Pumpkin cake with brown butter frosting



Hoo boy. I don't know what your November was like, but mine came and went in a flash. Clearly. All I have to show for it is one measly blog post. I would be feeling more sheepish except one of the main reasons for my lacklustre blogging performance was a project I've been meaning to do for a few years now, something on my Things-That-Never-Get-Done-But-Really-Should list. Yes, for better or worse, I'm back to lists. And yes, for better or worse, that list really exists.

Checking something off the TTNGDBRS list is about 100 times more gratifying than checking something off my usual to-do list—and the satisfaction sticks around much longer. It makes me want to stand up straighter, speak like I know what I'm talking about and tackle the next TTNGDBRS. Almost.

While I'm working on that, you can get started on this pumpkin cake. It's a single layer (perfect for the workweek), but frosted (a little pre-holiday panache). If you want to kick things up one more notch, then get candying those walnuts too.

Back later this week with another pumpkin treat that's perfect for a lazy (and preferably snowy) weekend morning.

Pumpkin Cake with Brown Butter Frosting  

Cake: 
1/2 cup salted butter, at room temperature
1 2/3 cups flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup warm milk 

Frosting:
4 tablespoons salted butter
1 cup icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-2 tablespoons milk

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and line a 9-inch round pan with parchment paper, then re-grease and flour the pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside.

In a second bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the pumpkin puree and milk and beat until smooth. Add the flour mixture, mixing just until combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean (about 55 minutes). Transfer the cake to a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes.

Carefully loosen the cake from the pan and flip it out onto the wire rack to cook completely before frosting.

To prepare the frosting, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until the butter is nut-brown in color (about 10 minutes). Pour the browned butter into a bowl, leaving any burned bits behind.

Add the icing sugar, vanilla and 1 tablespoon of milk. Stir until smooth. If the frosting is too thick, add the remaining tablespoon of milk, a little at a time, until the mixture is spreadable. Let the mixture cool for 5 minutes, then frost your cake already!

Source: Martha Stewart, via Shutterbean. Adapted ever so slightly.  

Notes: I started to get nervous when Tracy from Shutterbean said, "The icing is a snap to work with. There's not a lot of it. That's ok! You don't really need much." Hold the phone. I like frosting, so I made 1.5 times what the recipe calls for above.

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