Thousands of Home Bakers Are Making This Soft Apple Sponge Cake Instead of Buying Store-Bought Desserts
From the Elisabeth Says Kitchen
See the Free Recipe ↓It Looks Like a Cake From a Bakery Window
Golden on top. Packed with tender apple slices. Soft and spongey inside.
Cut a slice and the inside is light and moist, with apple in every bite. It’s the kind of old-fashioned cake that works with afternoon coffee or after dinner.
And it’s made with everyday pantry staples.
No packet, no mix and no long list of ingredients you can’t pronounce. Just apples, eggs, flour, honey, butter and yogurt.
What People Are Saying
“About a week in, the cake from the shop tasted like syrup. I have not gone back to it since.”
“I had quietly given it up. Now the honey vanilla yogurt parfait is my after-dinner and I do not think twice.”
The Recipe, Step by Step
Ingredients
- Apples
- Eggs
- Flour
- Honey
- Butter
- Yogurt
Method
- Peel and slice the apples.
- Whisk the eggs and honey until smooth.
- Mix in the melted butter and yogurt.
- Fold in the flour, then the apples.
- Pour the batter into a lined cake tin.
- Bake until golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool before slicing.
Exact amounts, oven temperature and baking time are in the book.
Why This Cake Turns Out Soft
Each ingredient has a job:
- ApplesTender slices that stay moist and give the cake its fruity flavor.
- EggsGive the sponge its lift and its light, springy crumb.
- Yogurt and butterKeep the crumb soft and add richness.
- FlourGives the cake structure.
- HoneySweetens the cake without refined sugar.
It’s a one-bowl cake with ingredients you probably already have.
Why More People Are Going Back to Simple Cakes
Packaged desserts come with long ingredient lists. A homemade cake comes with a short one you can read out loud.
That’s the appeal. You know what’s in it because you put it there, and you end up with a cake that tastes like it came from a real kitchen.
In Elisabeth’s Own Words
The recipe comes from Guilt-Free Treats, the dessert cookbook by Elisabeth Dunkins. Here is how she writes about cakes in the book:
“Fruit does the work here. No refined sugar needed when you’ve got ripe mango, fresh strawberries, or a good lemon. These are the cakes I make when I want something that looks impressive but takes half an hour.”
“This is an old-fashioned spice cake, the kind that fills the house with the smell of autumn.”
“Slice it thick and have it with a cup of tea.”Elisabeth Dunkins, Guilt-Free Treats (from her cake chapter and recipe notes)
What’s Inside Guilt-Free Treats
Over 100 recipes, organized into 10 chapters, so you can flip to whatever you’re in the mood for. A few of the chapters, with some of the recipes inside:
Chapter 1: No-Bake Treats
11 recipesBanana Peanut Butter Snickers, Avocado Chocolate Mousse, Strawberry Greek Yogurt Ice Cream
Chapter 2: Cookies & Bars
12 recipesBanana Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies, Date Oat Energy Bars, Healthy Apple Crumble Bars
Chapter 3: Muffins for Every Occasion
14 recipesApple Cinnamon Muffins, Blueberry Banana Muffins, Zucchini Walnut Muffins
Chapter 4: Cakes & Loaves
23 recipesStrawberry Yogurt Cake, Lemon Yogurt Pound Cake, Orange Olive Oil Cake
Chapter 5: Chocolate & Date Bakes
7 recipesChocolate Banana Brownies, Date Sweetened Chocolate Cake, Date Pecan Brownies
Chapter 6: Mornings in Elisabeth's Kitchen
8 recipesBanana Pancakes, Homemade Granola, Overnight Apple Cinnamon
Chapter 7: Holiday & Seasonal Treats
10 recipesPumpkin Spice Loaf, Gingerbread Date Bites, Christmas Morning Cinnamon Rolls
How Every Recipe Is Laid Out
- The basics up topHow many it makes, one portion, and how long it keeps.
- Ingredients firstListed in cups and tablespoons, nothing hard to find.
- Step-by-step instructionsNumbered and written out in full, with no shortcuts.
- Elisabeth’s noteA tip at the end of the recipe.
