“We heard over the radio that the train was delayed for ice on the tracks. We celebrated Celia’s birthday quietly, cutting the applesauce cake Gladys had baked that morning—a recipe Celia loved and one that had been passed down to their family for generations. But Celia barely ate.” — Cathy Gohlke from Night Bird Calling
Celia’s Birthday Applesauce Cake
Ingredients
- 2 and ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup raw or cane sugar
- 1 and ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 rounded teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- 1 and ½ cups raisins—Optional—but Celia prefers hers with raisins
- ½ cup vegetable or canola oil
- ½ cup water
- 1 and ½ cups unsweetened applesauce (homemade is best, but store bought is fine)
- 2 eggs, room temperature
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease and flour a tube pan or Bundt pan or 2-8” round cake pans
- Whisk together dry ingredients.
- In a separate bowl combine oil, water, applesauce and eggs.
- Combine all the ingredients and pour into the prepared pan.
- Bake 60-65 minutes or until done if a tube or Bundt pan. If 2 -8’’ round cake pans, bake 38-40 minutes.
- Cool 15-20 minutes on wire rack before inverting to cool completely.
- Can be eaten as is, dusted with confectioner’s sugar, or topped with the glaze below.
Ingredients for Glaze:
- 1 stick butter
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup milk
Directions for Glaze:
- Mix all ingredients and boil for 2 and a ½ minutes, stirring constantly.
- Pour over cooled cake. *If making a layer cake, pour glaze over bottom layer first then over the top layer and sides. You may even like to prick the top of the layers with a fork to allow the glaze to sink in. However, fork marks will be faintly visible on the top layer.
- Allow to set at room temperature or in refrigerator.
Until next time, happy reading and a very Happy Thanksgiving to you! May you know the joy and fulness of God’s love with each sunrise,
Cathy
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