by merrill
View
my 134 recipes »
Photo by Sarah Shatz
2 cups all-purpose flour Ask a question about this ingredient
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda Ask a question about this ingredient
1 teaspoon kosher salt Ask a question about this ingredient
1/4 teaspoon finely ground black pepper Ask a question about this ingredient
2 teaspoons cinnamon Ask a question about this ingredient
1 teaspoon ground ginger Ask a question about this ingredient
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice Ask a question about this ingredient
2 large eggs Ask a question about this ingredient
1 cup sugar Ask a question about this ingredient
1/2 cup light brown sugar Ask a question about this ingredient
1 1/2 cups unsweetened (preferably homemade) applesauce Ask a question about this ingredient
2/3 cup vegetable oil Ask a question about this ingredient
4 tablespoons butter, cut into chunks Ask a question about this ingredient
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar Ask a question about this ingredient
1/3 cup heavy cream Ask a question about this ingredient
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt Ask a question about this ingredient
3/4 to 1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar Ask a question about this ingredient
Heat the oven to 350 degrees and butter and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, pepper and spices and set aside. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a standing mixer, beat the eggs with both sugars until light. Mix in the applesauce, oil and vanilla until smooth.
Ask a question about this stepUsing a spatula, fold in the dry ingredients, being careful not to over-mix. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 45 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake for 10 minutes in the pan on a rack before turning it out and cooling completely on the rack -- make sure the cake is not at all warm before you make the glaze.
Ask a question about this stepTheRunawaySpoon wisely advises that you put a piece of foil or paper under the cooling rack to catch any drips before you start the glaze. Put the butter in a medium saucepan with the brown sugar, cream and salt and set over medium heat. Bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Boil for one minute exactly, and then pull it off the heat.
Ask a question about this stepLeave the pan to cool for a couple of minutes, and then gradually whisk in the powdered sugar until you have a thick, but pourable consistency (you may not need all the sugar). If the mixture seems too thick, just add a splash of cream to thin it out a little. Immediately pour the glaze over the cake, moving slowly and evenly to cover as much surface area as possible. Let the glaze set before serving the cake.
Ask a question about this stepI was a bit leary about making this cake because the comments hadn't been very encouraging. The cake, for me, turned out beautifully. Very moist and kept extremely well. I added a half cup more of water and that worked for me. The frosting/glaze was terrific, too.
So far it looks great, smells great, the batter tasted great and I'm bringing it to my Belgian neighbors house for dessert tonight ... I'm sure it will be luscious. If you can see this link ... www.facebook.com%2Fphoto.php%3Ffbid%3D2782490436981%26l%3De9eb9ace64&subject=Mobile%20Uploads ... I sprinkled ocean salt on top instead of putting in the glaze. I also used half whole wheat flour.
?body=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fphoto.php%3Ffbid%3D2782490436981%26l%3De9eb9ace64&subject=Mobile%20Uploads
Maybe this one will work?
And i forgot to update about how it came out! The cake was a treat for all the senses! I'm definitely making it again.
Merril...I was reading America's test kitchen and saw they had a gingerbread cake with ginger glaze...that reminded me of your ginger glaze dilemma. They manage to avoid the ginger-milk problem by using gingerale as their liquid. Their glaze is the following :
1 3/4 cups (7 ounces ) powdered sugar
3 tablespoons gingerale
1 teaspoon ground ginger
While it doesn't use fresh ginger like yours...it made me think that using something like gingerale is another way to get around the curdling. Hope this helps give you more ginger options.
Doctored this recipe just a little. I didn't have a Bundt pan so I made cupcakes instead (yields 24, 15 minutes per batch), substituted salted butter for vegetable oil (healthy, I know), added three tablespoons of Laird's Applejack brandy (because I'm a lush!), put an extra pinch of Fleur de Sel in the glaze, and garnished with some Hawaiian black lava salt.
Thank God my cupcakes are small and I'm bringing the rest to work tomorrow. They're so. damn. GOOD.
Made this for Thanksgiving, and it was a huge hit. I was pressed for time so used what I had on hand: storebought applesauce, with about 3 tablespoons of low-fat plain yogurt to get to 1.5 cups, and green cardamom instead of all spice. I thought it'd be too sweet when I tasted the batter pre-baking, but it came out perfectly, as did the glaze, which tasted almost maple-like by the next day. This cake seems very adaptable, and is very easy to make and absolutely delicious, so it's added to my permanent repertoire.
re Applesauce Cake with Caramel Glaze: Has anyone tried to "miniaturize" this recipe in muffin or mini-muffin pans? Having a "tasting party" Friday night and thought it would make a great complement to wee brownies and lemon cookies.
This cake was delicious. Do yourself a favor, do NOT omit the black pepper. It was a fantastic addition to this cake.
