Applesauce Cake With Caramel Glaze

Author Notes

Having made a giant batch of applesauce this fall (unpeeled apples, a pinch of salt, lemon juice, and nothing else), I realized last week that what was left would probably ferment if I didn't do something with it, and quick. So, I decided to whip up one of my favorite desserts, a spiced applesauce cake. Previously, I've made a fresh ginger glaze for it that tastes delicious but sort of curdles and doesn't look all that pretty. This time, I found inspiration in a rich, sweet, Southern-stye caramel icing from Craig Claiborne's New York Times Cookbook, which I've made a few times for other cakes. But I wanted a true glaze, not an icing, so off to the interwebs I went.

Imagine my delight when I came across the perfect recipe on the blog of our very own TheRunawaySpoon! I adapted the measurements slightly, as I found I needed a little less powdered sugar to keep my glaze runny enough to drizzle, and it turned out to be the perfect complement to this tender, spiced and just slightly sweet cake. Thank you, TheRunawaySpoon, for your help.

Note: If you're serving this cake to demanding or hyper-observant guests (What? Did I say that?), you may want to glaze the cake right on the plate you plan to use to serve it, forgoing the rack. As soon the glaze has even the slightest chance to set, it will crack if you try to transfer the cake from the rack to a serving plate. —Merrill Stubbs

Test Kitchen Notes

What's one of the best things you can do after hauling a bunch of freshly picked apples home from the orchard? Make a bunch of homemade applesauce, of course! Then what's the best thing you can do with all of that applesauce? Make this amazing applesauce cake, of course! This is one of our favorite fall-forward cakes that you can also definitely make with store-bought applesauce if that's what you have on hand, but homemade puts it over the top. The cake is super-easy to put together: Simply cream the eggs with sugar, add the applesauce, oil, vanilla, fold into the dry ingredients, then let the cake bake away in the oven. The glaze takes a little more accurate timing, but TheRunawaySpoon, who developed the recipe, gives great visual cues and you should have no problem getting it to the perfect consistency. It's what helps make this recipe a showstopper of a dessert. But if you don't have the time or don't feel like making the glaze, the cake is wonderful all on its own. Simply dust with powdered sugar before serving.

You'll love the taste and texture, as well as the fact it's both comforting and sweet. Per the comments, the cake is also very forgiving with spice substitutions, and many have added chopped apples to the batter, which gives it even more fall-like flavor. One even used cranberry sauce instead of applesauce to great success! Feel free to experiment with what works best for you and let us know how it turns out. —The Editors