Christmas Cake

**This is the cake Caroline decorated last year.
John's mom was English and often made the traditional English Christmas cake with marzipan frosting and all the dried fruits and currants in it. We were not big fans of this cake, but wanted to try and keep up the tradition. This wonderful apple cake looks similar to it with it's white cream cheese frosting. The warm butter sauce is so delicious served on it. We also put a silver dollar covered with tin foil between the layers and the lucky person who gets it in their piece receives a present(another English tradition). The other great thing about this cake is that you make the cake ahead of time and freeze. Here is the recipe Al:

Apple Cake:

2 eggs

2 C sugar

2 tsp Soda

1/2 salt

2 tsp. Cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 C oil

4 C apples (peeled and shredded)

2 C flour

1 C pecans or Walnuts chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour 2 9" round pans (floured and greased). Cream together eggs and sugar. Add vanilla and oil. In a Separate bowl combine soda, salt, cinnamon and flour. Mix into egg mixture. Add apples and nuts. Beat for 2 min. Bake 45 minutes. When done cool on counter. When cool, wrap in plastic wrap and freeze. Frost as desired while cakes are frozen.

Frosting:

1 80z cream cheese

3 T softened butter

1/2 tsp vanilla

dash of salt

1 1/2 C powdered sugar

Butter sauce:

1 C sugar

1/2 C butter

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 C cream

heat on low. Don't boil. Serve warm over individual slices of cake and with a dollop of whipped cream on top if desired.