Frosting for Everything

Use this frosting for cakes, cupcakes, sugar cookies....everything.  But my favorite way is in the graham sandwich.  Mom used to have graham cracker frosting sandwiches waiting for us for after school snacks.  YUM!

Mix the following together:

• 1/4 c. butter, softened (not melted)
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 4 T milk
• 4 c. powder sugar

To thicken, add more sugar.  To thin, add a few drops milk at a time.

*Add cocoa, or other extracts for other flavors

Birchcreek Cattle Drive Applesauce Cake

I wish I could take a picture of the way this cake smells! It's divine. My family has a ranch in Idaho called Birchcreek. For years now, my Manning relatives have kept cattle there. When my Grandma Joan was young, they would have a cattle drive every year. Applesauce cake was always on the menu, made by my Great-Grandma Frieda. This past June we had a Manning family reunion and this cake was dessert one night. We got to hear all about the cattle drive and other Birchcreek traditions. So fun!

The Recipe:

1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. melted butter or shortening
1 c. raisins (optional- I'm not a fan myself)
1 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. soda in spec of cold water
2 c. flour
1 1/2 c applesauce
1 egg, unbeaten

Bake in "slow oven" in an 8x8 pan**. I greased it with shortening and lightly floured it, just for good measure.

No directions! What the heck is a "slow oven?" And how do I measure soda in a "spec" of cold water? I suppose the good news is there's room for fudging around a little bit, ovens will vary and your "spec" might be my "morsel." I determined "slow" would be 325 degrees for about 25 minutes.

My mom says the only way to eat this is with chocolate frosting on top, so I whipped some of that up (the normal, cocoa, pwd sugar, butter, vanilla) and spread it on top. If you're a health nut, forgo the frosting- but in our family that's not an option!

**I prefer this in a sheet cake form, so if you want to do that, double the recipe and use a jelly-roll pan and you'll be set.