Apple Sauce Cake with Caramel Glaze

applesaucecake

In a quandry of what to make for dessert one night  I was inspired by a recipe on food52 by Merrill Stubbs. While recipes for this homey cake abound, many are filled with nuts, dried fruit and a myriad of different spices, I think this recipe takes the proverbial cake.

Just to be clear, it is nothing like my other two favorites Aspen Apple Cake or Upside Down Apple Cake. This cake is quite fast and easy to make.

If you are cleaning out your pantry this spring and come accross some homemade apple sauce or if you happen to have a jar of a really good quality, unsweetened apple sauce, this cake is simply delicious. Moist from all the apple sauce it doesn't need that much added fat.

You can play around with the spices; I've used freshly grated ginger; Merrill had 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper in hers (which frankly I didn't taste so omitted it the second time round). Smoked cinnamon would be interesting to try too.

Please sift your flour. If you don't you will simply  be using too much. I made a few changes to her recipe, including adding 3/4 less powdered sugar in the caramel-like glaze. The glaze is optional but dresses up the cake nicely if you are having company.

Kimberly's dulce de leche would also be fabulous as a drizzle when serving. One little anecdote, I love the sound this cake makes when you take it out of the oven. If you make it, take a listen.

 

Apple Sauce Cake with Caramel Glaze

2 cups of sifted flour
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp. allspice
1 tsp. freshly grated ginger
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
2 cups apple sauce
2 tsp. Vanilla Bean Paste
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Sift together the dry ingredients (after you have sifted the flour). Place all wet ingredients (applesauce, vanillas, oil and eggs) into a large bowl and mix well.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet 1/2 a cup at a time and stir well to incorporate before adding more flour. Continue until all the flour is gone. Pour into a prepared (greased and floured) bundt pan.

The cake Merrill features on food52 is far prettier than mine. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick comes out clean.

Caramel-like Glaze

4 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar
1/4 tsp. salt (or sprinkle some Maldon's salt flakes or fleur du sel on top of the glaze for a nice crunch)

Once your cake has cooked and cooled, you can make the glaze. Heat the butter until it is melted in a small sauce pan. Add the brown sugar and stir until the sugar melts. Cook for about 3 minutes while stirring occasionally.

Turn off the heat and whisk in the heavy cream and salt. Allow to cool for a few minutes then whisk in the confectioners sugar. Pour on to your bundt cake after you've turned it out on to a platter and it has cooled slightly.

Serve alone or with caramel ice cream -YUM!

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