Once Upon a Plate: Pumpkin

Showing posts with label Pumpkin. Show all posts

Tuesday

Spiced Pumpkin Cake with Maple Frosting

There are still some tomatoes on the vine, but our first frost is just around the corner . . . might as well face it, we're feeling the nip of Fall in the air. We've already been lighting up the wood stove to take the chill off of the mornings and evenings.
And as much as I detest the shorter days and less sunlight, there are some things I do love about Fall. Baking is one of them.

It is a welcome excuse to crank up the oven and bake at this time of year and the payoffs are plentiful:
Warm kitchen... delightful aromas... comforting, cozy atmosphere... good food to look forward to... satisfied tummies... Happy memories...
All of the above make for warm fuzzies and a happy family. :)

In summer we have all kinds of fresh fruit to keep a sweet tooth satisfied, in the cooler months we must become a little more creative. Apples, pumpkins, pears and preserved fruit to the rescue, and soon the citrus will become more abundant. I've been baking some apple sweets which I'll share soon, but in the meantime . . .

This is a simple little sheet cake, you can use canned pumpkin (plain, not pie filling), or cook your own pumpkin or squash. Since I had a can of pumpkin open for another recipe, I decided to make this little cake. It doesn't take many ingredients and it goes together quickly.

The original recipe yields a 9x13-inch cake pan, but we don't need that much cake at once so I made a half recipe and baked it in a 9x9-inch pan. If a 9x9-inch cake is still too much for you, you can bake it, then divide it in half, wrap well and freeze the half and enjoy the other half immediately. When you want to serve the remainder, thaw and spread the frosting on when it's completely thawed, or just sprinkle with powdered sugar.

The frosting is made with pure maple syrup, cream cheese butter and powdered sugar and a little vanilla extract. The maple flavor is very mild, if you like it more pronounced you could add some maple flavor extract . . . but I try to avoid the artificially flavored stuff, so I don't.
I reduce the sugar amount by a bit, because I don't care for overly sweet things, and if you reduce the cream cheese by a tablespoon or so, the maple will be a bit more prominent.

I serve the toasted chopped pecans in a little dish with a spoon, on the side since many people have trouble digesting them. This way it makes everybody happy.
Perfect with a cup of tea or coffee, and it makes a fine little dessert. If you would like a printable copy of the recipe, it's over on my recipe blog . . .
Click here.
Thank you for stopping by ~ I would love if you would leave a comment so I know you've visited!
Blessings!
~mari :)

Thursday

Pumpkin & Spice Mini-Cakes with Brown Sugar Icing (Reprise by Request)

I'm reposting this one by request.

Hi Everyone, I've received several requests for this recipe/method during the past couple of weeks. Rather than continuing to copy it for each email ~ I'm reposting.

I originally posted this before I had a separate recipe blog ~ so I've updated it with a link to the printable recipe. Hope you enjoy!

~*~*~*~*~

Perfect for this time of year, I just adjust my ages- old favorite quick-bread recipe, using canned pumpkin and spices for these, then iced with an old fashioned Brown Sugar Icing.

Pumpkin-Spice Cakelettes

with Brown Sugar Icing

For PRINTABLE copy, see LINK at bottom of POST.

Preheat oven to 325-degrees F

Ingredients:

3/4 cups sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup canned, unflavored pumpkin

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, or freshly ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:In a mixing bowl, combine the sugar, oil and eggs; mix well. Stir in pumpkin and and vanilla. Combine flour cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir into liquid ingredients just until moistened. portion into greased pan, filling cups just a bit more than 1/2 full.

Bake at 325 F for about 15 to 18 minutes, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool on baking rack for 10 minutes before removing from pan.

All to cool completely before adding icing.

Before assembling cut any domed tops from little cakes using a serrated knife (Cook's treat!) so they will fit together flat side to flat side.

Brown Sugar Icing:

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

1 cup brown sugar (a little more if you like thicker icing)

1 tablespoon cream or half & half

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

pinch of salt

Melt butter over medium heat, stir in cream, salt and sugar. Stir well until blended. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Beat with a spoon until the icing cools and thickens a bit. Spoon over bottom halves of 1/2 of the cakelettes (reserving 1/2 for assembly); place tops on each one then spoon icing over tops, and allow to drip down sides. Decorate as desired. Allow icing to firm up a little before covering loosely for storage.

I've served them at Halloween parties, on the Thanksgivings Dessert Buffet table and even as treats for autumn birthdays, with a birthday candle where the stem of the pumpkin would be.

Since I have a few grape vines, I just use tiny grape leaves and a couple of tendrils for pumpkin leaves, but you could use fondant leaves, or pipe icing leaves and tendril, or just leave them plain.

You can also decorate them with maple cream icing, cream cheese icing, even chocolate icing if you would prefer.

This recipe will make about a pan and a half the little cakes (depending upon how full you fill each cup) using the mini-bundt Nordicware pan ~ shown below.

You need 2 half cakes for each pumpkin.

Here is the pan you'll need:

(You can make cupcakes, mini-bundt cakes, and brownies in them, too.

Soo CUTE!!)

For a PRINTABLE copy of the recipe, it's HERE on my recipe blog.

Come join us: Designs by Gollum for Foodie Friday

Pumpkin & Spice Mini-Cakes with Brown Sugar Icing