1. Preheat oven to 340°F. Line the bottom of a 9″ loaf pan (or 9″ round pan for the almond honey cake) with parchment paper and grease the sides.
2. In a medium bowl, sift the flour, cinnamon, salt and baking soda together. Set aside.
3. In a large measuring cup, mix the applesauce and honey together. Set aside.
4. Place the sugar and eggs in the bowl of a standing mixer and mix on medium speed for a few minutes until the mix is lighter in color, 4-5 minutes.
5. Turn mixer speed to low and slowly drizzle the oil into the bowl. Return speed to medium.
6. Add the flour in three additions, alternating with the applesauce-honey mix.
7. Pour batter into greased loaf pan. Bake until the center is golden and a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cake, 45-50 minutes.
8. Optional: Drizzle the cake with ¼ cup of warm honey or dust it with some powdered sugar. Let the cake cool before slicing. 

For the almond honey cake:

1. Repeat steps 1-6.
2. Pour batter into greased round pan. Bake until the center is golden and a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cake, 25-30 minutes. 
3. When ready to top the cake, preheat oven to 300°F. Remove the cake from the pan and place it on a cooling rack placed on a cookie sheet.
4. With a small toothpick, poke the cake and brush it with the warm honey. Top with almonds.
5. Bake for 5 minutes. Allow the cake to completely cool before placing on a serving dish.