Applesauce Spice 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.
If you make only one cake this season (or for the rest of your life), please let it be this applesauce spice cake. The ultra-soft cake with that amazing frosting is one of the most delicious cake + frosting combos I’ve ever had!
Applesauce Spice Cake Batter
When it comes to cake batter, this one couldn’t be simpler. No electric mixer and no fancy creaming methods needed.
It’s a dry ingredients meets wet ingredients situation, and it comes together fast.
There is a whopping two cups of applesauce in the cake which helps contribute to the soft, moist texture.
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.
Mix the batter until just combined. Don’t over mix. I mean, speaking frankly, it’s not the most attractive looking batter in the world, but I promise it bakes into the most deliciously spiced cake you’ve ever met.
How to Brown Butter for the Frosting
The frosting for this cake is amazing for two reasons:
- brown butter
- brown butter meets cream cheese
Brown butter is amazing stuff. It’s incredible in cookies and bars and rice krispie treats and a myriad of other desserts. But in frosting, it is truly exceptional.
Here’s a quick tutorial for how to brown butter. In short, you’ll melt butter over medium heat and let it cook and foam and sizzle until the butter solids turn golden brown and smell intensely nutty and caramelly. Watch it closely! Butter can burn easily, so make sure to remove it from the heat immediately once you see the browned bits on the bottom.
It’s important to let the brown butter cool until it is room temperature and kind of sludgy in consistency. If it’s too warm, the frosting will be thin and runny.
While the frosting does bear cream cheese in the title, it is not heavy on the cream cheese flavor. The recipe only calls for three ounces of cream cheese.
This amount perfectly compliments the caramelly brown butter and adds the the ultimate level of creaminess without overwhelming the frosting with the distinctive cream cheese flavor.
Even if you ditch making the cake completely, please promise you’ll make this frosting? It is a shining star among a galaxy of dull frostings, and it has changed me forever.
A Simple Cake
Once the homey applesauce cake has cooled, you can spread the frosting over the top right in the pan!
There’s no fancy piping or frosting techniques needed here. This delightfully simple cake is served straight from the pan, and the only adornment you might need or want is a few toasted pecans tossed on top.
The toasted pecans are completely optional, but I have to be honest, for someone that normally eschews nuts in my desserts, I love the subtle crunch of the pecans with the creamy frosting and soft cake.
A bit unassuming in looks, this frosted applesauce spice cake will catch you off guard with just how completely delicious it is.
It is the perfect cake for the cozy fall months. But I can definitely see myself making this all year round. The ingredients are simple and pantry-friendly, and the result is knock-your-socks-off amazing.
It is definitely so much more than the sum of its parts.
If you’ve been wanting a perfect spice cake, this is it. I cannot wait for you to make it!
One Year Ago: Perfect Soft and Fluffy Dinner Rolls
Two Years Ago: Cranberry Pomegranate Salad
Three Years Ago: Creamy Baked Mashed Potatoes with Buttery Parmesan Crumbs {Make-Ahead!}
Four Years Ago: Skillet Chicken Fajita Pasta
Five Years Ago: Fresh Cranberry Apple Relish
Six Years Ago: Simple Roasted Thanksgiving Turkey {Oven Bag Method}
Seven Years Ago: Triple Chocolate Fudge Peanut Butter Cookies
Eight Years Ago: Chocolate Caramel Pecan Pie
Nine Years Ago: Amazing Scottish Shortbread
Ten Years Ago: Whole Wheat Blender Pancakes
Applesauce Spice Cake with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Applesauce Cake:
- 2 ½ cups (355 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- 2 cups (500 g) unsweetened applesauce
- 2 large (100 g) eggs
- ¾ cup (146 g) neutral-flavored oil
- ⅔ cup (142 g) granulated sugar
- ⅔ cup (142 g) packed light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 6 tablespoons (77 g) salted butter
- 3 ounces (85 g) cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 3 cups (342 g) powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 to 3 tablespoons milk or cream
- 1 cup (120 g) toasted pecans, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9X13-inch metal baking pan and set aside. (If using a glass pan, reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F.)
- 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 to 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-colored 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 powdered sugar and mix until mostly combined.
- Add the vanilla, two tablespoons of milk or cream and mix.
- Gradually add the remaining powdered 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 to 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.
This is so delicious and super easy to make! I did split the batter between 2 Pyrex glass pans for thinner slices to feed a crowd. One is 9×13 and the other is 6.5×9 inches. They turned out great at the 325° recommended, and I did a 30 minute cook time. Perfect! I will make again for sure!
This cake was a HUGE hit at a New Year’s Eve party last night! It was easy to make and the brown butter frosting is now my absolute new favorite. Wow, it is super-yummy… I am definitely making this cake, again!
