Connie's Fresh Apple Cake

This has become my favourite apple cake recipe in the last few years, but the credit goes to my friend Connie, whom I met at a cooking forum . The basic recipe was told by her, which I modified it in my own way just a bit. It is very simple to make, even I, who is quite pitiful at cake baking, manage to make this a success every time and it tastes absolutely gorgeous!!

Connie's Fresh Apple Cake

Ingredients:
2 eggs
200g sugar
2 tsps baking soda
1 pinch salt
1 tsp cinnamon
a few drops of vanilla essence
250g flour
diced fresh apples (3-4 depending on the size of the apples)
60g butter, softened
80g chopped walnuts
*optional* unbroken, unchipped halved walnuts for decoration

FROSTING:
200g mascarpone (if unavailable you can use fresh spreadable creamy white cheese, quark or philadelphia type)
50g butter
a few drops of vanilla
enough powder sugar to make a suitable consistency for frosting

Directions:
Cream eggs and sugar. Add next 8 ingredients. Pour into a round greased pan, about 25cm diametre.
(at this point the mixture has very little moisture. However have no fear, the juice from the apples oozes out while the cake is cooking)
Bake at 175° for 45 minutes. Let it cool.

Cream together mascarpone, butter, 1/2 tsp vanilla, adding gradually the sugar, to the desired consistency(it must not be runny, pretty dense but manageable).
Spread thoroughly on the cake.

The cake may be spruced up with some halved walnuts on the surface, as in the above pic.. :-)