Applesauce Cake

 

Applesauce cakes are tremendously moist and spicy and this one is abundant with plump juicy raisins. A midwinter cake that will absolutely warm and delight on the coldest of days.   

Applesauce Cake

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serves 9

1/2 cup (125ml) olive oil

1 1/4 cup (300ml) white sugar

2 eggs

1 cup (250ml) unsweetened applesauce

1 1/2 cups (375ml) all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon (2ml) baking soda

1 teaspoon (5ml) baking powder

1/4 teaspoon (1ml) salt

2 teaspoon (10ml) ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon (5ml) ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon (2ml) grated nutmeg

1 cup (250ml) golden raisins

1 apple, of your choice, thinly sliced into rings, you will need 9 rings so you may have to slice another apple. 

Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Grease and lightly flour a 8-inch square baking tin and line the bottom with baking parchment. 

In a large bowl beat the olive oil, sugar and eggs until light. Stir in the applesauce.

In a a medium bowl combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. Whisk together and then stir in the raisins. 

Add the flour mixture to the applesauce mixture and stir until just combined. 

Pour the batter into the prepared baking tin. Place 9 apple rings on top of the cake. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave in the pan and place on a wire rack to cool. While the cake is slightly warm lightly dust with icing sugar and serve.   

Leftovers #64 ~ Chicken & Wild Rice Stew

 

Leftover over chicken and wild rice stew became a mouthwatering flaky top crust chicken pot pie. Going to a crustless bottom pie doesn't mean less appetizing, it's just more of a straightforward approach to conjuring a savoury meal using leftovers; and who doesn't want to save time creating a meal. Place leftover stew in an appropriate sized baking dish. Make your favourite pie crust recipe, like I did, or use a readymade one. Roll out the pie crust and place over the stew in the baking dish. Tucking in the edges to seal. Cut slits in the top and brush over with an egg wash. Bake in a 375ºF (190ºC) oven until the filling is bubbly and the crust is golden brown. Served with a crunchy kale salad, this became the midwinter warmer that was much needed.