Photo: Monika Bartyzel
The orange squash is one of the most undervalued delicacies in the world of food. By adding it to a cake, you get all the rich and spicy flavor contrasted with vanilla or chocolate. Since this is a cake, it can be made ahead of time -- freeing up the oven for the last-minute fare -- and adds some three-dimensional whimsy to your holiday table.
The Cake Recipe
Any pumpkin cake will work, but since pumpkin spices work so well with sweet liquor, the above cake was made using MyRecipes' Pumpkin-Rum Cake -- with two major changes. First, in a pinch you can use canned pumpkin, but seeing that those small, sweet pumpkins are in-season, fresh pumpkin flesh is the way to go. Secondly, along the same vein, it's much more flavorful to use freshly ground spices -- they'll perfume the kitchen while adding a little extra kick to your cake.
Forming the Cake
The pictured cake was made using Nordic Ware's 3D Great Pumpkin Pan, which is super-easy to use. The pan is greased and floured (Alton Brown's kitchen lube works perfectly), 5 cups of batter are poured into each pumpkin-shaped side (the above recipes makes 12 cups, so throw the extra into a small pan or muffin tin for an extra little treat), and the cake is then baked.
Note: Be sure to follow the pan's instructions on temperature, or you could end up with a well-done outside and a gooey, unfinished inside.
Once cooled slightly, the cake should pop right out, and once completely cool, it's time to trim. Slice off any rounded bits from the flat middle of the cake pieces, spread some frosting to about an inch from the edge of the bottom half, and then join the two pieces with the ridges matching on the top and bottom. Likewise, if you have a small group coming together for dinner, just use the top half and reserve the bottom half for your own leftovers, like we did above.
In a pinch, however, a rounded bundt pan can also work. While it won't be perfect, it will be pretty close. Just remember to add a stem to the center hole to complete the look.
Of course, a pumpkin cake doesn't have to be pumpkin-shaped -- especially if you've already made marzipan pumpkins. Just bake, frost, and add seasonal decorations to the top.
Topping the Cake
There are a lot of options for topping the cake (some of which can be seen in the gallery). Keep in mind two things: One, this is a very flavorful cake that doesn't really need a lot, if any frosting. Two, if using a pumpkin pan, take the shape into consideration. The 3-D shape means that it isn't so easy to coat the bottom half.
- Powdered Sugar: A light dusting of powdered sugar is nice for a cake like this. However, to make it more seasonally festive, the above cake uses orange-colored granulated sugar which was ground finer in a food processor before lightly sprinkled on the cake with the help of a mesh strainer. For the regular sugar to stick, some frosting was lightly spread along the surface until the cake was slightly sticky.
- Glaze: A glaze, whether you choose something simply sugary, fruity, or boozy, is a great way for a little added kick. For this recipe, a glaze made with pumpkin spice syrup and rum would amp up the flavors already present in the cake.
- Frosting: A dripping frosting that can be poured over the cake is a simple way to add just a little frosting to the mix. Keep in mind, however, that the bottom will be drippy-frosting-free and plan accordingly.
- Nothing!: This cake is quite flavorful, much like a carrot or zucchini cake, so it's just as tasty offered up as a perfectly simple slice.
