This ginger apple cake is full of warming spices and delicious apples. It is gluten and refined sugar free which helps to reduce its overall carb count. This tasty teat-time treat can be whipped up all in one bowl but it does take a little extra preparation as it uses my mouth watering gingerbread stewed apples.

ginger apple cake on baking paper and a cooling rack — Mouthwatering ginger apple cake

I have been pretty much stewing apples nonstop this autumn as we are very fortunate to have a beautiful bramley apple tree at the bottom of our garden. (See my post on STEWED APPLES (NO SUGAR)- 3 WAYS for the perfect, slightly crunchy method I prefer). And the stewed fruit has definitely been put to good use, even if it’s just as a tasty addition to our morning breakfasts like in my OVERNIGHT OATS WITH STEWED APPLE.

You may have also cottoned on to my slight obsession with the flavour combination of apple and ginger. The warming heat you get from the ginger just goes so brilliantly with the tartness of a bramley apple. As I discovered when I tried it in my LOW CARB APPLE GINGERBREAD CRUMBLE. So I thought it was definitely time to try them in a cake, hence the creation of this super tasty ginger apple cake!

complete ginger apple cake cut in squares

Why this ginger apple cake is so good

Firstly, it’s Free From – not only is it gluten free but it’s also refined sugar free. This helps to reduce the overall carb count per slice which we have found supports us with our daughter’s type 1 diabetes management and blood glucose levels. But it is also great for my husband’s sensitive tum when it comes to wheat and gluten.

Secondly, this ginger apple cake really is delicious – This cake has a delicately spiced heat to it which is then complimented by the slight sourness of the cooking apples. It is super moist but yet still light making it quite hard to stop at just one slice!

And last but by no means least, it’s another great way to use up leftover apples – Whilst I recommend using bramley apples for this recipe if you don’t have any and are facing a bowl of sad looking apples then this is a great recipe to use them in. I am all for reducing food waste!

Using Sugar Alternatives for Diabetics

In this recipe, I use a white sweetener, xylitol. This is a nutritive 1:1 substitute for sugar and I find it works really well in baking and cooking.

This is my sweetener of choice due to its low glycaemic index, it doesn’t have a funny taste profile and we found that it doesn’t cause a rise in blood glucose levels.

You could also use an erythritol-based sweetener if you prefer. This is also a 1:1 sugar replacement and doesn’t cause a rise in blood glucose levels, but I personally find it can alter the taste profile of your food.

You can find a list of my recommended products that I use on my shop page!

If you prefer to use other sweeteners like sucralose or stevia, remember to convert your quantity. Most brands have this information on their websites. And if you would like to read more on sugar substitutes and diabetes then make sure to read this post.

Sugar Substitutes and Diabetes Management

The world of sugar substitutes and type 1 diabetes can be confusing. This guide explores substitutes in the UK and diabetes management

Read Now

However please also feel free to use good old-fashioned caster sugar if that is your preference. Just remember to carb count for it!

Don’t be afraid to experiment with different sweeteners and quantities in my sweet treat recipes. It may take a few attempts to find your preference as we all have different palates.

What you will need to make this ginger apple cake

Gluten-free wholemeal flour
- Adds an extra nutty flavour using a wholemeal flour
- Plus it contains more nutrients as its less refined
- I use a Doves farm fine plain wholemeal flour
Almond flour/ground almonds
- Adds an extra nutty flavour and is a great no carb count option for diabetes management
- Most UK supermarkets sell ground almonds but they can be a bit more expensive. Amazon usually has a good selection of products that are larger packet sizes and so therefore a bit cheaper.
Ginger
- A combination of fresh and ground ginger
- Adds a wonderful warmth to the cake
Mixed spice
- Adds a little extra spicy depth
Baking powder
- I use Gluten-free
- Essential for adding air and lightness to your bakes
Bicarbonate of soda
- an alkali that is used to raise full-flavoured cakes
Sweeteners
- I prefer Xylitol or erythritol based sugar alternatives
- For the brown sugar alternative, I use Sukrin gold or NKD living Erythritol Gold
- See the section above on using sweetener or sugar replacement in this recipe
Stewed apples
- See my recipe for STEWED APPLES (NO SUGAR)- 3 WAYS
- Use the gingerbread version
Eggs
- A key component to any bake and should be free-range
Sunflower/vegetable oil
- using oil instead of butter helps to make this cake super moist

hand holding square of ginger apple cake

How to make this ginger apple cake

Despite the rather long list of ingredients for this cake, it is actually a pretty easy cake to make and you can do it without an electric mixer if you prefer.

The first part of this recipe is to prepare your stewed apple. See my recipe for STEWED APPLES (NO SUGAR)- 3 WAYS and make the gingerbread version.

Once you have your stewed apple made it’s time for the cake! Preheat the oven to 170C/150C Fan. Grease and line a 20×20 square cake tin with baking parchment. Tip – Make parchment handles underneath to help you lift the cake out.

Mix the flours, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, gingers, mixed spice and sugars in a large bowl. Stir well until all ingredients are combined.

Then in a measuring jug, whisk together the eggs and oil. Once all combined add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture and combine well.

Pour half of the cake mixture into the prepared cake tin ensuring that the bottom is covered. Now add 300g of your stewed apple making sure that it is evenly distributed. Finally, Pour over the rest of the cake mixture and add the remaining 30g of stewed apple on top. Again making sure it is evenly distributed around the tin.

Sprinkle over a little brown sugar alternative mixed with a little ginger and mixed spice.

Bake the cake in the oven for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes

Leave the cake to completely cool before turning it out.

How to store your ginger apple cake

This cake will keep happily in a cake tin or wrapped in tin foil at room temperature for 3 to 4 days.

If you are crazy about cake then why not try these other recipes:

bitten square of ginger apple cake on a plate

Diabetes Note

This cake is a wonderful lower carb count option. Because of the use of almond flour and sugar alternatives, the overall carb count is dramatically reduced. We have found making some switches to reduce the carb count can help to avoid some of those blood glucose spikes.

If you would like to read more about this then check out my post on THE BENEFITS OF A WHOLE FOOD DIET AND DIABETES.

Carb Counting

The overall carb count for one serving (one slice out of 9) of this ginger apple cake, based on the ingredients we would count is:

150g of gluten free wholemeal flour (Doves Farm) = 97.5g of carbs
330g of stewed gingerbread apples = 32g of carbs

Now add all the carbs together – 97.5+32 = 129.5g of carbs for the whole cake

For one square of cake, divide this by the serving size of 9 slices – 129.5/9 = 14g of carb per slice

Please note this carb count amount per portion is based on the standard ingredients listed above and may differ depending on what you use and how much you choose to eat.

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