Anybody else like to wander through local garden centers during the month of October as much as I do? Their Fall displays are so beautiful and yet not so much that they inspire me to recreate one on my own front porch.
It's not that I haven't made an attempt at a front porch Fall display, it's just that I failed miserably. Several years ago, I bought corn stalks, pumpkins, a hay bale and some mums but something went terribly wrong with the whole assembly process.
I now have a greater appreciate for the garden center displays because I know that it takes an artistic eye to pull that all together. (Something I was apparently lacking.) I wish that I had taken some pictures of it but at the time, but I was probably too embarrassed or didn't want to document my pitiful display. Maybe one day, I will seek some assistance from a professional and attempt another display for the Davis front porch but for now, I'll just enjoy and appreciate the Fall displays at the garden centers.
I came home totally inspired - not to make a Fall display on my porch but to make pumpkin dessert. (Pretty sure that was NOT the goal.) Anyway, I decided to make a pumpkin chocolate marble cake.
I tried a new one this year and it was definitely a winning combination. This recipe came from piarecipes.com.
Chocolate-Pumpkin Marble Cake with Cream Cheese Glaze
Cake:
- 1 1/4 cups pumpkin puree
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened
- 5 large eggs
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 2 3/4 cups cake flour, divided
- 3 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp. baking powder, divided
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda, divided
- 1 tsp. salt, divided
- 3/4 cup Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa
- 1 1/3 cup regular or low-fat buttermilk, divided
Cream Cheese Glaze:
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 4 oz. (1/2 cup) regular or low-fat cream cheese
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla
- 3-4 tbsp. milk (or more if you want a thinner glaze)
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Rub a 10 inch tube pan or 12-cup bundt pan with butter (or spritz with cooking spray) and dust with 1 tbsp. flour until the interior is covered. Tap lightly to shake loose extra flour. Set aside.
Spread pumpkin puree over two layers of paper towels and press two more layers on top. Let sit for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large mixer bowl cream butter until light. Add both sugars in a steady stream and mix on medium for about 5 minutes.
Add eggs, one at time, mixing well after each. Add in vanilla.
Transfer half of the mixture into another large bowl (another mixer bowl would be helpful, but any large bowl will work). Set aside.
Scape the pumpkin off of the paper towel and add it to the first bowl. Mix well.
In a smaller bowl combine 1 3/4 cup flour, pumpkin pie spice, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp. baking powder and 1/2 tsp. salt.
Add half of the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and mix well. Mix in 1/3 cup buttermilk. Then add the remaining flour and mix until combined. Set aside.
In the smaller bowl combine 1 cup flour, 3/4 cup cocoa, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp. baking powder and 1/2 tsp. salt.
Add half of the flour/cocoa mixture to the other large bowl and mix well with a whisk or your mixer. Mix in 1 cup of buttermilk. Then add the remaining flour and mix until combined.
Spoon 1/3 of the pumpkin batter into your prepared pan. Drop heaping spoonfuls of the chocolate batter around the pan (not completely covering all the pumpkin).
Spoon in the remaining pumpkin and chocolate batters. Gently swirl a knife around the pan several times.
Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs (make sure you’re checking in both the pumpkin and chocolate parts, I noticed large chocolate sections needed a few additional minutes).
Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and cool for another 10 minutes on a rack.
Meanwhile, to make the glaze, mix powdered sugar and cream cheese until well blended. Beat in vanilla and milk, 1 tbsp. at time.
Drizzle on the warm cake. Let cake cool completely.
Slice and serve.
By the way, I want to send a shout out to The Family Tree garden center in Snellville, Georgia for their fabulous Fall displays AND for allowing me to come and photograph them all. These are a few of my favorite pics from my stroll through the nursery last week.
Fall just wouldn't be Fall without a little pumpkin cake to go along with the beautiful displays.
Happy Fall everyone.
Ciao!
Chocolate-Pumpkin Marble Cake with Cream Cheese Glaze
Ingredients:
Cake:
- 1 1/4 cups pumpkin puree
- 1 cup sugar*
- 1 cup packed dark brown sugar*
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened*
- 5 large eggs
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 2 3/4 cups cake flour, divided
- 3 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp. baking powder, divided
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda, divided
- 1 tsp. salt, divided
- 3/4 cup Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa
- 1 1/3 cup regular or low-fat buttermilk, divided
*To make this healthier, you can reduce the sugars to 3/4 cup each and
the butter to 1 cup. The cake won’t be quite as moist as it should be,
but will still taste good.
Cream Cheese Glaze:
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 4 oz. (1/2 cup) regular or low-fat cream cheese
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla
- 3-4 tbsp. milk (or more if you want a thinner glaze)
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Rub a 10 inch tube pan or 12-cup bundt pan with butter (or spritz with cooking spray) and dust with 1 tbsp. flour until the interior is covered. Tap lightly to shake loose extra flour. Set aside.
- Spread pumpkin puree over two layers of paper towels and press two more layers on top. Let sit for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large mixer bowl cream butter until light. Add both sugars in a steady stream and mix on medium for about 5 minutes.
- Add eggs, one at time, mixing well after each. Add in vanilla.
- Transfer half of the mixture into another large bowl (another mixer bowl would be helpful, but any large bowl will work). Set aside.
- Scape the pumpkin off of the paper towel and add it to the first bowl. Mix well.
- In a smaller bowl combine 1 3/4 cup flour, pumpkin pie spice, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp. baking powder and 1/2 tsp. salt.
- Add half of the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and mix well. Mix in 1/3 cup buttermilk. Then add the remaining flour and mix until combined. Set aside.
- In the smaller bowl combine 1 cup flour, 3/4 cup cocoa, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp. baking powder and 1/2 tsp. salt.
- Add half of the flour/cocoa mixture to the other large bowl and mix well with a whisk or your mixer. Mix in 1 cup of buttermilk. Then add the remaining flour and mix until combined.
- Spoon 1/3 of the pumpkin batter into your prepared pan. Drop heaping spoonfuls of the chocolate batter around the pan (not completely covering all the pumpkin). Spoon in the remaining pumpkin and chocolate batters. Gently swirl a knife around the pan several times.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs (make sure you’re checking in both the pumpkin and chocolate parts, I noticed large chocolate sections needed a few additional minutes). Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and cool for another 10 minutes on a rack.
- Meanwhile, to make the glaze, mix powdered sugar and cream cheese until well blended. Beat in vanilla and milk, 1 tbsp. at time. Drizzle on the warm cake. Let cake cool completely.
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