynn Hill
Hi Meg
Thanks for asking. A bit of googling suggests that 170 deg centigrade is around 338 Fahrenheit.
Carolyn Perry
First time for me to make this pudding. Absolutely beautiful. I put brown sugar in the bramley apples. Will be making this again for sure. This coronavirus is putting me back into the kitchen again. Thank you.
Lydia
Can you tell me in ounces
Lynn Hill
Hi Lydia. Sorry about this. I appreciate it can be difficult wanting to work in ounces when a recipe is in grams. This website may help you converting grams into oz.
Lynn Hill
Lydia. I have updated the recipe with an auto conversion from grams to ounces. I hope this helps.
Dawn Powell
I’m making this pud now . So far so good . Rising very nicely ?
Gaye Naughton
Made the pie and it came out perfect; lovely and light and not too sweet. Was cooked at 170° for 38mins. Used granulated sugar. Served hot with freshly whipped cream. Thank you.
Lynn Hill
I'm so pleased that you like the recipe. Serving it with whipped cream sounds delicious.
Dawn
Hi .. I don’t have caster sugar in .. can I use granulated sugar and would it be the same amount as caster sugar ?
Lynn Hill
Granulated sugar will be fine. Yes. Use the same amount.
Laura McPheely
Hi
What oven temperature would you recommend?
Thanks!
Lynn Hill
Hi Laura
Thanks for checking. The recipe card mentions 170 deg fan assisted.
Laura McPheely
Thank you, I had somehow missed that bit!
Lynn Hill
No worries. Let me know how you get on with the recipe.