Pumpkin-Maple Sourdough Cake with Carmel Buttercream Frosting

The first helping...

I have been caring for a sourdough started for about six months now and have finally branched out to trying recipes that I would have never associated with sourdough. This was my first dessert sourdough recipe and it killed two birds with one stone. I have a ton of pureed pumpkin in the freezer to use up and was neglecting my sourdough starter in a bad way. I don't remember where I found this recipe, but it's definitely a keeper. If you don't have a sourdough starter at home it's okay. You can come over and I'll give you some of mine or you can visit Sourdough Home for the directions I used to start mine. It's really not as complicated as it sounds. It just takes time, planning and patience. Needless to say, keeping a sourdough starter has been good for me in a number of ways.

This cake is one of those almost healthy desserts - It uses maple syrup, whole wheat flour, and it has vegetables it in! See? I told you it was healthy! Okay, maybe healthy is a bit of a stretch, but it is definitely better for you than lots of other dessert options. It tastes very similar to carrot cake and has a dense and chewy texture that is more like a muffin than cake. There is a very mild sourdough flavor that I found to be very enjoyable. In my limited sourdough experiences, the sourness of the end product continues to develop in the days after baking, but we didn't have a chance to test that. The recipe makes one eight-inch cake, which is just the right amount for a small gathering or for my husband's after dinner snack. I'm not kidding - he ate the entire cake in one evening! Oh ok, I helped. A little. Or maybe a lot. I am almost certain it wouldn't hold up well if you tried to layer them, but prove me wrong if you must.

The frosting recipe can be found in my post for Samoa Cupcakes. I had about a cup of the caramel frosting leftover, so I froze it and used it here. It was a over little sweet for my taste, but the flavors paired well. If I were to make a frosting specifically for this cake, I'd probably opt for a maple glaze or a brown sugar cream cheese frosting.

Pumpkin-Maple Sourdough Cake
1/2 cup pumpkin or squash puree (canned or homemade)
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup “fed” 100% hydration sourdough starter
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
heaping 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and move rack to center position.  Butter an 8-inch round cake pan (or coat with baking spray).

Start with all ingredients at room temperature. In a mixing bowl, whisk together squash puree, maple syrup, egg, and vanilla.  Fold sourdough starter into squash mixture into until well combined. In a separate small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice. Add dry ingredients to squash mixture and stir just until incorporated. Stir in melted butter. Pour batter into the greased 8-inch round cake pan.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched.

'Tis the Baking Season

As we were decorating our tree, we explained that it was for Baby Jesus' birthday, so now Abby thinks that Baby Jesus is actually IN our Christmas tree. When we turn on the lights she gasps and says "Look at Him!! Baby Jesus! Aww." (Have I mentioned lately that I love my camera?! Thanks again Love. You're too good to me!)

This year I have way more time than we have money, so all of our Christmas gifts are going to be homemade. Last week it dawned on me that the postal mail cut off for Christmas delivery is fast approaching. No biggie. Except that I have NOTHING done!! Not one single project is completed. I've always said that I work better under pressure and here I am proving it to be true yet again.

If you're expecting a Christmas package from me, I'd stop reading now. Unless of course you need a reason to stalk your mail carrier until it arrives! 

Friday and Saturday were spent working on crafty gifts for grandparents and some other pretty special people. I am so excited to share this project with you (my one faithful follower!), but you're just going to have to wait a few more weeks! The rest of my weekend was spent working up a baking plan and shopping for the coming week's meals and baking mayhem.

Today I was given the rare opportunity to sleep in. (Thanks Husband!) When I woke up I got straight to work - I baked bread for the second time this week, made coffee chocolate cake, Bailey's Irish Cream frosting, Orange-Almond-Cranberry Biscotti and Spritz/Press/Butter/Whatever You Want To Call Them Cookies. Then I made Slow Cooked Ratatuille with Polenta for dinner. After I cleaned up dinner and got Abby off to bed, I formed cake balls, which are now hanging out in the freezer waiting to be coated in chocolate tomorrow. I have also prepped for tomorrow's meals and measured dry ingredients for making Gingerbread Cookies and Peppermint Cocoa Kiss Cookies. Phew.

Oh my goodness I don't even think I can tell you how many times I have washed my mixer today! I am exhausted, but I absolutely must get a workout in tonight to make up for all of the finger-licking and taste testing I did today...and will do again tomorrow! For tonight, I will leave you with a few pictures and a promise for recipes to come!

Slow-Cooked Ratatouille and Polenta from America's Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook. Hands down heartiest meatless meal I have ever made. I will definitely be adding this recipe to our regular rotation!

