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Spiced Brown Sugar Apple Cake

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Prep Time 40 minutes
Cook Time 32 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 12 minutes
Course Dessert
Servings 10

Ingredients
  

Spiced Brown Sugar Cake

  • 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 2 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 ½ teaspoons nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon clove (optional)
  • 1 ⅓ cups light brown sugar, packed
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • ⅓ cup sour cream
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup buttermilk

Spiced Apple FIlling

  • 3 cups apples, peeled and chopped
  • ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • Pinch of salt
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • ½ cup water

Brown Sugar Buttercream

  • 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
  • ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 3 ½-4 cups powdered sugar
  • 3 tablespoons heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • Pinch of salt

Instructions
 

Making the Cake Layers

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease 3- 6" round pans, and line the bottoms with parchment paper rounds, if desired. Set them aside.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, vegetable oil, sour cream, eggs, vanilla extract, and buttermilk. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Whisk until everything is combined and the cake batter forms.
  • Pour the batter evenly between the three prepared pans. Bake the cakes for 30-32 minutes. A toothpick should come out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans for about 10 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely.

Making the Apple Filling

  • Melt the butter in a large skillet.
  • Whisk the cinnamon, nutmeg, and cornstarch in a small bowl. Add in the rest of the
  • Cook for about 15 minutes until the mixture thickens and the apples become soft. Allow the apple filling to cool completely.

Making the Brown Sugar Buttercream

  • Cream together the softened butter and brown sugar for about 3 minutes.
  • Add in the vanilla extract, salt, and cinnamon. Then add in the powdered sugar one cup at a time. Once it's all added, mix the buttercream on medium speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.*

Assembling the Cake

  • Cut and trim the tops of all three cake layers so they're flat.
  • Place the first cake layer down on the cake plate. Spread on a thin layer of buttercream on top of the cake layer. Pipe a border of buttercream along the outer edge of the cake.
  • Spoon and spread half of the apple mixture between the buttercream edge.
  • Repeat the steps 1-3 with the second cake layer.
  • Place the 3rd cake layer on top. Coat the top and outside of the cake with the remaining buttercream. You can add swirls of buttercream on top, if desired.

Notes

*If you want your frosting thinner, add a tablespoon or two more of heavy cream. If you want it a little firmer, add up to ¼ cup more of powdered sugar.
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