Chocolate Pumpkin Bundt
I’ve been needing cake. I blame all the ads on social media for the upcoming Valentines menus that seemingly include chocolate cake. This week I took a package of pumpkin out of the freezer, unsure what I’d make with it. The garden produced many huge pumpkins and I probably packaged over 40 cups of the golden puree to use in baking, soups or stews.
Pumpkin puree is used as an additional moisture contributor, and lends little flavor to this particular cake. Yet, the pumpkin pie spices compliment the chocolate so well you can understand why the pumpkin is there! It all comes together like it was a pairing meant to be.
Ingredients:
3/4 cup unsalted butter, soft (or a dairy free alternative)
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
1 1/4 cups pumpkin puree*
3/4 cup buttermilk (I used 1/4 cup dairy free yogurt mixed with 1/2 cup oat milk soured with 1 Tbs lemon juice)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (to make it Gluten Free, I used 1/2 cup sweet white sorghum flour, 1/2 cup tapioca starch, 1/2 cup gf oat flour, 1/4 cup coconut flour and 2 tsp xanthan gum)
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
Optional: 3/4 cup chocolate chips or chunks
Directions for one 10-cup bundt cake:
1. Place butter and sugar into the bowl of your mixer and beat on medium speed for 3-5 minutes. While this is going, prepare your bundt pan. Using a pastry brush and softened butter or coconut oil, coat the crevasses of the pan well. Tap around a few tablespoons of potato starch so that the greased pan gets nicely coated so that it will fully release the cake and the beautiful pattern of the pan is displayed after baking. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Crack and whisk the eggs, adding them in two additions to the creamed mixture, scraping the sides down between additions. Beat for 1 minute.
3. In another bowl, whisk together the buttermilk (or suggested dairy free alternative) with the pumpkin puree and vanilla extract. Set aside. *If you’d prefer to use applesauce or mashed bananas, they could both sub in equally for the pumpkin.
4. Place the dry ingredients into a bowl or measuring cup and dry-whisk them together. This removes lumps and prepares them to integrate evenly into the batter without over-mixing.
5. Add the flour mixture and the liquid mixture to the mixing bowl alternating between the two, beginning and ending with flour. Each addition can be about half of each mixture. Add the optional chocolate. If you’re making this GF, cover the batter and let it rest 15-25 minutes.
6. Spoon the batter into your prepared pan and smooth the top. Place into the preheated oven for about one hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.
7. Remove the cake and let it rest in the pan for 5 minutes. Gently pull the edges away from the top sides and center of the pan. Place a cooling rack on the bottom of the pan and flip it over. You should soon hear or feel the cake release. Lift the pan and admire your creation! Let it cool completely, and to dress it up you could pour a simple chocolate glaze over it (1/4 cup melted butter stirred with 2/3 cup chocolate chips).
8. Enjoy within three days if kept covered on the counter, or, up to 7 days if kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It freezes well, and I’d recommend slicing and wrapping individual pieces so that you can easily thaw what you need.
NOTE: if your cake did not release from the pan fully, keep it upside down a few more minutes. Or, place it back in the oven for a bit longer. Having a high-quality non-stick pan such as the NordicWare brand is worth the price tag!
Serves 12-16 slices
