Gluten Free Apple Cider Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 8×8 or 9×9 baking pan with oil and line it with parchment paper.* If you’d like, you can leave some extra paper hanging over the sides to help with easy removal later on.
2. In a saucepan over medium to medium-high heat, bring 1 cup of apple cider to boil. Once boiling, lower the heat and allow the apple cider to simmer gently, uncovered, while stirring occasionally. This might take about 5-10 minutes.
   When the apple cider thickens and reduces to 1/2 cup, remove from the heat and set aside to cool before adding to the cake batter. 
3. In a large bowl, combine cassava flour, tapioca starch, almond flour, sea salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and coconut sugar. Then make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. 
4. In a medium-sized bowl, add olive oil, applesauce, vanilla, apple cider vinegar, reduced apple cider, and the egg. Whisk to combine. 
5. Pour the wet ingredient mixture into the center of the dry ingredients, and stir until just combined.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, using a spatula to help scrape it out, and evenly spread and smooth the top. 
7. Bake in the middle rack of the preheated oven for 20 minutes. 
8. Remove from the oven and allow the cake to cool completely in the pan on a wire cooling rack.

Dairy Free Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

1. In a stand mixer, food processor, or in a deep bowl with a handheld mixer, wire whisk, or spatula, combine palm shortening, tapioca starch, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and pinch of sea salt. Whisk or pulse until combined.**

Caramel Sauce

1. To a small saucepan over medium heat, add coconut cream, coconut sugar, and sea salt, and stir until combined.
2. Once mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat to low and allow to simmer 20 – 25 minutes, stirring intermittently.*** 
3. The sauce is ready once it has reached a dark amber color and is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Assembly

1. Once the cake is completely cooled, use the parchment paper to remove it from the pan and place it on a flat work surface. 
2. Use an offset spatula to frost the top of the cake with the dairy-free vanilla frosting. 
3. Transfer the caramel sauce into a squeeze bottle or piping bag, and drizzle over the frosting. 
4. Use the back of a spoon to swirl the caramel into the frosting.
5. Serve and enjoy!****