Orange-Cranberry-Almond Biscotti cooling and waiting for some white chocolate lovin'.

I love just plain ol' vanilla Spritz Cookies. It must be the simplicity and the less is more philosophy.  That and my cookie press was given to me by a very special person and I think of her so fondly every time I use it.

Rejoining the Blogosphere: Samoa Cupcakes

New Camera = Food Pictures!

These two cutie pies are the best darn taste testers I could ever ask for! And the one on the right's Mama "maturing" another year was a great excuse to try a new cupcake recipe - her request: Anything chocolate or Samoa.

Samoa cupcakes it is! The Birthday Girl is quite the cake baker herself and has just about perfected the Samoa cupcake. I, on the other hand, had never attempted it. I decided to make this recipe from Sweet Little Details, with a few very minor variations. The cake is the perfect consistency for a cupcake. It's sturdy without being dense or dry. I found the frosting to be a tad too sweet for my liking, so I ended up with about two cups of leftover frosting. I hate to waste, so I popped them in empty jelly jars to store them in the freezer. I think we may have to veer from tradition this Christmas morning because this frosting would be amazing on cinnamon rolls! Heck, tomorrow is Saturday... that's a good enough reason to make cinnamon rolls, right?

Samoa Cupcakes

2 C. AP flour

3/4 C. cocoa powder

1 1/2 sticks butter, room temperature

1 3/4 C. sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp coconut extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 C. whole milk, at room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin tin with paper liners.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and cocoa powder. Cream together the butter, sugar, salt, and baking soda until fluffy and light. Combine milk and extracts in a measuring cup. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. With mixer on low speed add in the dry ingredients in three batches, alternating with the milk beating just until combined.
3. Fill cupcake liners 1/2 full, making sure that the batter is divided evenly. (I find that an ice-cream scoop works perfectly for this! Not a new trick, I know, but still…) Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 20-22 minutes. Allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Caramel Buttercream Frosting

2 sticks unsalted butter

½ tsp salt

¾ C packed brown sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 C. prepared caramel

3 Tbsp milk

5 C. powdered sugar

1 C. sweetened shredded coconut

¼ C. semi-sweet chocolate chips

¼ C. prepared caramel

Shortening or coconut oil

1. Using a mixer, cream butter and brown sugar together. Add vanilla, salt, caramel syrup, milk until combined. Begin adding in the sugar slowly and mixing thoroughly after each addition.
2. To toast the coconut, spread the coconut onto a rimmed sheet pan. Toast in a 350°F oven, stirring frequently, until the coconut is an even brown color, about 10 minutes.
3. Frost your cooled cupcakes in whatever way you prefer. For mine I used a small cookie scoop to portion out two scoops and then used the back of it to “swirl” it around.
4. Heat chocolate chips in microwave for about 30 seconds or until drizzle-able. You may need to thin your chocolate with a small amount of shortening or coconut oil to accomplish the desired consistency. Drizzle the frosted cupcakes with slightly cooled melted chocolate and caramel in opposite directions. Top with a generous pinch of cooled toasted coconut.

Your New Favorite Cookies

Judge me all you want, but even the most health conscious person needs a treat once in awhile and there is something about fruit and yogurt that just doesn't hit the spot like a good ol' chocolate chip cookie and a big glass of frosty milk! Raw, of course.

 

Today, when the craving hit I didn't feel like trying a new recipe, but decided I was in the mood for something a little different. I love chocolate covered macaroons and I love oatmeal cookies, so coconut and oatmeal sounded like the best of both worlds and I figured it would work out alright. Well, let me tell you... it was more than alright! It was delicious! The best part is that the oatmeal makes you feel like eating four or five cookies isn't really as bad as it is. And you will eat four or five of these, or probably more.

 

I'm lucky to have lots of people in my life to share these with, including some on the other side of the world, so I wasn't stuck with very many and that is a very good thing! I will warn you, anyone (especially unnamed pregnant women) you share with will come begging you for more! ;)

Your New Favorite Cookies
Adapted from Toll House

Ingredients 
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups unsweetened coconut
1 1/4 cups thick rolled oats

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375° F. If you have a convection setting I'd suggest using it! 
2. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl and set aside. 
3. Cream butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar. Add vanilla extract and eggs. Beat until light in color and creamy in texture.
4. Gradually beat in flour mixture.
5. Stir in oats, coconut and chocolate chips.
6. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.  
7. Bake for 7 to 9 minutes (depending on size) or until just beginning to brown. 
8. Let cool on a wire rack. Store leftovers, if you have any, in an airtight container.