This cake is so good and so simple to make. I made if for a New Year’s Eve party and everyone was so glad to have something so nostalgic and homey. For me, I loved that it was dessert without being overwhelming sweet, I served half with frosting and half without. Next time I’m not even going to bother with the frosting, although it was delicious. Can’t say enough good about this cake! Thanks again for never letting me down, I know I can always trust your recipes.
Could this be doubled (or times 1.5 for a thinner cake) and made in a half sheet pan? I need a dessert to feed a crowd, and I’ve been dying to try this one!
Yes, I believe someone tried that actually! I think they made the recipe as is and baked it in a half sheet pan for thinner slices – you could 1 1/2 the recipe for a half sheet pan, too, just keep an eye on how full the pan is so it doesn’t overflow in the oven.
Hi.
This looks so delicious and I’d love to try it eggless and would normally replace the egg with applesauce Or flaxseed powder. Do you think I can replace the eggs in this recipe?
I think if you’ve had success replacing eggs in other cakes, it’s definitely worth a try!
Such a great cake! We love spice cake, carrot cake, and this cake, WOW, is definitely in the same delicious category! Followed the recipe exactly and it turned out wonderful! So moist and such great flavor. Everyone should make this cake!
This was so delicious and somehow feels like it could be breakfast! I basically only want to make frosting with browned butter from here on out…amazing!
I made this cake last weekend for a family get together. Everyone LOVED it. It was such an easy cake to put together. I had never made brown butter before, but I followed the directions exactly – and wow – it was so tasty! Both of my aunts asked for the recipe. 🙂
This cake is fantastic! I was talking with a friend recently about why browned butter cream cheese frosting isn’t really a “thing,” but we agreed it should be, and then you went and posted this recipe a few weeks later. Made it for Thanksgiving and it was a hit! Two lifelong non-cake-lovers hesitantly ate and then LOVED this applesauce spice cake and frosting! I have been thinking about making it again ever since I had the first taste of that browned butter cream cheese frosting…
Next time, I will either make less frosting or reduce the powdered sugar a tad. Most said it was wonderful, but it was super sweet to me and two of my children.
There were 4 small slices leftover which we ate chilled the next day, and loved just as much. If you’re hesitant about trying this recipe, don’t be. Make the frosting! Make the cake! You won’t regret it.
Quick question: I noticed someone made it and preferred it cold. Would it still be good if I make a day ahead and put it in the fridge? Better to make it morning of?
Hi Annette, yes, I think this would be fine made the day before and refrigerated if you want to serve it chilled (or slightly chilled). If you want to serve it room temperature, I’d make it the day of.
Made this twice in one week and it disappeared quickly both times! A new favorite for sure!
Love that!! It’s such a fantastic cake. Happy it’s been a hit for you and yours!
Made this into cupcakes for Thanksgiving, such a hit! I topped them with cinnamon and chopped pecans and they were so pretty next to the pumpkin and apple pies. Everyone preferred the cold batch I had in the fridge, it just gave the frosting a nice and firm texture. Thank you so much for the recipe, I already have family requesting these again for Christmas. Happy holiday to you and your loved ones!
Cupcakes!?! Great idea!
This cake!!! I’m not sure what’s better- the actual cake or the icing. I made it yesterday for a group of college kids who came for dinner last night. I naively thought there would be some leftover for my husband and me. NOT!! I solved that problem by making it again tonight. So yummy!!!
Do you think this would work in a Bundt pan?
I haven’t tried it in a bundt pan, but I think it stands a good chance of working!
The cake was delicious but I found the frosting too sweet.
Frosting is supposed to be sweet… it’s mostly sugar.
Wow, this exceeded my expectations! My four-year-old, upon taking the first bite, said she wanted it for her next birthday! The frosting tastes like caramel. It’s like a caramel apple in cake form. In fact, I may add some rehydrated dried apple slices next time I make it. So good!
5 stars.
I’ve been reading your blog for a long time and I rarely leave comments, but I just had to tell you how much my family enjoyed this cake! It’s so moist and flavorful. And the frosting… wow!!! Or should I say dangerously delicious?!?!
It took some serious willpower to not eat it by the spoonful while I was frosting the cake! Thank you so very much for another fantastic recipe!
Thank you so much, Sandra!!
Just made this today. My husband asked where I got this recipe from and that is was “unreal” and asked if I can make it every day
Sounds like a smart guy to me! 🙂
We made this today for our Sunday dessert. I loved how soft, moist, and fluffy the cake turned out! The browned butter frosting was delicious and has a nice depth of flavor (not too sweet). It was prefect with the pecans.
Mel, you did it again. You made me look like a superstar! Made this recipe for a family that is having a hard time. And it put a smile on their faces. Thank you for posting such great recipes that are easy to make.
Thank you so much, Jody! You ARE a superstar!
