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Amish Applesauce Cake

Amish applesauce cake is a cozy American dessert with a dense, moist crumb studded with raisins and walnuts. It’s baked in a 9x13 pan, then cooled completely and dusted with powdered sugar for a classic old-fashioned finish.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 12 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 410
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Dry ingredients
  • 2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.5 tsp cloves
  • 0.5 tsp allspice
  • 0.25 tsp nutmeg
  • 0.5 tsp salt
Wet ingredients
  • 0.5 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 0.5 cup brown sugar packed
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix-ins and topping
  • 1 cup raisins
  • 1 cup walnuts or pecans roughly chopped
  • 1 powdered sugar for dusting

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Prep and heat the oven
  1. Preheat oven to 350F, then grease a 9x13 baking pan with a light coating to prevent sticking.
Mix the dry ingredients
  1. Whisk all-purpose flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, nutmeg, and salt together in a bowl until evenly combined and no clumps remain.
Cream butter and sugars
  1. Beat unsalted butter with granulated sugar and brown sugar until fluffy, then beat in eggs and vanilla extract until smooth.
Combine batter
  1. Stir unsweetened applesauce into the creamed mixture, mixing until the batter looks uniform.
Fold dry into wet
  1. Fold the flour mixture into the applesauce batter until just combined, stopping as soon as you no longer see dry streaks.
Add raisins and nuts
  1. Fold in raisins and walnuts or pecans until they are evenly distributed through the batter.
Bake
  1. Bake at 350F for 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool and serve
  1. Cool completely, then dust the top with powdered sugar before serving.

Notes

For the best crumb, fold the flour mixture just until combined—overmixing can make the cake tougher. Store covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or refrigerate for up to 5 days; freeze slices for up to 2 months if wrapped well. For a dairy-free swap, use the same amount of vegan butter sticks (softened) in place of unsalted butter.