This cake was delicious. Do yourself a favor, do NOT omit the black pepper. It was a fantastic addition to this cake.
This cake was delicious. Do yourself a favor, do NOT omit the black pepper. It was a fantastic addition to this cake.
I'm going to add my accolades to this ever-growing list. This cake is absolutely fantastic! I made it early this morning for a small dinner party tonight. I was surprised at how quickly and easily the cake and icing came together...and the taste and texture are just divine. I'll be sharing this recipe with my mom and all of my friends who love to bake.
I made this cake for our food52 cookbook launch party on Saturday and then again this morning for my own birthday. Everyone LOVES this cake! I plan to make the caramel icing on Friday night with brownies and vanilla ice cream too. Thanks for a great recipe!
My mother often made a wonderful applesauce cake with caramel icing, in a large sheet pan. It was a family favorite. This recipe is wonderful and comes just as I was planning on baking an applesauce cake.
Made a few changes to keep the calories down, added pumpkin in place of oil and used skim milk in the glaze, came out fantastic! My 2 year old grandson couldn't get enough.
I don't have a bundt pan - and want to make this right now! Would an angel food cake pan, or spring form still do the job (although not as pretty, I know!).
Yes, I'd use the angel food cake pan. Just watch the baking time, which may be a little different!
Yummy. I made this a second time and it is so heavenly good. I love the icing! The cake is so surprisingly light and moist.
I bought all the ingredients for this cake a week ago to make for my family. However, I needed to make a thank you cake for a neighbor who really helped us out and ended up making the cake for them. I usually don't make something for someone else without trying it first, but I knew it would be great. This was confirmed today when I finally made the cake for us. Delicious. The perfect cake for Fall.
I made this cake on Saturday 10/8 for our Sunday family dinner. Wow, what a delicious cake! I loved the icing as well which I could just eat by itself. The only thing that I did differently was to skip the black pepper and all spice. I also added about 1 tsp vanilla extract. I served it with some Homemade Grand Marnier icecream made by my mom. But vanilla icecream would also be good. I can't wait to make it again soon.
I made this cake today (after staring at the photo of it for about a week, finding it almost impossible to look away) and it did not disappoint. My twelve-year-old daughter and two of her friends tried it after school, and from the other room I could hear them discussing it: "It's SO moist!" -- "Ummm....it's a little bit spicy!" -- "Can we have another slice?". This recipe is a keeper!
Any tips for making this ahead of time? I'm doing it for a dinner party this weekend, and I was thinking of making the cake a day or two ahead, and glazing it just before my guests arrive so that it sets in time for dessert. Anything else I should be thinking about?
Sounds like you've got a plan! The cake actually improves after a day or two -- just make sure to wrap it well.
I made this for a party yesterday and it was gobbled up right away, even by the young children in attendance. I like a salty caramel, so I used salted butter and felt it played off nicely against the sweet cake.
Made this cake for our Rosh Hashanah dessert and it was a hit. Very moist, good flavor, and all around delicious. One thing to note: the recipe makes a lot of icing ... and that's fine BUT I used most of it on the cake and it was too much ... so, take note to drizzle not coat the cake.
I guess I have a bit of a sweet tooth... :)
I made this again the other day for guests -- as you can see from my previous post, it won raves on Super Bowl Sunday. This time, I stuck to the recipe as written except that I ground out a bit too much black pepper. But what the heck, why waste it? So in it went, more like 1/2 teaspoon than 1/4 -- and oh my! What nice, gentle heat it gave the cake! Made a great cake even better!
When this finally cooled last night, I had a sliver, then another, and another. My husband and I agreed it's one of the best cakes we've ever tasted ( and I've eaten a lot of cake!). Thanks for a keeper, merrill!
I made this with a dairy-free caramel. Coconut milk for the cream. It totally rocked. A hit at both of my Rosh Hashannah dinners. Thanks so much for the recipe.
I made this cake for our Rosh Hashanah dinner tonight. SO good! I was happily surprised at how light the actual cake is. And I was worried that the caramel glaze would be too sweet and synthetic tasting, using powdered sugar. OMG, Sweet, yes, but in such a good way! Really, really caramel-y. Thanks!
You're welcome! The brown sugar makes all the difference in the glaze.