The cake is absolutely delicious! The icing is exceptional!!!! Don’t change a thing!
Thanks, Dixie!
I’ve had the ingredients to make this cake for days, but couldn’t make it happen. Last night was the night and, at the last minute, we ended up having friends for dinner. Let me tell you that cake was amazing!! People were picking cake crumbs and frosting off of the knife and serving spatula. As we were cleaning up my husband commented on the “fabulous” cake. What I loved was the ease of mixing it up, the moist, dense (in a perfect way) texture, and that frosting truly is delicious.
That’s fantastic, Jenn! So happy this worked out for company!!
Very, very good. Definitely add the toasted pecans to the top for a nice crunch. The flavor of the frosting was great
I agree on the toasted pecans. They make all the difference!
I cannot believe this cake! This FROSTING!!! I made it twice this week already. My coworkers all wanted the recipe. And my daughter’s quote “new all time favorite!” Once again proving why Mel is my “go to” for everything!
Oh my goodness, I love this, Kristen! You are my soul sister for making this cake twice in one week.
I made this delicious cake last night! I loved that it didn’t require the softening of any butter. I feel like i just can’t spend my life sitting around waiting for butter to soften. You do have to soften cream cheese for the frosting, but it’s a small amount and you can set it out when you start the cake. The batter was as easy as mixing up muffins. My husband said the cake was “incredible” but surprisingly my kids weren’t in love with it. One said it was “too rich” and other other said “too sweet,” but I think I cut their pieces too big. But maybe I’ll just leave them to their ice cream and proclaim this an adult’s cake.
I hear you on the softened butter thing. It’s why I love cookie recipes that use melted butter. I’m happy you and your husband loved this one! I definitely choose wisely which desserts I share with my kids. 🙂
Add my voice to the chorus of fans here. It’s like my perfect cake, no mixer, generous vanilla and spices, salt!! The frosting is wonderful, I strained out the browned bits (not burnt, just unappealing in the frosting, I thought.) There is a LOT of frosting for a 9×13, I can easily imaging cutting back by a third or even half. Anyway thank you! Great recipe!!
Thanks for the review, Alanna!
Easy recipe. Fantastic dessert. The frosting is incredible!
Thanks, Breanna!
This cake was absolutely delicious! Quick and easy. If I make it again, I’ll just use a regular cream cheese frosting instead of the brown butter frosting. Everyone in my family loved the cake, but we were split on the frosting. And most importantly, *I* didn’t really love the frosting and I’m the chef, ha!
Haha, I agree! The chef gets to make the executive decisions!
The family called it FALL Cake. The frosting really makes it. I’ve always avoided brown butter recipes because I thought it was too fussy. How does the butter do that? It smells like salted caramel! So delicious. We polished off this cake. I followed it almost exactly, I used butter in place of oil. Thanks Mel!
I’m so glad you took the plunge on the brown butter, Franny! It really does make all the difference. And I agree – who knew butter could make a transformation like that??
Thanks, Mel! This cake was wonderful. Perfect blend of flavors, and the browned butter frosting was great. I can see using it on other cakes. I’m thinking I might try to make in a layer cake next time.
Let me know how the layer cake turns out if you decide to try it!
I just made this for dessert tonight and it’s the best spiced cake I’ve ever had! I used my homemade applesauce and was a little afraid that the cake would be too spicy because I always make spiced applesauce, but it wasn’t. It was the first time I’ve ever made browned butter and it won’t be the last! You are amazing, Mel!
That’s awesome the homemade applesauce worked out, Pat – thanks for including that in your review!
Yes! Another out of the park recipe, Mel! That is the perfect fall dessert and that frosting is ridiculous ! So darn good and I’ve been a fan for years!!!
Thank you, Cathy! So happy you are here and loving the recipes!
Would you make any changes to use this recipe for cupcakes?
To start, probably not. I haven’t made it as cupcakes, so it’s likely there might be a few tweaks needed (with leavening to help them dome instead of bake flat?) but I think it should work pretty well to make as-is at first.
This cake is so yummy! The frosting is delicious. This is easy to make and all of the ingredients are things I usually have on hand. What’s better than that?
Easy cakes are the best! Thanks for letting me know you liked this one, Alicia!
I can only use sugar substitutes because my husband is a diabetic and I see that in your recipe it calls for granulated, brown, &( powder sugar )in the frosting and I was wondering if you knew if I could us sugar substitute in this recipe ?
This recipe sounds amazing
Thank you
Hi Leane, unfortunately, I haven’t tried this cake with sugar substitutes. I’m sorry! Have you made cakes before with sugar substitutes? If so, this one should adapt the same way.
Try Swerve Brown Sugar and Granulated Sugar in place of regular.
Phenomenal cake! I made it in a cookie sheet pan because I wanted thinner pieces of cake. The frosting did not disappoint! Thanks Mel!
