Sometimes you just need (a good basic) cake, right?
Sometimes the day just calls for it, or you get the late-afternoon email for the next day’s Bake Sale or a random potluck invite … Put this one in your back pocket for just those occasions. So, how is this a healthy recipe? Okay, let’s be real: it IS cake. But I firmly believe all things in moderation.
This is a no-mixer-required cake recipe. You can easily stir this together with a spatula. You can use a mixer for the frosting, but you can stir that together by hand, too, if you don't want to get the mixer out.
And pumpkin is just awesome, especially when you add extra spices to it; the flavor just keeps getting better and better the longer the cake sits.
Clearly, you can opt not to do the frosting but ... some days just demand frosting, too, right?
Pumpkin Coconut Cake
Yield: 12 squares
Ingredients
Cake
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour (or regular whole wheat)
1/3 cup unsweetened desiccated shredded coconut (if all you have are large flaked dry coconut, just run a knife through it to chop it a bit more finely)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon allspice (or just use 2 tsps of pumpkin pie spice for all of the spices)
4 eggs
3/4 cup coconut oil, melted (or veggie oil is fine, too)
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup loosely packed brown sugar
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Up to 1 cup of additional optional-but-yummy add-ins: ½ cup crystalized ginger, chopped into a small pieces (easiest with a pair of scissors); ½ cup mini dark chocolate chips; ½ cup dried cranberries, or ½ cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped
Coconut cream cheese frosting
2 (8-ounce) blocks regular cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut, toasted if you like
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×13 inch baking dish; set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flours, coconut, baking powder, salt, soda, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom and allspice.
In a larger bowl, whisk together the eggs, coconut oil, sugars and pumpkin puree until smooth and combined. Stir in the vanilla extract. If you are adding any of the optional add-ins, stir them in now.
Using a rubber spatula, mix in the dry ingredients until they are all combined, being careful not to overmix. Spread the batter in the greased pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the center is no longer jiggly. Let cool completely before frosting.
Make the coconut cream cheese frosting: In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add in powdered sugar with the mixer on low speed, increasing the speed once all of the sugar is added. Add in vanilla and coconut extracts, then beat on medium to medium-high speed until creamy, scraping down the sides if needed.
Frost the cooled cake and sprinkle the coconut on top.
Enjoy!
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