- Substitution notesOn most recipes, so you can swap what you don’t have.
Here is what a recipe page looks like:
Get the Bread Book FREE When You Order the Guilt-Free Treats Hardcover
Here’s how it works. The Guilt-Free Treats hardcover, with 100+ desserts, is delivered to your door. The bread book, 100 Guilt-Free Bread Recipes, comes with it as a digital edition and is emailed to you automatically.
200+ recipes. One payment. No subscription. No membership.
Get My Hardcover + FREE Bread Book →The free bread book is digital and comes with the hardcover only. It’s emailed to you automatically.
Only want the digital edition? Get it here Only want the bread book? Get the digital edition for $39The Free Bread Book
100 Guilt-Free Bread Recipes covers everyday loaves, rolls and buns, flatbreads, wraps, bagels, sweet fruit loaves and more. None of them ask you to wait around for dough to rise.
Everyday Loaves & Toasting Breads
14 recipesBuns, Rolls & Sandwich Breads
12 recipesFlatbreads, Naan & Pitas
12 recipesWraps & Tortillas
8 recipesBagels & Breakfast Breads
10 recipesSweet Breads & Fruit Loaves
16 recipesHigh-Protein Favorites
8 recipesFlourless & Gluten-Free-Friendly Breads
10 recipesFocaccia, Pizza Breads & Savory Specials
10 recipes“Will It Actually Taste Good?”
That’s the whole point. Soft and light inside, golden on top, with apple in every bite, the way a good homemade cake should taste.
“I'll be honest, I almost didn't buy this. I've tried 'healthy dessert' books before and they always taste like cardboard, or they need seventeen ingredients I've never heard of. This is different. The banana peanut butter mousse tasted like an actual dessert, not a diet substitute.”
“When I saw a recipe for Avocado Chocolate Mousse, I thought, 'Ridiculous. Avocado belongs in salad, not dessert.' I braced myself for a grassy mess, but you genuinely cannot taste the avocado—it's just incredibly rich, silky chocolate.”
“I’m Not a Good Baker”
The book is written for exactly that reader. For most recipes you need a bowl, a fork and an oven. Every step is written out in full, with no shortcuts and no assumed knowledge, and each recipe ends with a note from Elisabeth.
“I've made eight recipes so far and haven't had a single flop. That never happens with these dessert books.”
“I Won’t Be Able to Find the Ingredients”
You will. The recipes are built around everyday ingredients from a regular grocery store. For this cake that’s apples, eggs, flour, honey, butter and yogurt.
“Applesauce, banana, oats, yogurt. Nothing rare, nothing wasted, and every bake has worked.”
“Is This Legit?”
Guilt-Free Treats and 100 Guilt-Free Bread Recipes are Elisabeth Dunkins’s own cookbooks, sold directly by Elisabeth Says.
900,000+ followers on Instagram and 50,000+ orders across all channels
Secure checkout · Real support team · 30-day money-back guarantee
Questions? Email elisabeth@elisabethsays.com
“Elisabeth writes every recipe like she's standing right next to you in the kitchen. Nothing complicated, nothing wasted.”
“Is the Bread Book Really Free?”
Yes. It comes with every hardcover order and is emailed to you automatically. The free bread book is digital and comes with the hardcover only.
Get My Hardcover + FREE Bread Book →Quick Answers
How do I get the digital book?
It’s emailed to you automatically with your hardcover order, and you can read it on any device.
Can I print it?
Yes. The digital books are yours to print at home.
How long does the hardcover take to arrive?
Printed books are made to order and shipped free. You'll get a tracking email as soon as your book ships.
Is there a subscription?
No. It’s one payment. No subscription and no membership.
Are there gluten-free or dairy-free versions?
Some recipes include simple ingredient swaps, and Elisabeth also has separate gluten-free and dairy-free dessert books. If you have a medical need, please check each recipe and the specific ingredients you buy.
Do I need special ingredients?
No. Most recipes use everyday ingredients you can find at a regular grocery store.
What if I don’t like it?
You’re covered by our 30-day money-back guarantee.
Is the bread book really free?
Yes. It comes with every hardcover order and is emailed to you automatically.
30-day money-back guarantee