Great idea to bake it in a sheet pan, Amy! Thanks for sharing that and taking the time to leave a comment!
So yummy! Almost had a baking **catastrophe** because I forgot to the the sugar in! Luckily I noticed before I put the batter into the pan… just whisked it with some more applesauce and oil and gently mixed it in Whew !
I made the cake using a jelly roll/ quarter sheet pan to make more of a bar size. Reduced baking to 20ish minutes. Came out great.
Girl. That browned butter frosting is. No. Joke! It’s amazingly yummy and I will be plopping that on all sorts of cakes and bars (thinking on top of pumpkin bars will be divine.)
Thanks so much for sharing ❤️
Thanks for the review, Morgan!! I’m loving the idea of baking this into thinner bars. And it’s very validating to me to know you also feel like that brown butter frosting is a game changer! 🙂
A couple days ago I made a large batch of your pressure cooker applesauce with Honeycrisp apples. So easy and delicious. I have enough left over to try this cake next! Many thanks for your absolutely phenomenal recipes and kind and generous heart. You are so appreciated!
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/quick-and-easy-pressure-cooker-applesauce/
Oh, homemade applesauce in this cake would be phenomenal. Hope you love it! Thanks, Diane!
Mel, if I made this a day or two in advance of a party, would it still taste good? Should I store it in the fridge or just out on the counter?
I don’t know that I’d make it two days in advance if you can help it (or if you do, maybe make the cake and freeze it and then thaw and frost?). If you do make it ahead, I’d suggest refrigerating and then setting it out an hour or so before the party to take a bit of the chill off.
I made this cake today 11-07-23. It was one of the most delicious cakes that I have ever eaten.
I’m so happy to hear that, Trena! Thanks for letting me know!
I have the same question as ‘Grace: about using sweetened applesauce. Unsweetened is difficult to find.
You only stated to ‘experiment’, but novice bakers can waste a lot of time and money, failing at guessing where to start. Can you please give a more specific answer for us to understand a starting point to even guess at how to adjust the recipe. If all applesauce is different, should we expect to adjust anywhere from as little as 1 Tbsp or two difference, or up to as much as 1/2 cup less?
Have you checked in the upper shelves near the sweetened applesauce? Unsweetened applesauce is usually tucked in there somewhere (and another option if you can’t find it in the jar is to use the applesauce packets – like GoGo Squeez or other brands – many of them are unsweetened). I’m sorry I can’t test out all the variations when I post recipes. I try really hard to post well-tested recipes, but in the end, there are times when I do have to give gentle encouragement to readers to experiment if they want to stray from the original recipe. I don’t know how much sweetener is added to applesauce – but if you are going to use sweetened applesauce, I’d suggest adding about 1/4 cup less sugar and see how that goes.
Why is it that a metal pan is required for this recipe? Does it cook better than glass?
How do you ‘adjust’ the sugar if you use sugared applesauce? How much sugar should you use?
Thanks
A metal pan isn’t required, just suggested. Metal conducts heat better than glass, so while glass pans are great for a lot of baking purposes (like casseroles and such), they don’t bake as evenly for cakes. If you use a glass pan, I suggest reducing the oven temperature to 325 degrees F and keeping an eye on the baking time (this helps the cake cook fully without burning around the edges). Each brand of applesauce will vary in sweetness (again, that’s why it’s recommended to use unsweetened applesauce). If you want to use sweetened applesauce, you’ll have to kind of experiment with the sugar depending on how sweet the applesauce is that you are using.
This looks amazing! Do you think it could work in a bundt pan?
I haven’t tried it that way, but I think it should work pretty well!
This is a favorite of my family and very similar to my Grandmother’s recipe. She always made it a layer cake with her butter cream frosting. It had a flour base and it’s what I’ve always used but I’m trying the cream cheese frosting this time. She also put raisins in the cake which I think she boiled in water first.
I’m making it using avocado oil
That ok?!?
Thank you for posting this! It sounds delicious, and I’d love to save it to Pinterest, but the button isn’t working for me, despite trying it multiple times today. I’ll bookmark the link for now, because the whole recipe (but especially the browned butter frosting!) sounds incredible!
I’ll look into the issue – thanks for the heads up!
have you ever tried this recipe as cupcakes? thanks!
Hi Mel! I can already tell by the ingredients and the recipe, that this cake will be a winner! I’ll be baking this for our Advent brunch that my husband and I are hosting at our church in December. I love old fashioned cakes too! Thank you for sharing!
Can you substitute apple butter for applesauce?
I haven’t tried that but you could definitely experiment – apple butter is usually quite a bit thicker than applesauce so I don’t know if the difference in moisture will affect the outcome.
Re your brown butter tutorial: since it can burn quickly, do it in a light colored pan.