Pumpkin Cake

(Two cakes are pictured, but this recipe is for one).

Recipe courtesy of The Blissful Table*. I highly recommend the cake recipe alone, even if you don't frost it or make it into a pumpkin like she does -- it's light and moist and very flavorful. Everything a cake should be!

Ingredients for bundt cake:

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup fresh or canned pure pumpkin (about 1/2 of a 15 ounce can)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups sifted cake flour (not the same as all-purpose)
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2  teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

dash of nutmeg

1/2 cup buttermilk or homemade buttermilk substitute (see below), room temperature

1) If you are like most people and don't keep buttermilk on hand, prepare your substitute. You have plenty of options:

I used a cup of almond milk mixed with 2 tablespoons of vinegar. It came out perfectly! I imagine soy and rice milk would do equally well.
You can also use regular milk and vinegar.
Or yogurt and vinegar.
If you have no vinegar, use lemon juice instead.
The idea is that vinegar supplies the tangyness that is so distinguishable in buttermilk recipes.

Prepare your buttermilk substitute and set aside.

2)  Preheat your oven to 350. Put your butter in the microwave on "defrost" setting for a minute or two, until it's about room temperature. If it's slightly melted, that's ok.


3) Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes).  Add the  eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Add the pumpkin puree and vanilla extract.

4) In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.

Add the flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to the pumpkin batter, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

Pour into prepared bundt pan.

5) Bake at 350  for approximately 30 -35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.  Cool for 10 minutes and then invert ONTO A PLATE and remove cake from pan.

If you don't flip it onto a plate, you will have a hard time getting it onto one. This cake is so moist it breaks if you try to pick it up. Cool completely.