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Hungarian apple sour cream cake ready to served on a plate, showing layers of tender pastry, cinnamon-spiced apples, and a light sour cream topping dusted with icing sugar.

Hungarian Apple Sour Cream Cake

This Hungarian Apple Sour Cream Cake is a cherished family recipe featuring a tender buttery pastry base, a layer of cinnamon-spiced apples, and a light, creamy sour cream topping. The apples are gently cooked to concentrate their flavour before being layered into the pastry and topped with a fluffy mixture of eggs and sour cream. Baked until golden and finished with a dusting of icing sugar, this traditional Hungarian cake balances sweet fruit, warm spice, and creamy richness in every bite. Perfect for afternoon tea, family gatherings, or as a comforting dessert, it is a timeless recipe passed down through generations.
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Prep Time 40 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 35 minutes
Servings: 10 people
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Baking
Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients
  

Base
  • 250 Unsalted Butter cubed and softened not melted
  • 250 g Sugar
  • 1 Egg
  • 40 g Sour Cream
  • 200 g Plain Flour
Filling
  • 70 g Sultanas
  • 10 g Ground Cinnamon
  • 1 Lemon rind
  • 1 kg Apple
  • 200 g Castor sugar
  • 50 g Water
Topping
  • 3 Eggs 70g
  • 60 g Sugar
  • 150 g Sour cream
Finishing
  • 50 g Icing sugar
  • 40 g Olive oil

Equipment

  • 1 Stand Mixer
  • 1 Stand Mixer flat beater
  • 1 Stand Mixer Whisk
  • 1 Bowl scraper
  • 1 Rolling Pin
  • 1 Lemon Zester
  • 1 Oven
  • 1 22cm Spring form Tin
  • 1 Medium Sauce pan and lid
  • 1 Oil Brush
  • 1 Scissors
  • 1 knife
  • 1 chopping board
  • 1 fork for docking pastry
  • 1 Medium Saucepan
  • 1 Sieve
  • 1 Medium Bowl
  • 1 bowls
  • 1 Medium Spoon
  • 1 Oven
  • 1 stove
  • 1 refrigerator
  • 1 scraper
  • 1 Flour Sieve

Method
 

Set the oven 160C
  1. Oil a 22 cm tin and line the base and add a collar
Base
  1. Using a stand mixer with a flat beater mix the butter and sugar until it resembles crumbs
  2. Add in the egg mix in and then add in the flour
  3. Mix on a slow speed until the mix resembles large crumbs and moves away from the sides of the bowl.
  4. keep mixing and when it has nearly come together add the sour cream and mix through
  5. Don’t over mix
  6. Roll out on a lightly floured bench to a piece 4mm thick.
  7. Cut a base and add to the lined tin
  8. Roll a thin ring and place it around the rim of the tin.
  9. Dock the base with a fork.
  10. Place in the oven and bake until a light golden brown around 15 mins
  11. Set aside to cool.
Filling
  1. Thinly slice the apples.
  2. Add a little water to a sauce pan to start the cooking process
  3. Add in the sugar and mix
  4. Add the apples
  5. Bring to a low boil and reduce to simmer and ensure the apples are cooked but not too soft around 12 mins
  6. Drain and cool
  7. Add a thin scatter of sultanas and a dusting of cinnamon to the partially cooked base
  8. Mix the remainder of the sultanas and cinnamon and lemon rind through the apple slices
Topping
  1. Separate the egg yolks and egg white
  2. Using a whisk and stand mixer whisk the egg yolks and sugar until they are thick and have changed in colour
  3. Transfer to a bowl and clean the mixer
  4. Add the egg white to the clean bowl with a whisk and whisk the egg whites until they are silky and medium stiff (not dry)
  5. Add the egg whites to the egg yolk mix in three stages and fold through.
  6. Before the last addition of egg whites fold through the sour cream and then the final egg whites.
  7. To the base add a layer of apples and then a layer of sour cream filling over the apples.
  8. Repeat until the tin is full ensuring the sour cream is the final layer
  9. Bake for around 35-40mins until a golden brown and the top is firm.
Finishing
  1. Cool completely and dust liberally with icing sugar