Applesauce Cake

Fall is in the air!  The days are getting shorter, the nights crisp, the trees turning fiery.  I  have slow down for farm equipment and the field across the street is now empty, the corn making its way to the grain bins.  This cake tastes like fall.  The cinnamon and nutmeg paired with the tang of the cream cheese frosting.  The way the kitchen smells when this cake is baking is like warm cider.  This is one of my dad's favorite cakes and one of the few that I am confident to make from scratch.

Applesauce Cake
1/2 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon all spice
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 cups applesauce
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1/2 cup nuts (optional)

Cream together the butter and the sugar.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating them completely between each egg.  Add in the rest of the ingredients.  If you choose to use the raisins, you can plump them in a cup of boiling water.  Pour the batter in a 9 x 13 inch pan.  Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 35-45 minutes.  Allow to cool completely and frost with cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting 
(This makes a "double" batch, I split and filled the inside of the cake.  If you are going to only frost the outside you can split this recipe in half.)
1 8 ounce block of cream cheese, room temperature
2 sticks butter, room temperature
7 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
6-7 teaspoons water (as needed)

Beat together the cream cheese and butter until smooth.  Gradually, and I stress gradually, add in the powdered sugar. (Nobody likes a powdered sugar shower).  Add the vanilla.  Add the water as needed by the teaspoonful to reach the desired consistency.