Applesauce Cake with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

This applesauce spice cake is soft, moist and perfectly spiced and is incredibly delicious topped with the creamy brown butter frosting.

Applesauce Cake:
2½ cups all-purpose flour, unbleached (355 g)
1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. ground ginger
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
¼ tsp. ground allspice
2 cups unsweetened applesauce (500 g)
2 large eggs (100 g)
¾ cup neutral-flavoured oil (146 g)
⅔ cup Monk Fruit Sweetener with Erythritol (Granular) (142 g)
⅔ cup Erythritol Gold, packed (142 g)
1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract

Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting:
6 Tbsp. butter (77 g)
3 oz cream cheese, softened to room temperature (85 g)
3 cups Monk Fruit Sweetener with Erythritol (Powdered) (342 g)
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2-3 Tbsp. milk or cream
1 cup pecans, toasted (120 g)

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4). Lightly grease a 9x13" metal baking pan and set aside. (If using a glass pan, reduce the oven temperature to 325°F (165°C/140°C fan, Gas Mark 3).

For the Cake:
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, nutmeg and allspice.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the applesauce, eggs, oil, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla until smooth.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined and no dry streaks remain. Don't over mix.

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes until the top springs back lightly to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.

Let the cake cool completely in the pan.

For the Frosting:
Place the butter in a light-coloured skillet or pan over medium heat. As it continues to cook, it will foam and sizzle. Once melted, the butter will begin to foam and sizzle around the edges. Stir occasionally with a silicone spatula to keep it from burning. As it cooks, the butter solids will begin to brown and it will smell caramelly and nutty. Watch closely so it doesn't burn. Once the solids are golden brown, immediately remove the pan from the heat and pour the butter into a medium bowl to stop the cooking.

Let the butter cool until room temperature and sludgy in consistency, 20-30 minutes.

Using an electric handheld mixer (or transfer the butter to the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment), add the softened cream cheese to the butter and mix until well-combined. It will look curdled; that's ok. Add one cup of the confectioners' sugar and mix until mostly combined.

Add the vanilla, 2 Tbsp. of milk or cream and mix.

Gradually add the remaining confectioners' sugar while mixing on medium-low speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add additional milk or cream to adjust the consistency, if needed. Mix for 1-2 minutes until very thick and creamy.

Spread the frosting evenly over the cooled cake. Sprinkle with toasted pecans, if desired. Cut into squares and serve at room temperature or chilled.

Cook's Notes:  The recipe calls for unsweetened applesauce. If using sweetened applesauce, you’ll likely want to adjust the sugar in the cake to compensate for the extra sweetness.