A City Pumpkin Bumpkin

Pumpkins are a relatively new phenomenon to me. It's sad to say that I didn't really introduce it to my diet until I was in my early twenties and finally had my first experience via the Starbucks' Pumpkin Spice Latte. And even then, I kept my pumpkin exposure to a minimum with the addition of using Coffee Mate's Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer (usually available in the Fall) which was introduced to me via Silent Lamb (my coconut loving roommate). But I soon began to realize that pumpkin was all around me - pumpkin pies from Marie Calendar's, pumpkin pancakes from IHOP, and pumpkin milkshakes from McDonald's. Wow, I thought to myself. If pumpkin is so popular that even the major food chains are picking them up, then maybe they're worth a whirl.

I worked my way up slowly, first by making pumpkin pies at home and then by making pumpkin pound cakes and pumpkin breads. And after so many years (mainly 5 of them to be exact), I have since grown out of my naivety and have wholeheartedly embraced the magic that is pumpkin. Yes, this city girl is now a pumpkin bumpkin. The only problem is BF dislikes pumpkin. He doesn't like to carve them. He doesn't like to eat them. He pretty much could live out the remainder of his life without ever having to see another one. Sigh, I say to myself. I guess I'm just going to have to feed someone else with my fabulous fall feast of pumpkin goodies.

As I looked for a new pumpkin recipe to try out, I thought to myself that the only other group of people that I really interact with regularly are my fellow classmates in my Chinese class. They would be perfect to feed since class is from 7-9pm and everyone is starving since most of them come straight from work. Ah-ha! I'm brilliant!

So I find a recipe for a pumpkin spice cake from the JoyofBaking.com which was adapted from Cindy Mushet's baking newsletter "Baking with the American Harvest" and decide to give it a go. The ingredients looked simple enough and I even liked the idea of using cake flour rather than regular all purpose to make the cake lighter and fluffier. And since I'm feeding 25+ people, I decided to turn the cake into cupcakes for easier eating purposes and omitted the frosting just to ease transportation difficulties (I'm also not a big fan of frosting either, so I just dusted them lightly with powdered sugar). The class seemed to like them and even mom-in-law had a few minis as dessert when I brought over leftovers after class. This was a great way to welcome in the fall!  

Pumpkin Spice Cake 

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
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 (you sift the flour then measure, not the other way around)

1/4 teaspoon baking powder 

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I increased to 1 tsp)

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (I decreased to 1/8 tsp)

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves (I also added in 1/8 tsp nutmeg for some more kick)

1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and place rack in center of oven.  Butter and flour (or spray with Baker's Joy) two - 8 inch (20 cm) cake pans. (since I used cupcake cups, I didn't need to do this)

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes).  Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Add the pumpkin puree and vanilla and beat until incorporated.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.  Add the flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to the pumpkin batter, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.  Divide the batter in half and then pour the batter into the prepared pans. (I made about 36 mini cupcakes and 12 regular sized cupcakes with the batter.) Bake for approximately 25 - 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. (The mini's only took 10 minutes to bake but the regular sized cupcakes took about 15-20 minutes).  Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes and then invert and remove the cakes from their pans.  Cool completely before frosting.

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

This almost reminds me of James and the Giant Peach

Here's the story (yes, there's always a story): BF's older sister's husband (Mr. Law-School) got me a pumpkin in Davis when they took Baby-Cakes (BF's nephew) to a pumpkin patch. I left it outside on the porch so trick-or-treaters would know we were dishing out the candy. I figured the pumpkin looked cozy there, so I left it outside for the rest of the week. When I went out to check the mail one day - BAM! There was a hole bitten right into the side of the poor thing! WHO WOULD DO THIS? Mom-in-law said it was most likely raccoons or skunks (we have both here in the wilderness that is NorCal) since the squirrels are too little to do this kind of damage. Whatever the beast type, my poor innocent pumpkin suffered unnecessarily. I immediately rushed it indoors and it is now residing in my living room; happy and homey like it should always be. I couldn't pass up documenting my pumpkin adventures, both culinary and creature created.

Nom Nom Nom Nom