Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease an 8-by 8-inch baking pan.

Cream Crisco, sugar and egg. Add flour with baking soda, cinnamon,

nutmeg, cloves, salt and vanilla extract.

Add apples, raisins and nuts. The batter will be dense and very stiff

at this point.

Spread into greased baking dish. Bake for 45 minutes; test with

toothpick for doneness.

Serve plain or with whipped cream or Cream Cheese Icing.

CREAM CHEESE ICING

My grandmother didn't really measure her ingredients. This recipe is

prepared by feel as much as by measurement.

When adding the milk, do so by the tablespoon -- less is always better and easier to correct than an icing that is too thin and runny.

1/2 stick butter

4 ounces cream cheese

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar

Milk

Cream butter, cream cheese, vanilla and about 1/4 of the box of

powdered sugar.

Add a little milk and a little of the remaining powdered sugar.

Alternate milk and sugar until the box is half empty and the icing is

at the right consistency. Spread on top of cooled Apple Cake.