To serve this wholesome Applesauce Cake solely for dessert is to restrict its potential. Moist, not too candy, and made with healthful components like applesauce, honey, complete wheat flour, and nuts, it’s equally applicable for afternoon snacking or an after-dinner delight.
If we are able to socially settle for that Apple Espresso Cake is breakfast, then this straightforward applesauce cake can simply be handed off as a mid-afternoon snack.
Belief me, after only one chew, you gained’t wish to reserve this tender and moist old school applesauce cake for simply dessert.
The truth is, I wager it gained’t even final till then!
5 Star Assessment
“I made this cake and it was scrumptious, moist. and never too candy. Simply what I like and it sliced fantastically!”
— Mary —
Why Use Applesauce in Cake
Swapping applesauce for canola or vegetable oil in truffles, breads, and muffins is a wholesome baking hack I’ve utilized in numerous recipes (similar to these top-rated Wholesome Oatmeal Cookies), and right now’s healthful applesauce cake may simply be my new favourite.
The applesauce on this cake does a number of great issues:
- The applesauce provides supreme moisture and tenderness. Not solely is the feel of this cake elegant, however it additionally slices like a dream.
- It acts as a pure sweetener, which permits the recipe to chop again on different added sugars.
- With a full 1 1/2 cups of applesauce, the applesauce additionally contributes drastically to the cake’s taste (like in these Applesauce Muffins).
To summarize, this applesauce cake from scratch combines the homey, feel-good style of applesauce AND its potential to make baked items higher so that you can create the BEST applesauce cake ever.
The right way to Make The Finest Applesauce Cake
Along with the extra important components like applesauce and cinnamon, this recipe accommodates a number of particular additions that elevate it to the best possible applesauce cake you’ll ever style.
Bourbon-soaked golden raisins, chopped nuts, cloves, nutmeg, and a straightforward cream cheese frosting make it a standout.
To make applesauce cake from scratch, you’ll want to mix the moist and dry components individually, add the eggs one after the other, and watch out to not overmix.
The Components
- Applesauce. Along with being nutritious, applesauce creates a splendidly moist cake and sweetens it naturally. Plus, its taste pairs fantastically with the bourbon, spices, and mix-ins.
- Golden Raisins. Delicious little jewels of sweetness and texture. After they’re soaked within the bourbon, they’ll change into ultra-plump.
- Bourbon. Bourbon and apple are a match made in heaven! The bourbon provides an virtually nutty and vanilla-like taste to the cake. (Should you love bourbon, you’ll additionally take pleasure in these Bourbon Balls).
- Flour. In contrast to my Contemporary Apple Cake which makes use of 100% white complete wheat flour, I used each all-purpose flour and complete wheat flour for this recipe. The mixture creates an exquisite texture, and the entire wheat flour packs additional protein, fiber, and whole-grain goodness.
- Spices. Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves give this cake distinctive heat and spice and are a pure pairing with the applesauce. A pinch of floor ginger could be a beautiful addition too.
- Butter. Simply sufficient to present the cake some essential fats for added tenderness and a moist crumb.
- Brown Sugar + Honey. Brown sugar and honey present the cake with sweetness and moisture.
- Vanilla. Accentuates the cake’s heat and comfortable flavors.
- Pecans or Walnuts. For toastiness and crunch. (I additionally love including nuts to this Apple Bread too!)
- Frosting. The cream cheese frosting for this cake makes use of the identical cozy flavors of bourbon, cinnamon, and vanilla. It’s clean, creamy, and the proper completion!
The Instructions
- Soak the raisins and bourbon.
- Whisk the dry components collectively in a single bowl. Beat the butter, sugar, honey, and vanilla collectively in one other bowl.
- Beat within the eggs one after the other.
- Add the applesauce, scale back the electrical mixer (or stand mixer) to a low velocity, and steadily add the flour.
TIP!
Take care to not overmix! For the very best applesauce cake with the proper texture, cease your mixer as quickly because the flour disappears.
- Fold within the soaked raisins and chopped walnuts or pecans.
- Pour the batter right into a parchment-lined cake pan, and bake applesauce cake for 32 to 38 minutes at 350 levels F.
- Let the cake cool within the pan, then place it on a cooling rack to complete.
- Beat the frosting components collectively. Frost the cake. DIG IN!
Storage Suggestions
- To Retailer. Refrigerate cake for as much as 5 days. Let it sit at room temperature for quarter-hour or so previous to serving.
- To Freeze. You’ll be able to freeze this applesauce spice cake in an hermetic, freezer-safe storage container for as much as 3 months. Let thaw in a single day within the fridge, then let sit at room temperature for quarter-hour or so earlier than serving. I favor to freeze the cake unfrosted, however you may freeze it frosted, as properly.
