Petite Apple-Banana Cakes

The vibrant colors of the season will soon be upon us. And the cooler weather will beckon me outside so that I can take in nature's beauty. But the baker in me also rejoices, because now, in addition to working in a cooler kitchen, I also can Celebrate Autumn with delicious apples.

Ingredients:
2 large bananas, mashed
3/4 cup sugar, divided
1/4 cup honey
2 large eggs
2-1/2 plus 1/3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1 teaspoon baking powder
1-1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 red baking apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Spray a 6-well (2-3/4-inch squares) removable bottom pan with nonstick baking spray with flour. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine bananas and 1/2 cup sugar. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until thick and creamy. Add honey and eggs, beating until well combined. Set aside.

4.  In a medium bowl, combine 1-1/2 cups flour, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, lemon zest, nutmeg, ginger, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and cloves, stirring well. Add flour mixture to banana mixture, beating until batter is uniform.

5. Fill each well of prepared pan one-third full of batter. Add 2 even layers of apple slices. add remaining batter until wells are two-thirds full. Set aside.

6. In a small bowl, combine remaining 1-1/3 cups of flour, brown sugar, remaining 1/4 sugar, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, stirring well. Add melted butter, stirring until pea-size crumbles form. Sprinkle topping evenly over batter.

7. Bake until a cake tester inserted in center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Let cool in pan for 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.