Social media tends to create the illusion that we really have it all together. It seems like we are always prepared for a photoshoot with our paper strategically placed on a white, clean blank space and beautiful flowers in the background for just a bit of color and texture. But this is so unlike our lives. Our lives are messy. They are more like our holiday kitchens—splattered and strayed with different dishes and many plates to juggle. But our lives are also real and so beautiful in their own way. We are so thankful that we don’t have to have it all together. We can admit that things don’t always turn out Instagram picture perfect. Instead, we can hand all of our mess over to the one who is the Author and Perfector of our faith.
As you mix and mingle with family and friends this holiday season, we hope your conversations be merry, vulnerable, and life-giving and all of the love you experience only reflects the love of our Heavenly Father.
As a sweet treat to your Thanksgiving Day, we have included a recipe for our yummy Apple Spice Cake, a timeless holiday recipe.
Apple Spice Cake
Cake Ingredients:
-2 and 1/4 cups all purpose flour
-1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
-1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
-1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
-3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
-1 cup packed light brown sugar
-1/2 cup granulated sugar
-3 large eggs
-2 teaspoons vanilla extract
-1 cup milk
-2 medium honeycrisp apples, finally chopped
Icing Ingredients:
-8 oz cream cheese, softened
-1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
-2 cups confectioners’ sugar
-1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
-1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
-1/4 cup chopped walnuts for garnish
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans.
3. Whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and allspice.
4. Beat butter, brown sugar, and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in vanilla.
5. Add flour in 3 portions, alternating with 2 portions of milk. Mix just until combined.
6. Stir in apples, and divide batter between prepared pans and smooth evenly.
7. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, and cool in pans for 10 minutes. Then, remove pans to wire racks to let cool.
Icing:
1. While the layers are cooking, place cream cheese and butter in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat until combined and smooth.
2. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar, and add cinnamon and vanilla to mix well.
3. Place one layer of cooled cake on a cake plate. Spread half of the frosting over the top of the cake.
4. Place the other cake layer on top of the frosted cake layer. Spread the remainder of the frosting on top of the cake.
5. If desired, garnish cake with chopped walnuts.
Photos Courtesy of My Dear Love Photography via The In Between Blog
