Michael’s Marvellous Recipe – Torta di mele

November 11, 2026 | The Victoria | 2 minute read

Torta di mele with cinnamon cream

A deliciously light vegan Italian apple cake, finished with softly whipped cinnamon cream.

Ingredients

For the cake

• 210g unbleached plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• ¼ tsp Norfolk sea salt
• Juice and zest of 1 large lemon
• 208ml soya milk
• 60ml neutral vegetable oil
• 128g cane sugar
• 1½ tsp vanilla extract
• 4 drops of apple essence
• 1 large or 2 small Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
• Icing sugar, for dusting (optional)

For the cinnamon cream

• 500ml carton of vegan cream
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 dessertspoon icing sugar

Method

Make the cake

1. Preheat the oven to 176°C. Lightly grease an 8-inch round cake tin with vegan butter or baking spray.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the lemon juice and soya milk. Leave to stand for a minute, then stir in the vegetable oil, cane sugar and vanilla extract. Mix well before pouring the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Add the lemon zest and gently fold everything together until just combined. A few small lumps are fine, so take care not to overmix.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin. Arrange the thin apple slices on top, gently pressing them into the batter in a pattern of your choice.
5. Bake for 30–35 minutes, or until the cake is risen and golden. To check that it’s ready, insert a skewer into the centre; it should come out clean.
6. Leave the cake to cool in the tin before carefully turning it out and slicing.

Make the cinnamon cream

7. Pour the vegan cream into a mixing bowl and add the cinnamon and icing sugar. Whip until soft and fluffy.

To serve

Serve the cake slightly warm with a generous quenelle of cinnamon cream and a light dusting of icing sugar, if desired.