TWD: Applesauce Spice Bar

Applesauce Spice Bar
(Karen of Something Sweet by Karen picked Applesauce Spice Bars for this week's TWD from Dorie Greenspan's Baking from My Home to Yours)

Mondays used to be my least favorite day of the week, until I joined TWD, now I look forward to it! Either I am anormal or just way too optimistic!

Apples, applesauce, caramels, cinnamon, allspice-- the base ingredients for this cake reminds of autumn, my favorite season of the year! When the smell of the cake baking started filling the house last night, I thought about all the things I affiliate with autumn-- love, falling in love, coziness, tenderness, warm spiked apple ciders, beautiful fall foliage, comfy sweaters and toe socks! LOL! This cake brings out the girly girl in me!

The cake was perfect-- the nutty sweetness of the brown sugar balanced the slight tartness of the applesauce.. the plumpness of the raisins (which I soaked in rum) was a good contrast from the crunch of the pecans and surprise bites of apples.. the moistness of the cake and the melt in your mouth soft caramel glaze.. hmm...

I was still feeling euphoric this morning when I dropped them off at the local fire station. I had to restrain myself so hard not to hug all the firefighters, local heroes, a.k.a. local hotties, LOL! Their beautiful (umm.. sexy?) smiles made my staying up 'til 2AM all worthwhile.

The batter do not require the use of a mixer, so prep time was less than 15 minutes and clean-up was a breeze!