Cinnamon Spice Cake from Simple Cake

I made this cake a few weeks a go, so I wanted to get a short post out about it. The cookbook that this comes from is Simple Cake: All You Need to Keep Your Friends and Family in Cake. The concept is great; it includes ten basic cake recipes, and then variations on those basic cakes. I really want to try out all the recipes! This may be one of those cookbooks I actually purchase, which is high praise.

I wanted to try the basic Cinnamon Spice Cake since I am really in to fall baking right now. To serve it to my book club, I decided to make mini bundt cakes. This Wilton Mini Fluted Tube Pan is similar to the one I use.

Cinnamon Spice Cake

Makes one 13 by 9-inch rectangular cake or about 20 mini individual bundts

• 2 1/4 cups organic whole-grain spelt flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup mild-flavored olive oil or canola oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
• 1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• Powdered sugar for topping (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease pan with butter and flour.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
3. In another large bowl, whisk the eggs, oil, vanilla, applesauce, honey, milk, zest, and brown sugar until smooth.
4. Gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk until there are no lumps and the batter is smooth.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. If you are using the mini Bundt pan, fill tray cavities two-thirds full. Bake in the center of the oven for 28 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, and the cake bounces back when lightly pressed. Cook a little less if you are making mini cakes.
6. Remove the cake from the oven and let it stand for 10 minutes. Run a butter knife around the cake to gently release. Invert the cake, and cool on a wire rack.

My notes: The cakes turned out great. I added some powdered sugar on top to make them a little prettier. Other suggestions included topping with cinnamon sugar or cream cheese frosting (yum!) or serving with caramel sauce. As you can see this recipe is super adaptable. So get baking!