🇵🇱 Polish Cuisine

Szarlotka

Polish Apple Cake

Prep Time 1.5 hours
Servings 12
Difficulty Medium
Calories 326 kcal

A lattice-topped apple cake with a buttery shortcrust pastry encasing layers of cinnamon-spiced grated apples — Poland's answer to apple pie.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. 1 Mix flour, sugar, baking powder. Cut in cold butter until crumbly. Add egg yolks, knead briefly into a dough. Chill 30 min.
  2. 2 Peel and grate apples coarsely. Mix with sugar and cinnamon.
  3. 3 Press 2/3 of the dough into the bottom and sides of a lined baking pan. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs.
  4. 4 Spread the apple filling evenly over the crust.
  5. 5 Grate the remaining dough over the top to create a rustic lattice.
  6. 6 Bake at 180C (350F) for 45-50 min until golden. Cool and dust generously with powdered sugar.

Did You Know?

Polish grandmothers insist on using Antonowka apples for szarlotka — a tart heritage variety that breaks down perfectly during baking.