Pumpkin Honey Cake

You've never had a pumpkin cake like this before. At least, I don't think you have. It's teeming with honey and spices and sour cream...and let me assure you, it is instantly addictive!

I took my liberties seriously and decided to use a bundt cake pan instead of what the recipe suggested and after one slice of the cake, me, of all people, decided to also FORGO the frosting portion of the cake. Part of the reasoning behind this was that we ate it too quickly when it was warm to even have time to make the frosting. A likely situation.

But attached to the cake recipe is also the frosting and I can't imagine you'd go astray by adding it!!!!

I truly hope you like this one! It's going down in history as a favorite autumnal cake.

Pumpkin Honey Cake with Frosting

{via Epicurious}

For the cake:

2 1/4 cups cake flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

3/4 cup canned solid pack pumpkin

1/3 cup sour cream

1/3 cup honey

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/4 cups sugar

3 large eggs

For frosting

1 pound Philadelphia-brand cream cheese, room temperature

2 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup plus 1/4 cup canned solid pack pumpkin

1/4 cup honey

1/4 teaspoon (scant) ground allspice

1 cup chilled whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 x 1-inch jelly roll pan with foil, leaving overhang on short sides; butter and flour foil ( Kate note: I used bundt cake pan and it worked wonderfully!). Sift 2 1/4 cups flour and next 5 ingredients into medium bowl. Whisk pumpkin, sour cream, honey and vanilla in small bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Beat dry ingredients into butter mixture alternately with pumpkin mixture.

Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool in pan on rack.

Make frosting (Kate note: I DID not make this frosting, but here are the instructions if you are interested!)

Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, 1/3 cup pumpkin, honey and allspice in large bowl until fluffy. Beat whipping cream in medium bowl until stiff peaks form. Fold whipped cream into cream cheese mixture in 2 additions. Spoon 1 1/2 cups frosting into small bowl to use for decorating; cover and refrigerate.

Using foil as aid, lift cake onto work surface. Cut cake crosswise into three 10 x 4-inch rectangles (reserve remaining cake for another use). Slide spatula under 1 rectangle; transfer cake to platter. Spread with 3/4 cup frosting. Top with second cake. Spread with 3/4 cup frosting. Top with third cake. Spread 1 cup frosting in thin layer over top and sides of cake to anchor crumbs. Chill 1 hour.

Spread remaining frosting from large bowl decoratively onto sides of cake. Spoon 3/4 cup reserved frosting from small bowl into pastry bag fitted with medium star tip. Pipe frosting in diagonal lines on top of cake, spacing about 3/4 inch apart. Squeeze frosting from pastry bag back into small bowl of frosting. Mix in remaining 1/4 cup pumpkin. Spoon pumpkin frosting into pastry bag and pipe lines of shells or rosettes between frosting lines on cake. Refrigerate until frosting sets, about 2 hours. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cover with foil dome and keep refrigerated. Let stand 2 hours at room temperature before serving.)

Beehive Mini Lemon Cakes with Almond Icing

We Utahns have an affinity towards the beehive. As a symbol of our pioneer ancestors who crossed the plains and settled here in the Salt Lake Valley as early as the 1840's, it became an emblem of sorts that represented their thrift, industry, and perseverance. The beehive is especially common within my church. Yes, this blog supports history snippets!

So be it as no surprise that when my mom saw some mini Beehive-shaped cake pans there was little restraint in purchasing one. The recipe accompanying the cake pan seemed perfect. I could already taste how yummy it would be- 1 cup butter, 4 eggs, milk, lemon zest..... mmm hmm. It's the kind of cake batter that tastes like a thicker version of sugar cookie dough and if you are familiar with that than you know exactly the level of deliciousness I'm alluding to.

If you don't have a Beehive shaped cake pan, which, can't blame ya if you don't, a mini bundt cake pan would be perfect. Otherwise, you can try baking this as a cake or cupcakes.

