Incredible Pumpkin Cake

Anyone who knows me knows that I love to cook and bake. I would love to go to culinary school someday and get a job as a chef. In the meantime, I love making creative meals and desserts for my family.

Here is the recipe for an incredible pumpkin cake I made for my family. I took a picture of it to show you how cute it is. It tastes as good as it looks, too!

If any of you make this cake for your family, I hope you'll enjoy it as much as we did, and let me know about it since I love hearing of others' cooking successes.

1 pkg. (2-layer size) spice cake mix
12 oz. cream cheese, softened, divided
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
Few drops each: green, red, and yellow food colorings
1 cake ice cream cone

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Prepare cake mix as directed on package, reducing water to 1/2 cup and increasing oil to 1/2 cup. Add 4 oz. of the cream cheese, the pumpkin, cinnamon and ginger. Beat on medium speed until well blended. Pour into greased 12-cup fluted tube pan or 10-inch tube pan.

BAKE 40 to 45 min. or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 min. Remove from pan; cool completely on wire rack.

BEAT remaining 8 oz. of cream cheese and butter in small bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy after each addition. Remove 1/2 cup of the frosting; place in small bowl. Add green food coloring; stir until well blended. Spread half of the green frosting onto outside of ice cream cone; set aside. Set remaining green frosting aside for later use.

ADD red and yellow food colorings to remaining white frosting to tint it orange. Place cake, rounded-side up, on serving plate. Spread with orange frosting to resemble pumpkin. Invert ice cream cone in hole in top of cake for the "pumpkin's stem." Pipe the reserved green frosting in vertical lines down side of cake.

Fun Idea
Place black gumdrops on sheet of wax paper sprinkled with additional sugar. Use a rolling pin to thinly flatten each gumdrop, turning frequently to coat both sides with sugar. Cut into desired shapes with a sharp knife. Use to decorate frosted cake to resemble a jack-o'-lantern.



(I must give credit where credit is due. The cake was made from 2 recipes, changed a little and added together, from www.kraftfoods.com)