Apple Spice Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 9-inch cake pans with cooking spray and line bottoms with parchment rounds. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, until well combined. Add in the eggs, vegetable oil, applesauce, and vanilla; beat with an electric mixer on low speed until smooth. Fold in the diced apples using a spatula until evenly combined.
3. Pour even amounts of the batter into the prepared cake pans (it's helpful to use a kitchen scale for accuracy if you have one). Bake in the middle rack of oven for 35-40 minutes until a deep golden brown color. You will know the cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
4. Cool on a wire cooling rack; remove the cakes from their pans after about 15 minutes of cooling, peeling off the parchment and then let cool completely, about an hour.
5. While the cake cools, make the frosting. In a large mixing bowl, cream the softened butter using an electric mixer. Gradually add in the powdered sugar, two tablespoons of milk, vanilla, and cinnamon. Continue mixing until desired consistency is reached, adding an additional tablespoon of milk if needed.
6. To frost the cake, place one of the cooled cake rounds on a pedestal or serving plate. Add about ⅓ of the buttercream on top and spread over cake layer. Carefully place on the second, top layer of cake. Scoop the remaining frosting on the top of the cake and use a spatula to spread out the frosting over the top and sides of the cake. To give the cake a more rustic look, while rotating the cake, use a flat edge bench scraper to scrape off the side frosting on the cake. Place any remaining frosting on the top of the cake and use a butterknife to create waves and swirls on top if desired.