Saturday, November 03, 2007
Pumpkin Spice Cake
Casa Splatgirl was pleased to host a couple of my favorite girly pals last night for a little eating and crafting. On the menu was one of my stand-by cool season favorties, Tortilla soup with Avocado Relish, with hot bread and corn muffins on the side. For dessert, I went out on a Martha Stewart limb and made the Pumpkin Spice Cake from the latest issue of Everyday Food:
Perhaps I have told you before about my aversion to M.S. recipes, a phobia cultivated primarily as a result of having bought her cookbook several years ago and subsequently discovering that most of the recipes either sucked or just didn't turn out as they should. And I confessed a few months ago to only being in the Everyday Food subscriber pool because of the free apron they offered. So, while I've enjoyed the photography and inspiration, I think this is the first recipe I've bothered with from the several months' worth of issues I've now amassed. But when I compared it to the other contender, Spiced Pumpkin Cake with Caramel Icing which has good reviews on epicurious, I figured the two were close enough that I may as well go with the one that called for butter rather than oil and not have to screw around with sifting cake flour.
It turned out pretty well I guess. The cake is dense and moist and the icing delivers all the deliciousness you'd expect from cream cheese, butter and sugar. I think I would up the spices a bit next time or use cinnamon, clove, ginger and allspice separately instead of pumpkin pie spice and maybe add a tart component like a bit of lemon or orange zest, but this is minor stuff. Considering the source and past experience, that it turned out and was edible means a lot. On the other hand, it's more effort and not as good as some of those sheet pan pumpkin bars I've had over the years but never seem to make myself so I guess it's probably not a make-again hit.
Anyway, a nice fall evening sit down was had and hopefully last nights' event will be the impetus for rebirth of the once grand and fabulous CraftyChix gatherings...
Perhaps I have told you before about my aversion to M.S. recipes, a phobia cultivated primarily as a result of having bought her cookbook several years ago and subsequently discovering that most of the recipes either sucked or just didn't turn out as they should. And I confessed a few months ago to only being in the Everyday Food subscriber pool because of the free apron they offered. So, while I've enjoyed the photography and inspiration, I think this is the first recipe I've bothered with from the several months' worth of issues I've now amassed. But when I compared it to the other contender, Spiced Pumpkin Cake with Caramel Icing which has good reviews on epicurious, I figured the two were close enough that I may as well go with the one that called for butter rather than oil and not have to screw around with sifting cake flour.
It turned out pretty well I guess. The cake is dense and moist and the icing delivers all the deliciousness you'd expect from cream cheese, butter and sugar. I think I would up the spices a bit next time or use cinnamon, clove, ginger and allspice separately instead of pumpkin pie spice and maybe add a tart component like a bit of lemon or orange zest, but this is minor stuff. Considering the source and past experience, that it turned out and was edible means a lot. On the other hand, it's more effort and not as good as some of those sheet pan pumpkin bars I've had over the years but never seem to make myself so I guess it's probably not a make-again hit.
Anyway, a nice fall evening sit down was had and hopefully last nights' event will be the impetus for rebirth of the once grand and fabulous CraftyChix gatherings...
Labels: cooking food baking fall cake
