Summer Apricot Cake

Wonderfully moist, this Summer Apricot Cake is sprinkled with sliced almonds and spiced with cinnamon and a dash of ground cloves. Late spring- early summer is the apricot season. Make something with apricots now. It will go by so fast!

The version I made last night for some friends is fully plant-based/vegan. I've used applesauce to substitute for eggs, soy milk- for regular milk, and vegan butter for regular butter. Serve with whipped cream, ice cream, or just a cup of almond milk. Yum! It only takes about 15 minutes to make and 1 hour to bake.

Cake

• 1 stick butter, softened (vegan or regular)
• 1 cup sugar
• zest of 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 4 tablespoons soy or almond milk (or regular)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder

Apricot Topping

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• pinch of ground cloves (Don't overdo on the cloves. They give food very strong flavor)
• 6 apricots
• 2 tbsp butter, melted and chilled
• 2-3 tbsp sliced almonds

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8-inch baking pan with removable bottom. Line the bottom with parchment paper.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine butter, sugar, and lemon zest until smooth (if you're using vegan butter, the mixture might look flakey and uneven. No worries!). Whisk in applesauce and soy/almond milk. In a separate bowl combine flour and baking powder. Gradually whisk the flour mixture into the wet mixture until smooth batter forms. Transfer the batter into the prepared baking pan.

3. To make the apricot topping, combine sugar, cinnamon, and ground cloves. Sprinkle half of the sugar mixture unto the top of the cake.

4. Slice each apricot in half. Remove the pit and slice each half again to create 4 apricot slices from each apricot. Arrange the slices on top of the cake. Sprinkle the rest of the sugar mixture over apricots. Pour melted butter over the cake.

5. Bake for 50 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven. Sprinkle it with sliced almonds and bake for 10 more minutes or until the cake is firm to touch.