Renegade Soiree: Fabulous Parties By Any Means Necessary

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I thought I might give up some of my favorite recipes for the Harvest occasion. I'd like to start with a cake so yummy no one will ever guess how easy it is to make. Pumpkin Spice cake with a light Honey/Cream Cheese Frosting.

*Quick Tip: Try to come up with fun, festive names for some of your signature dishes. I think it adds a touch of whimsy to any Holiday tradition.

You'll Need:

For the cake:
1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter or margarine
2 1/2 c. cake flour
2 TBSP baking soda
1/2 Tsp. salt
1 TBSP pumpkin pie spice (I like to make my own with: cloves, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger)
2 large eggs (1/2 c. egg substitute)
1 1/2 c. sugar (or 3/4 c baking sugar substitute)
1 can solid pack pumpkin puree (Martha Stewart and my Mom say to use neither pumpkin pie filling NOR fresh pumpkin puree- I'd listen if I were you.)

For the Frosting:
1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter or margarine, softened
1 bar (8 ounces) cream cheese (I use 1/3 less fat), softened
1/4 c. Honey

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 9" baking pan with baking spray
2. In a bowl, mix flour, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin-pie spice. In a secondary bowl whisk eggs, sugar, butter, and pumpkin puree until combined. Gently add in dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture, and mix until smooth.
3. Turn batter into the 9" pan you've prepared. Bake until the toothpick test comes out clean (a few crumbs will be attached), approx. 45 to 50 minutes. Cool cake on a rack, approx. 30-40 minutes. Level the bottom of the cake with knife or cake leveler. Turn cake upright onto stand or serving platter.
4. Honey Frosting: whisk butter, cream cheese, and honey until evenly combined and smooth.
5. Frost that cooled cake and serve!

Enjoy the recipe. I also found a similar recipe here. It's a good one, too. Happy Baking!

Image from Martha Stewart dot com