Storage Suggestions
Freezing particular person cake slices as an alternative of the entire cake makes them fast and simple to thaw each time a craving strikes.
Beneficial Instruments to Make this Recipe
- Cake Pan. Good for this applesauce cake.
- Stand Mixer. A stand mixer is an excellent instrument to make use of when making ready a cake like this one. A hand mixer is an superior reasonably priced choice too!
- Measuring Spoons. These double-sided measuring spoons make it simpler to measure all of the cake components.
The Finest Cake Pan
This high-quality cake pan is straightforward to wash and promotes even baking. You’ll love utilizing this for a lot of of your favourite cake recipes!
This moist, old school applesauce cake needs to be your all-day-every-day decide me up.
Give it an opportunity, gained’t you?
Steadily Requested Questions
Sure! On this applesauce cake recipe, the applesauce taste is unquestionably current as a result of greater quantity used. Nonetheless, in different recipes the place much less applesauce is used (like these Cornbread Muffins), the flavour is just about imperceptible and easily provides moisture, tenderness, and refined sweetness.
Should you’re on the lookout for a gluten-free applesauce cake, I’ve not tried making this recipe that approach. Nonetheless, I believe you might swap the flour for a 1-to-1 gluten-free baking flour different. Should you resolve to present it a strive, I’d love to listen to about your outcomes.
Whereas applesauce can usually be used as a substitute for eggs, this recipe does profit from the addition of eggs which contribute to the cake’s general moisture, texture, and crumb construction. Should you’d prefer to experiment, you might strive swapping the eggs for a flax egg. Simply know I’ve not tried this personally and can’t vouch for the outcomes.
In comparison with old school applesauce cake recipes that comprise oil, this complete wheat applesauce cake is a more healthy different because it has much less fats, lowered sugar, and complete grains. Omitting the cream cheese frosting is an choice in the event you’re trying to loosen up the recipe additional.
For the Applesauce Cake:
- 3/4 cup golden raisins
- 2 tablespoons bourbon (or apple juice or orange juice)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup complete wheat flour or white complete wheat flour or 1 cup, plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon floor cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon floor nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon floor cloves
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup packed gentle brown sugar
- 1/2 cup honey
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 giant eggs
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce
- 3/4 cup pecans or walnuts toasted and chopped (elective)
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Preheat oven to 350 levels F with rack in center. Grease an 8- or 9-inch sq. cake pan or 8-inch spherical cake pan with butter or nonstick spray and line the underside with parchment paper.
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In a small bowl, place the raisins and bourbon. Cowl and warmth within the microwave for 30 seconds (or you may warmth on a small saucepan on the range). Put aside to chill for not less than quarter-hour.
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In a medium mixing bowl, whisk collectively the all-purpose flour, complete wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.
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In a big mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, honey, and vanilla on excessive velocity till the combination is pale and fluffy, about 2 to three minutes, stopping to scrape down the bowl a few times as wanted.
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Add the eggs, one after the other, beating after every addition till absolutely included. The batter will look curdled, which is completely nice.
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Beat within the applesauce, stopping as quickly as it’s mixed.
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Scale back the mixer velocity to low and steadily add the flour, stopping as quickly because it disappears.
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By hand with a rubber spatula, fold within the raisins with their liquid and the pecans.
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Scrape into the ready pan and clean the highest. Bake for 32 to 38 minutes, till golden brown on prime and a toothpick inserted within the heart comes out clear. Place the pan on a wire rack and let cool within the pan for quarter-hour.
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With a uninteresting knife, loosen the perimeters of the cake from the pan, then unmold it and place it on the rack, dome-side up, to complete cooling fully. (I prefer to invert from the pan onto a plate, then re-invert it again onto the cooling rack). Let cool fully.
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Make the frosting: Within the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, place the cream cheese, butter, bourbon, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Beat on medium velocity till clean. Scale back the mixer velocity to low, then slowly add the powdered sugar. As soon as the sugar has been included, cease and scrape down the edges, then beat a bit extra, till mixed and creamy. Unfold excessive of the cooled cake (I depart the edges naked). Get pleasure from!
- TO STORE: Refrigerate the applesauce cake for as much as 5 days. Let it sit at room temperature for quarter-hour or so previous to serving.
- TO FREEZE: Freeze cake in an hermetic, freezer-safe storage container for as much as 3 months. Let thaw in a single day within the fridge, then let sit at room temperature for quarter-hour or so earlier than serving.
Serving: 1(of 10), with frostingEnergy: 534kcalCarbohydrates: 76gProtein: 6gFats: 24gSaturated Fats: 12gTrans Fats: 1gLdl cholesterol: 82mgPotassium: 339mgFiber: 3gSugar: 53gVitamin A: 643IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 89mgIron: 2mg
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