cake

• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Prepare a 9-inch springform pan by cutting a piece of parchment to fit the base. Apple nonstick spray to the pan, then add the parchment, and spray it as well. In addition, tear a piece of aluminum foil to cup the bottom of the pan to catch any drips.
• Peel the apples and chop into 1-inch pieces. Toss with lemon juice. Set aside.
• In a big bowl, beat eggs until they are pale and foamy. Add the white sugar, apple brandy, and vanilla.
• In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the big egg-sugar bowl along with the melted butter. Scrape the bowl as needed, stirring everything until just combined. Don’t expect a huge amount of batter–it’s there to act like delicious glue for all of the apple pieces!
• Reserve 1 heaping cup of the apple chunks. Fold the rest of the apples into the batter, coating them. Dump the mix into the prepared pan and even out with an uneven spatula. Arrange the remaining apples on top, pushing them into the batter and smoothing them out as much as possible.
• Bake for 20 minutes. Add sparkling sugar over the top. Bake another 20 minutes and check on the cake. It is done with apples in middle are tender and a digital thermometer plunged into the center reads at least 200-degrees. If needed, cook longer; if it’s browning too much, cover with foil.
• Let cake cool in pan for 15 minutes on a cooling rack. Carefully release the springform ring to let it completely cool for at least an hour; place in fridge to speed the chilling process, if desired.
• Slice into wedges. Enjoy cold, at room temperature, or warmed, with confectioners' sugar sprinkled over the top. Pieces can also be individually wrapped and frozen for later.

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To prepare the cake

• Preheat an oven at 350-degrees. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit inside a 9-inch cake pan. Apply nonstick spray inside pan, place parchment inside, and spray it again.
• Stir together all-purpose flour, white whole wheat flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
• In another bowl, whisk together water, oil, vinegar, and both extracts. Gradually mix the wet ingredients into the dry until the batter is smooth. Pour into the prepared pan. Tap and thump it gently on the counter to knock out as many bubbles as possible.
• Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick in the middle emerges with few crumbs attached. Let the pan cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then invert cake onto the rack to cool completely.

Make the filling

• Beat the butter until it is creamy and light. Add the confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, to fully incorporate; if the mixture is still too soft and loose, add more sugar. Add mint and vanilla extract, followed by the salt. Add a few drops of food coloring to achieve the desired tint. Add the half and half and beat to make the filling fluffy and light.

Slice the cake and fill

• Stick a toothpick into the halfway point at each side of the cake; four toothpick markers work well. Use a knife to barely slice into the cake above each toothpick. Continue to use a long-bladed knife to slice all the way through, or use a long piece of unwaxed floss with the toothpicks as a guide to divide the cake evenly in half.
• Place the base of the cake on a serving plate. Spread the filling over the cake. Place the top of the cake over it, cut side down.

Make the glaze

• Microwave the half & half in a microwave-safe bowl for about a minute, until hot. Stir in the chocolate chips and salt. Stir, stir, stir until the chocolate is smooth and glossy. Let cool about 5 minutes to thicken, then slowly pour and spread glaze over the cake. Let sit at room temperature or in fridge to set, then slice in and enjoy!
• Store cake in fridge. Exposed sides of the cake will dry out more, but it will still be tasty. Keeps for at least 4 days.

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• Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Cut a piece of parchment to fit inside a 9-inch round cake pan. Apply nonstick spray in pan, place parchment, then spray parchment as well. Set aside.

Make brownie batter

• Melt together the chocolate and butter either in a double boiler on the stove or in the microwave in a microwave-safe bowl. Stir until everything is mixed and smooth. Stir in sugar. Set aside to cool for a few minutes before mixing in the eggs and vanilla.
• In a medium bowl, stir together flour, cocoa, and salt. Fold the dry ingredients into chocolate mixture just until combined. Set aside.

