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Fiona's Forbidden Fruit

Indulge your temptations with hidden vegetable treats

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Desserts

Pumpkin Spice Cake

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Pumpkin is a staple in fall/winter baking, yet it seems to be forgotten the rest of the year. I guess this makes sense in terms of eating seasonally, but luckily for us our food industry here in the USA is quite the industry so that we get whatever produce we want whenever we want. (I actually think this isn’t so great a thing and truly support eating seasonally and locally…but that’s for another type of blog post)

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I am a huge fan of Pumpkin. When I was an exchange student studying abroad my senior year of high school in France, I was very sad to find that pumpkin was not sold in the baking aisle in cans. It wasn’t even really sold in supermarkets at all unless in the produce section seasonally.

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Luckily I have very loving parents who were so kind as to send me a Thanksgiving care package when I was abroad and in it was a beautiful can of pumpkin. (Other students were getting Oreos, Peanut Butter, etc, but of course I asked for a can of vegetables) I have since learned the ways of baking with fresh pumpkins (and finding fun ways to roast the pepitas!) but I will use a can in the off-season now and again for a sense of nostalgia or when the pumpkin spice cravings overcome me.

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Let’s not forget, pumpkins are a vegetable and so we should be proud of ourselves when we eat a meal with pumpkin in it – dessert or not! It’s always fun to bake in a bundt pan and this cake is no exception.

I topped it off with a whipped cream cream cheese frosting as I was feeling like a nice hearty cake, but it would be just fine on its own or with a light drizzle on top. It’s totally up to you how you want to customize it!

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Sticky Toffee Pumpkin Pudding

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Sticky Toffee Pudding is one of my absolute favorite British desserts. If you have yet to be introduced to it – please don’t be put off by its odd name! This is really just a spice cake topped with a liquid hot caramel sauce that is super moist and super delicious. The perfect thing to warm you up on a chilly autumn evening.

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I personally don’t limit myself to enjoying it in the fall and love having a slice with an afternoon cup of tea! That being said, this dessert is truly decadent but as always, I’ve added a sneaky hidden vegetable – pumpkin.

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Pumpkin is one of those vegetables that has been accepted into the dessert world by the majority of people thanks to the tasty creation that is pumpkin pie. We often forget how pumpkin is actually really good for you, it has lots of Vitamin A, fiber, potassium, and Vitamin C. So go ahead, grab a second slice.

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Print

Sticky Toffee Pumpkin Pudding

Course Dessert
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 12
Author Fiona Saluk

Ingredients

  • Cake/Pudding
  • 1 1/3 cup almond milk
  • 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1/3 cup soaked medjool dates about 8 whole dates
  • 1 tbsp brown rice syrup
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil
  • 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1 cup + 3 tbsp oat flour GF if need be
  • 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • Topping
  • 1/4 cup brown rice syrup or other liquid sweetener
  • 1/4 cup coconut sugar or brown sugar if preferred
  • 3/4 cup coconut milk
  • 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/3 cup pecans for sprinkling on top

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 375F and grease a bundt pan with oil of your choice (I love coconut oil spray)
  2. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, and pumpkin pie spice
  3. In a food processor (or chop finely by hand), drain the water from your soaking dates and blend the dates plus 1-3 tbsp water until a thick paste forms
  4. Add the dates, and the rest of the wet ingredients into the flour bowl and mix until well incorporated.
  5. Pour into greased bundt pan and bake for 35-45 minutes depending on your oven. It'll be done when the edges are browned but the center is still quite moist. Let sit in bundt pan for 5 minutes before flipping onto a cooling rack (keep in mind pudding will not rise a lot!)
  6. In a small saucepan on low-medium heat combine all the ingredients for the topping and once boiling reduce to a simmer and cook until mixture becomings dark brown and syrup-like. Sweeten with additional sugar to your liking and stir every few minutes.
  7. When pudding is slightly cooled place on serving platter and poke holes with wooden skewer or a knife, drizzle the topping over the cake. Sprinkle pecans on top.