Applesauce!

I know it is not the season for making applesauce, so let me explain.  Every fall we go apple picking.  I love it.  Beautiful, deep blue sky, crisp air, blushing apples, and my favorite people.  The farmer's and my first date was apple picking  We let the little kid go nuts.  She can pick bags full.  We try to go slow, but we enjoy picking too.  We always come home with lots of apples.  LOTS.  Eventually, we end up making applesauce.  At the time we pat ourselves on the back for our thrifty-ness. 

Now it is June and in three short months, we will go apple picking again.  It is inevitable.  We still have many jars of applesauce.   I am afraid to go down and count how many.  The kid says she likes the stuff, but when I offer it to her, she almost always chooses something else.  I did start bringing applesauce with my oatmeal for my breakfast at work every morning.  It is helping, but still the jars taunt me from the basement.

In an effort to redeem us, the kid and I made applesauce coffee cake this morning.  It takes forever to cook with her.  I need to relax and just let the flour snow scene unfold in our kitchen.

Applesauce Coffee Cake from Cookie Madness.  She adapted it from the Texas Hill Country Cookbook.

Easy Applesauce Streusel Coffee Cake

Cake:

1 2/3 cups cake flour or 1 ½ cups all purpose

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon allspice

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup melted butter

3/4 cup applesauce

1/4 cup sour cream**

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 large egg

Streusel

1/4 cup cake or all purpose flour

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Dash fresh nutmeg (1/8 tsp)

4 tablespoons cold butter

1/4 cup chopped pecans (don’t need to toast)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 inch round springform pan or an 8 inch square metal pan with flour-added cooking spray.

In a medium mixing bowl, thoroughly stir together flour, soda, cinnamon, allspice and brown sugar; set aside.

In a large bowl, mix melted butter, applesauce, sour cream, vanilla and egg. Add the dry ingredients to the liquid ingredients and stir until mixed. Pour into pan.

Make streusel. In a mixing bowl or food processor, mix together all dry ingredients then cut in butter. Sprinkle over top of cake. Sprinkle nuts over top of streusel. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown around edges.

Cool slightly. Remove sides of pan and cut into triangles.

Serves 6

** Can omit and use 1 cup applesauce

It tastes way better than it photographs.  I did brave the basement pantry to see how many jars there are.  Seven.  Time to get cooking.