Make snickerdoodle dough

• Beat together the butter and sugar until they are fluffy; in a stand mixer, this will be at about 3 to 4 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl a few times. Add the egg and vanilla.
• In a separate bowl, stir together flour, cream of tartar, salt, cinnamon, and baking powder. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into butter mixture. Dough will be quite thick.

Assemble the cake

• Spoon large dollops (about 3 tablespoons each) of brownie batter into bottom of the prepared pan, leaving space between each lump. Crumble dollops of snickerdoodle dough in between brownie batter. Top with any more scoops of brownie batter and snickerdoodle dough. Gently use fingers to even out top.
• Bake until the middle passes the toothpick test, 33 to 40 minutes.

Make topping

• Stir together cinnamon and sugar. As soon as the cake is removed from the oven, sprinkle the mixture across the top.
• Let cool at least 15 minutes before cutting in. Cake can be served warm or at room temperature. It can also be frozen in slices and thawed for later enjoyment.

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• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Cut a parchment round to fit the bottom of the springform pan. Apply nonstick spray or butter on bottom of sides of pan, add the parchment, then grease it as well.
• In a big bowl, mix flour with 3/4 cup of sugar. Cut in butter until it is crumbly. Measure out 1/2 cup crumb mixture for topping; set aside.
• To the bulk of the flour mix, add baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in yogurt, 1 egg, and almond extract, until blended. Spread batter onto bottom of the springform pan.
• In a small bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese, the remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and egg, to make it as smooth as possible. It's okay if it still has some clumps. Pour it onto the pan and smooth out. Spoon the preserves all across the top. Sprinkle with the reserved crumb topping and the sliced almonds.
• Bake for 50 to 60 minutes. The middle should no longer be jiggly, the top a nice golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes then unlatch and life away the pan's ring to let the cake cool for another hour. Then place cake in fridge to complete set and cool for a few hours.
• Cake can be eaten cold or after slices are brought to room temperature after about 30 to 45 minutes. Do remember to store cake in the fridge, as it does contain cream cheese! Slices can also be individually wrapped and frozen, and will thaw in the fridge with no issue.

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Make the streusel

• Stir together the flour, brown sugar, and salt. Use a pastry cutter or butter knife and fork to mash the butter into pea-sized pieces and crumbs. Set in fridge to chill.

Make the dough

• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line an 8x8 or 9x9 pan with foil and apply nonstick spray.
• In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Set aside.
• In a big bowl, beat the butter and both sugars until creamy. Mix in eggs one by one followed by the vanilla extract. Gradually mix in dry ingredients until just combined.
• Spread about half the dough in the pan, using an uneven spatula fully coat the bottom.

Make the layers

• Stir together the two filling ingredients. Sprinkle to entirely cover the base layer of dough.
• Dollop the rest of the batter on top, again using the uneven spatula to spread evenly to edges. Sprinkle the streusel across the top. Mix together the cinnamon-sugar topping, then sprinkle that over the crumbs.
• Bake for 33 to 37 minutes, until the middle passes the toothpick test. Cool completely. Use foil to lift cake onto a cutting board to slice into bars.
• Store in airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Can also be sliced into bars, wrapped in plastic, and frozen for an easy treat later.

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• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Cut parchment paper to fit in the base of a 9-inch springform pan. Apply nonstick spray with flour to bottom and sides of pan. Add parchment and spray again. Set aside.
• In a big bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, ginger, and cloves.
• In another bowl, whisk together the sugar, applesauce, buttermilk or soured milk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. Gradually pour the wet ingredients into the dry, mixing well.
• Pour batter into the pan and smooth out with an uneven spatula. There will likely be bubbles in the batter. Gently tap the sides of the pan and thump it on the counter to get them to rise and burst. Using a spoon, sprinkle the coarse sugar all over the top as evenly as possible.
• Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the middle passes the toothpick test. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then release sides. Let cake cool completely on base for several hours.
• Slice into wedges and serve. Cake keeps well in a sealed container at room temperature and pieces can also be wrapped individually and frozen for later enjoyment.

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