Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween! Hope you have a fun-filled day with lots of treats! Here's a festive recipe of my latest cake creation, a Chocolate Pumpkin Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting and Chocolate Ganache Glaze....it sure is a mouthful but it is oh so yummy and worth every single calorie!


Chocolate Pumpkin Cake (makes one 3-layer cake)

Ingredients:
-2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
-1 cup granulated sugar
-1 cup dark brown sugar
-3/4 cup cocoa powder
-1 1/2 tsp baking soda
-2 tsp baking powder
-1 tsp salt
-2 tsp cinnamon
-1 1/2 cups buttermilk
-1 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
-1 cup vegetable oil
-1 tsp vanilla
-3 eggs

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Prepare three 8" cake pans lined with parchment paper and sprayed with cooking spray.
• In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients: flour, sugars, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and mix together.
• In a medium bowl combine all wet ingredients: buttermilk, pumpkin puree, vegetable oil and vanilla.
  
• Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and beat with mixer on medium speed just until combined.
• Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.
• Bake for 25 minutes or until cake tests done.
  
• Let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes then move to wire racks to continue cooling.
• While cakes are cooling you can prepare the Orange Cream Cheese Frosting.
  

Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:
-12 oz cream cheese, softened
-1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
-6 cups confectioner's sugar
-1/2 tsp vanilla
-orange food coloring

• Mix cream cheese and butter with electric mixer on medium speed until creamy.
• Gradually add in confectioner's sugar one cup at a time and continue to mix.
• Mix in vanilla.
• Add in orange food coloring and mix until you reach your desired shade of orange.
• Once cake has cooled, ice your cake with cream cheese frosting and then place cake in refrigerator for about 20 minutes so icing will set up.
• Prepare the Chocolate Ganache while you wait.
  

Chocolate Ganache

Ingredients:
-1 cup heavy cream
-8 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

• In a small sauce pan heat heavy cream over medium-high heat until it comes to a boil.
• Remove cream from heat and pour over chocolate chips.
• Gently stir cream and chocolate chips so chocolate begins to melt.
• Let mixture sit 5 minutes and then stir. Mixture will begin to thicken as it sits.
  
• Remove cake from refrigerator and pour Chocolate Ganache overtop of the cake and gently push it over the sides using an offset spatula so that it drizzles down.

This cake is perfect to take to a Halloween or Fall party and I guarantee it won't last long!

Happy Halloween!