It’s impossible for me to think of any dessert that screams “fall” more that this quadfecta of autumnal flavors: bourbon, pumpkin, cinnamon, and maple. If this Boozy Spiced Pumpkin Cake with Maple Glaze isn’t a celebration of the season in dessert form, I’m not sure what is!
I brought this cake over to my pal Kathleen’s house last week – she made this, and side note, let’s all agree to make it immediately, it was delicious – and it went over, ummm, extremely well. It was my usual combo of sweet (but not too sweet) cake, but with a topping that adds extra sweetness to make it really sing. The bourbon was fairly mild but added a little extra punch, the spices bringing some warmth to the cake, and the texture is (sorry/not sorry) perfectly moist. I also made some cinnamon ice cream that was perfect and I’m realizing I don’t have a recipe for on this blog (we’ll work on that for the future).
One other note about this lovely dinner party we went to: Kathleen served popcorn as an appetizer (along with cheeses and some fancy salami). As a popcorn-focused person, I can tell you that it was one of the more brilliant appetizers I’ve ever had, and an idea I’ll be copying very soon!
This cake makes a great holiday gift in part because it’s so easy to bake, along with being so very seasonal. One loaf wraps up nicely in one of these, and the maple glaze can be gifted in a separate mason jar (or left off – while highly encouraged, the cake is still quite tasty without).
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×5 loaf pan with cooking spray, and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and white and brown sugars until fluffy. Add the eggs, pumpkin puree, and bourbon, and mix until blended.
Add the dry ingredients and stir until just mixed together. Pour batter in to prepared pan.
Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in to the center comes out clean. Cool on rack for about 10 minutes, the turn out on to rack to cool completely.
Serve a slice a cake with a generous amount of sauce drizzled on top.
for the glaze:
Combine all of the ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently, then reduce heat and continue cooking at a low boil, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes.
Remove from heat. The sauce will thicken a bit as it cools.
Strudel and Streusel are two friends living in different cities, sharing a love of baking (and butter) through this blog. With Streusel in Denver, and Strudel in Seattle, we've found our little site to be a great way to stay in touch, share recipes we love, and talk about experiences in our respective cities.
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Perfect for this time of year. Yummy