Beehive Mini Lemon Cakes w/ Almond Icing

1 cup butter

2 cups white sugar

4 eggs

3 tsp. vanilla

2 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 whole lemon, zested

1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour the pan. Mix flour, baking powder and salt-set aside. In large bowl cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in the vanilla. Beat in flour mixture alternately with one cup o f milk mixing just until incorporated. Pour batter in the pan and bake for 60 to 70 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for ten minutes. Invert on a wire rack and cool completely.

Icing:

1/4 cup milk

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp almond extract

Mix the above together- although, you may need to fiddle with the components in order to achieve an icing texture that you are comfortable with. Pour over cakes- make sure they are all the way cooled down. Refrigerate leftovers.

Birthday Blow Out

Chocolate Chip Angel Food Cake
Adapted from Ina Garten

This was my birthday cake last week. How I loved it. Cupcakes were on the menu for days prior, but last minute mind change. It was a swell choice.

1 1/2 cups egg whites (about 10-12 eggs)
1 1/2 tsp cream of tarter
2 cups superfine sugar (you can throw normal sugar in the food processor to acheive superfine)
1 1/3 cups cake flour, sifted
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup grated semi-sweet chocolate (2 ounces)

Glaze:
1/2 lb semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp heavy cream

Preheat your oven to 350. Combine 1/2 of the sugar with flour, and sift them together 4 times (gotta put in some serious elbow grease here, people). Set aside.

Place the egg whites, salt, and cream of tarter in a bowl with a whisk attachment. Beat on high speed until the eggs form medium-firm peaks, about 1-2 minutes. With the mixer on medium high speed, add remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar by sprinkling it over the beaten egg whites. Beat this again, on high, for a few minutes until thick and shiny. Add the vanilla, and continue to beat on high until very thick, just another minute or so. Scrape the egg white mixture down the sides of bowl with a rubber scrapper.

Sift one-fourth of the flour mixture over the egg whites. Fold this in VERY carefully with rubber scrapper (spatula, as it were:)). Continue adding the flour in fourths, sifting and folding, until it's all incorporated. Fold in the grated chocolate (this whole process made me sweat bullets with nervousness- don't get impatient and be tempted to stir- hold on to your patience and just keep folding until the flour and chocolate are both mixed in).

Pour batter into an UNGREASED 10-inch tube pan, smoothing the top. Bake for 35-40 minutes, just until cake springs back to the touch. Remove cake from hot oven, and invert this on a cooling rack. When cool, run a thin flexible knife around the cake to remove it from the pan.

For the chocolate gimme-some-calories ganache, place the chocolate chips atop a double broiler (heat-proof bowl over a pan of simmering water) , as well as the cream, and stir until the two ingredients slowly melt. Once it's completly melted, pour over the cooled cake, just drowning it in chocolate yumminess (you will probably have left over ganache- this makes quite a bit).

Serve cake with extra ganache, whipped cream, strawberry icecream, berries, whatever. It is pretty much delicious and I will eat it happily for the rest of my life, as long as the ganache is involved.

Hmm...

Whipping Cream Cake

{"Always in Season"}

1 cup butter, softened

3 cups sugar

6 eggs

3 cups cake flour

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp lemon extract

Garnish:

Confectioners' sugar

Fresh berries

Cream the butter and sugar in a mixer bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, flour, and whipping bream and mix well. Stir in the flavorings. Spoon into a greased and floured bundt cake pan. Bake at 325 for 1.25 hours or until the cake tests done. Cool in pan for several minutes, and invert onto a wire rack to cool completely. Garnish with toppings and serve.

Romantic Recipe Uno

Chocolate Bundt Cake
{Aunt Susan M's Recipe}

I'm telling ya, this is the moistest (is that a word?), most soothing chocolate cake in the world and put into a heart-shaped bundt cake pan gets ya right in the mood for some celebratin'! I like to frost it with a rich chocolate buttercream frosting of sorts- you know, make it calorie free and everything:).

1 Duncan Hines Devils food cake mix
1 small instant chocolate pudding
4 eggs
½ cup oil
½ cup water

Beat all the above for two minutes, or until smooth. Add the remaining ingredients below, folding them into batter and put in a greased bundt cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until done.

1 tsp peppermint extract
1 cup real sour cream
12 oz. chocolate chips