24 Feb Baking a Pumpkin Cake
This fall I am baking a pumpkin coffee cake with a cream cheese frosting and decorating with ghost meringues to add a Halloween character to it! Dig in!
Fall has covered nature with the most beautiful color pallet. Greens, yellows, reds.
Sunflowers, pumpkins, fall baking all in season.
This fall I am baking a pumpkin cake with a cream cheese frosting and decorating with ghost meringues to add a Halloween character to it!
Pumpkin Coffee Cake: There’s incredible flavor in each soft, moist bite of the pumpkin cake layer.
Ghost meringues: Sweet, crunchy and fun!
Cream Cheese frosting: Semi sweet with honey and vanilla!
This is the BEST pumpkin cake I’ve ever had and I know you’ll feel the same way! It’s supremely moist, soft, rich, and spiced with pumpkin spice flavor.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 & 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 cup (240ml) vegetable oil or avocado oil
- 4 large eggs
- 1 (200g) packed light brown sugar
- 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
- 1 & 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 ounces (226g) full-fat cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp 113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 cups (360g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Meringue Cookies
A classic recipe for meringue cookies! These light and airy meringues make for a great treat any time of the year, but I especially love them as a Halloween dessert!
If this is your first time making meringues I recommend watching the video before beginning.
Ingredients
- 4 large egg whites, room temperature
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Recommended Equipment
- Stand mixer (you can use a hand mixer instead, it will just take longer)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 225F (105C) and line a large cookie sheet (or two regular-sized cookie sheets — make sure they will fit in your oven together) with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Combine egg whites, cream of tartar, in a large, completely clean, completely grease-free bowl
- large egg whites,½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer (with the whisk attachment), stir on low speed until mixture becomes foamy.
- Increase speed to high.
- With mixer on high, gradually add sugar, about 1 Tablespoon at a time, stirring after each addition until sugar is dissolved (about 15-20 seconds between each addition).
- Beat until mixture is thick, shiny, and has increased in volume. Mixture should have stiff peaks and sugar should be completely dissolved (you can test this by rubbing a small bit of the mixture between your fingers, if it feels gritty, the sugar isn’t dissolved).
- Stir in vanilla extract and any other extract you may like to use.
- Fit a large disposable piping bag with a large tip and transfer meringue to prepared piping bag and pipe onto prepared cookie sheet. The meringue cookies can be pretty close to each other as they won’t spread, and you will want to bake all of the cookies at the same time, so make sure you make enough space.
- Bake on 225F (105C) for 1 hour. Turn off the oven once the baking time has passed, and do not open the oven. Leave the oven door closed and allow cookies to cool completely in the oven (1-2 hours) before removing. I usually do it overnight.
Notes
- You may substitute different extracts, if I’m adding a different flavor I usually like to still keep the vanilla but cut it down to ½ teaspoon, then add ¼-1/2 teaspoon of the extract of choice.
- If there’s even a tiny bit of grease or moisture in your bowl, your egg whites may not whip up properly. The same thing could happen if there is even a tiny bit of egg yolk mixed in with your egg whites. I clean the bowl and all tools with vinegar before use and seperate the eggs from whites in a seperate bowl.
- Meringue cookies should be crisp and can be stored in an airtight container. Keep away from heat and moisture as it can soften your meringues.
For the Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and grease a 9×13-inch baking pan.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Whisk the oil, eggs, brown sugar, granulated sugar, pumpkin, and vanilla extract together until combined.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and use a mixer or whisk until completely combined. Batter will be thick.
- Spread batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 30-36 minutes. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours.
- The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If you find the top or edges of the cake is/are browning too quickly in the oven, loosely cover it with aluminum foil.
- Remove the cake from the oven and set the entire pan on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely.
- After is cool completely I slice it in half. And then make the frosting.
Make the frosting:
In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy. Add 3 cups confectioners’ sugar, vanilla.
Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then switch to high speed and beat for 2 to 3 minutes. Spread the frosting on the cooled cake. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving. This helps sets the frosting and makes cutting easier.
Decorate the cake with the Meringue cookies!
Watch the video and Subscribe here!
Tip: Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for 5 days.
No Comments