Merrill,
Love the site! For this recipe is there any coversion to make into cupcakes?
i.e. Baking time and temp,change of measurements, etc
Thanks---------------Russ
Hmm. I haven't made this in cupcake form yet, but I sometimes split the batter among two smaller Bundt pans, which usually take about 25 min to cook. If you make cupcakes, I would keep everything the same, and just start checking them at about 12 minutes.
droplet is certainly right. there are a list of fruits (pineapple, guava, mango, figs, etc) that along with ginger root contain a compound known as "protease", which chemically alter the protein in the milk from water soluble to water insoluble and essentially curdle the milk proteins. this also occurs when making gelatin...so these fruits are sort on on a "banned to mix with protein" list.
the below article suggests that heat deactivates protease and so all you would need to do is cook the fruit or ginger root before adding it to the protein to prevent curdling. i don't know if this is really effective and I haven't been able to find anything in a book or online about whether that method works or what temperature protease has to reach before it deactivates (i'm guessing at least 212F based on the experiments conducted in in the link)...but it might be something you consider trying if you can't find the young ginger root droplet suggested.
http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/FoodSci_p004.shtml
either way, i made your cake this morning and it is requiring a lot of self control to not take a taste before dinner tonight. it looks wonderful. thanks for sharing your recipe!
You're welcome, and thanks for the helpful info!
Re: "fresh ginger glaze...(that) sort of curdles". I remember reading an asian recipe for something like a pudding ( a lot like the Lemon Posset on food52), which explained that fresh ginger juice added to milk has that effect. I have no clue what the glaze you made consists of, but thought I'd post this in case you are trying to troubleshoot it.
Yes, the glaze did have milk in it -- must be the issue! Thanks so much.
http://www.tastehongkong.com/recipes/ginger-milk-pudding-a-natural-custard/
You might have more luck with young baby ginger, as she says it is not as good for her purpose of curdling.
Can't wait to try this! Looks amazing!!
I made this last night and it is SPECTACULAR! We absolutely LOVED it. I actually 1 1/2-ed the recipe because I prefer taller bundt cakes and it worked out perfectly. This was a great way to use some of our homemade applesauce. I also used a mild olive oil in place of the vegetable oil. The caramel sauce made just enough as is. This is definitely a keeper. I love how the cake so moist from the applesauce and full of flavor from the spices. What a wonderful autumn treat. Thank you for sharing!!!
You're very welcome, and so glad you liked it! Love the idea of subbing olive oil -- will have to try that.
Not going to lie...I used applesauce from Kroger. It was still delectable!
I'm planning to make it this weekend with applesauce from the farmers market -- no shame here!
Made this and got rave reviews! I always have trouble baking. ( I am a much better cook ). But I followed the recipe carefully. Made my applesauce using Gala apples and weighed the flour based on the label reference of 30g / quarter cup. This is the best cake I have ever made!!!!
Lovely cake. I have to say I used 1/4 confectioners sugar in the glaze and it was just fine.
I've been meaning to make this cake ever since you posted it on the site. I made it for a picnic today - what a hit!!!!! It is definitely going onto my list of favorite cakes to make again and again. Thanks!
I made this for our Super Bowl nosh. Everyone loved it so much, I made it again a couple of days later. The second time, I was a quarter cup short of applesauce, so I made up for it with part of a ripe banana mashed up. I also added 1/2 cup of chopped pecans that were hanging around. All good! And the caramel glaze really is the icing on the cake!
Great modifications! Glad you enjoyed it.
i just made it tonight...really good! perfectly moist and fluffy.
This was absolutely delicious, easy to make, and the caramel glaze is outrageously good. Thanks for a great recipe.
photo 1 of 15
Laying everything out before I start -- computer included.
photo 2 of 15
The spices: ginger, cinnamon, allspice and some ground black pepper for a little kick.
photo 3 of 15
Whisking together the dry ingredients -- something that can be done well in advance.
photo 4 of 15
The buttered and floured Bundt pan. You could use a tube pan for this as well, but I think a Bundt is prettiest.
photo 5 of 15
The cake begins with eggs and sugar (both white and brown).
photo 6 of 15
After I added the applesauce -- which was pink, because I like to leave the apple skins on when I make it -- the batter started to look a little like strawberry ice cream.
photo 7 of 15
It's important to forgo the mixer when the time comes to add the dry ingredients -- you just want to fold them in lightly.
photo 8 of 15
photo 9 of 15
It's not the most gorgeous cake batter you've ever seen...
photo 10 of 15
But after only 45 minutes, it looks like this!
photo 11 of 15
When the cake is almost cool, you can start the glaze. On the left, butter, brown sugar, cream and a pinch of salt melt together as I sift confectioners' sugar on the right (a crucial step for avoiding a lumpy glaze).
photo 12 of 15
The "caramel" should stay at a rolling boil for a full minute.
photo 13 of 15
Whisking in the powdered sugar, as the cooled cake awaits.
photo 14 of 15
This one speaks for itself.
photo 15 of 15
I was looking for an easy dessert to make for a small dinner party. This was such a nice, homey treat. I love the glaze (forgot to sift the confectioner's sugar, so I just strained the glaze and it was still perfect)! I added a little vanilla to the glaze so that it would remind me of my mom's caramel cake frosting. Mmmm.