Close
Credit:
Getty Images
I never met my husband’s paternal grandmother, but I know she was bold. The proof is in the few stories he’s shared about her. In the early 1930s, Mollie Karius Carlucci Harrison, A.K.A Grandma Mollie, was a Keno dealer in Hawthorne and Reno, Nevada. She eventually had three children and 11 grandchildren, who she enjoyed visiting in her 1956 red and white Chevy Bel Air. Because Grandma Mollie often drove across country solo to see family, she kept a man's hat and coat in her backseat to fool strangers into thinking she was traveling with her spouse.
My husband, Gavin, says Grandma Mollie loved knitting and crocheting; taking her poodle, Reno, to get cheeseburgers at the McDonald’s drive-thru—and a good spiced applesauce cake. In fact, Grandma Mollie’s Applesauce Cake was such a family favorite that my late sister-in-law, Kellee, kept two hand-written copies of the recipe in her recipe box. Gavin thinks his grandmother came up with the recipe in the 1940s or 1950s, when applesauce cakes were popular in American households.
“I’m guessing Kellee had Grandma Mollie’s recipe in her box twice because it was such an important family heirloom and she wanted to make sure it was never lost,” Gavin says.
Grandma Mollie’s Famous Applesauce Cake
Grandma Mollie’s famous cake is loaded with warm spices like cinnamon, allspice, ground cloves, and nutmeg, packed with moisture-rich apple sauce, and topped with subtly sweet cream cheese frosting. While the dense, comforting cake tastes like a hug from, well, a grandma, on Christmas morning, it’s worthy of making year-round. Every time I make it, the scent of spiced apples fills our entire house, which always takes Gavin back to his childhood and visits from Grandma Mollie and Reno.
Grandma Mollie passed away at age 97 in 2011, so I never got to know her. But when I take a bite of the flavorful applesauce cake she made with love for family for decades, I feel like I do.
Related
Our 20 Best Grandma-Approved Recipes of All Time
10 Grandma-Approved Breakfast Treats to Make on Repeat
How to Make Grandma Mollie’s Applesauce Cake
Patricia Kaowthumrong
This recipe is very forgiving and easy to make your own. For example, I often substitute chopped pecans for walnuts and skip the dates and raisins. The frosting is delicious, but the cake also tastes great dusted with powdered sugar. Enjoy it as a snack anytime of day or for breakfast with a strong cup of coffee or tea.
Ingredients
- 2 cups applesauce
- 1/4 cup margarine
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
- 1 cup chopped dates and raisins
- 3 ounces cream cheese
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Directions
My Grandma’s 3-Ingredient Dinner Is Embarrassingly Simple, Yet So Delicious
Explore more:
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
Tell us why!
Other
Submit
