Diggin' The Apple Cake

For Christmas we are having a brunch instead of the traditional turkey, ham or prime rib feast (although I'm second guessing not having prime rib now that I mention it). Anyway, this past weekend I decided to try out a new recipe to see if it would be included in the brunch and it most definitely will. I'm not a big sweets eater but this apple cake was awesome. The recipe is very basic so even Katdish can bake with success. There are fresh chunks of apple in all that goodness and it's topped with brown sugar, cinnamon and a warm vanilla sauce. Yeah, you'll be smiling down to your toes.

APPLE CAKE













Cake:
1 cup Oil
2 cups Sugar
2 Eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla (use the real stuff - not imitation)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups apples, chopped (gala or granny smith)

Topping:
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
dash allspice

Vanilla Sauce:
1 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup butter
2 teaspoon vanilla (the REAL stuff)

For cake, beat oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla together. Stir together dry ingredients and add to oil mixture. Blend. (it will be very stiff - almost like cookie dough). Stir in apples. Press into a lightly oiled 13"x9" pan.

For topping, combine all ingredients and sprinkle over cake. Bake at 350° for 35-45 minutes.

For vanilla sauce, blend sugar and flour together in a saucepan. Whisk in whipping cream. Add butter and cook over medium heat, whisking often until thickened. Add vanilla and stir. Serve cake warm with vanilla sauce.