In a small bowl, combine together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In a large separate bowl, mix together sugar, ground cinnamon and ground cloves until well combined. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the cinnamon-sugar mixture in a small dish for sprinkling the top at the end.

In the same large bowl, add the applesauce, melted butter, apple cider, egg and vanilla extract to the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Stir to combine.

Slowly add the flour mixture to the applesauce mixture and whisk to combine.

Carefully pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle the reserved cinnamon-sugar mix over the top of the batter.

Place the pan into the preheated oven and bake for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and let the pan rest for 10 minutes on a cooling rack. Then remove from the pan and place the cake directly on the rack to finish cooling. Serve alone or with your favorite vanilla frosting! Enjoy!