Honey Cake

EXTRA MOIST HONEY CAKE
I think I have tried at least 20 different honey cake recipes over the years. The cakes are always too dry and some are too crumbly. Last year I used my banana cake recipe for inspiration and came up with this. You could leave out the nuts and dried fruits if you prefer. This is very moist and freezes well.

 1 cup brown sugar
1 cup honey
 1 cup oil
1 cup canned pumpkin
 1 cup apple sauce
2 extra large eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
 2 teaspoons baking soda
 1/2 cup boiling hot strong espresso
 4 cups flour
 1 tsp cinnamon
 ½ teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans
 1 cup chopped dates
 Preheat oven to 350°.  Combine the first three ingredients in a bowl and beat with a whisk until well blended. Next, blend in the pumpkin puree and the apple sauce. Whisk in the beaten eggs and vanilla. In a separate small bowl or measuring cup, combine the hot espresso with baking soda, add this foaming liquid to the batter, and blend. Add the flour, cinnamon, and salt, and incorporate it, and then stir in the chopped fruit and nuts. Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan and bake about 50 minutes until tester comes out clean. Cool on a rack about 10 minutes or more, invert pan and remove the loaf. You can eat it write away or freeze it for later.