Pumpkin Spice Latte

Pumpkin Spice Cake ft. Cinnamon Whipped Cream + Coffee Syrup

Alright, fall has officially arrived, though Starbucks (wisely) started rolling out their fall drinks immediately after Labor Day. (but we're still waiting on the Pumpkin Smash smoothie from Jamba Juice - trust me, you won't be sorry). This is the first of several autumn cakes and even the first of several pumpkin cakes. So whether you choose to puree the innards of the real thing or simply go with the can of pumpkin filling (as I did), 'tis the season of the pumpkin.

Pumpkin itself can be a bit on the bland side so it's the spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, cloves) that add the flavor to the coffee drink, and this cake. The easy and convenient thing is start with a spice cake mix, though you can also start with another mix and add in all the other spices. You'll also need to brew a super-strong pot of coffee (or espresso) to be used in the cake and the syrup topping, so get that going right about now.

This was the first time I've made whipped cream, and I highly recommend timing this part of the process to the glorious one-hot wonder: Whip It, by Devo. Seriously, put on some headphones and blast it directly into your eardrums while you're beating away - mix the cream on low speed for the first minute but once you hit this part, switch over to high speed until the song finishes. Voila! You have whipped it, whipped it good (Energy Cone optional).

And what would a latte be without the fanciful latte art on that foamy canvas you just prepared? You can make a coffee syrup by reducing coffee in a saucepan on the stovetop, mixing it with corn syrup, and then transferring that into a squeeze bottle of sorts (preferably with a small tip or opening) to decorate the top of the cake. I went with a simple spiral, but you can tackle anything from dragons to Potters to bears (oh my!)

pumpkin spice cake
1 box spice cake mix
3 eggs
1/2 can (8 oz) pumpkin pie filling or pureed pumpkin
1 c. strongly brewed coffee
1/4 c. vegetable oil or butter
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, grease pan with butter or a non-stick spray like PAM, and brew a pot of strong coffee to make at least 2 cups worth.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs, oil, pumpkin,and coffee until smooth. Slowly add in cake mix, beating well after each addition. Pour batter into greased 8” round pans and bake according to times on the back of the box.

cinnamon whipped cream
2 c. heavy cream
2 tbsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. powdered sugar
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Pour heavy cream, powdered sugar, and cinnamon into small medium mixing bowl. With beaters or an electric mixer, beat mixture for 1 minute on low and then 1 minute on high. Whip for another 10-30 seconds until desired texture is reached.

coffee syrup
1/2 c. strongly brewed coffee
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. corn syrup
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On the stovetop, mix coffee and sugar in a small saucepan, and stir for 5 minutes until the sugar dissolves and a syrup forms. Let mixture cool for a few seconds without hardening. Pour into candy bottle or squeezable bottle with a small tip, add in corn syrup and shake well until syrups mix. Drizzle decoratively onto cake.

Tri-Melon Mojito

Watermelon, Cantaloupe & Honeydew Melon Cake ft. Mojito Frosting + Melon Balls

I truly love fall and am excited for upcoming seasonal cakes, but here is one last shout-out to summer. You can thank our local grocery store for having melons on sale that were so delicious and juicy that I had no choice but to convert them into cakes.

I had made a watermelon mojito cake for my mom's birthday this summer so I built upon this by adding in some cantalopue and honeydew as well. I used a melon baller and ice cream scoop to de-seed and divide up each melon before using a blender to puree each. You will only end up needing 1/3 cup of each for the cake batter, so go ahead and use the rest of the puree in a big ol' end-of-summer smoothie (or, mojito).

In theory you could blend all three melons together but the colors, though beautiful on their own, would actually combine to make a dirty dishwater gray-brown. So I chose to keep the three flavors and colors separate throughout the process - this way, you can bake three separate cakes or layer the batters into one pan (as I did).

This cake turns out fluffy like angel food cake, though the final flavors and colors are more subtle than strong. So I added food coloring to the cake batters for more vivid colors and you can garnish the final cake with fresh melon balls for visual and edible pops of color.

watermelon, cantaloupe & honeydew melon cakes
1 box white cake mix
4 egg whites
1/3 c. vegetable oil
1/2 c. ea / watermelon, cantaloupe & honeydew melon puree
1 tbsp. mint syrup (see below)
food coloring (optional)
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease pan with butter or a non-stick spray like PAM. Cut up each type of melon into small chunks, blend each separately to puree until smooth, and set aside.

Separate egg yolks and whites, and beat egg whites in a large mixing bowl first on low speed and then on high until foamy. Beat in vegetable oil. Slowly add in cake mix, beating well after each addition until mixture becomes thick like a meringue.

Divide this batter into thirds and spoon each portion into the three bowls of melon puree. Beat each of these separately at high speed for three flavored batters and add in food coloring for bolder colors. You can either bake these as three separate cakes to be layered together or you can pour each layer of batter into one pan - like I did - for a tie-dye effect.

Fill pans 2/3 of the way full and bake according to the times on the back of the mix box, depending on the types of pans you are using.

mojito frosting
1/2 c. butter
4 c. confectioners sugar
2 tbsp. mint syrup (see below)
4 tbsp. rum
1 tbsp. lime juice
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In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, rum, and mint syrup until blended. Slowly add in sugar and continue to mix on high until frosting forms.

mint syrup
mint leaves
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. sugar
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In a small saucepan on the stovetop, mix water and sugar over low heat for 1 minute, then add in mint leaves. Stir for 5 minutes until the sugar dissolves and a syrup forms (you won't end up using the mint leaves but they will flavor the syrup for the frosting).

Firecracker

Cherry, Lemon & Blue Raspberry Cake ft. Lemonade Frosting + Pop Rocks

The Internet is both inspiring and intimidating. For example, when I first had the idea to make a red-white-and-blue layered cake based on the Firecracker popsicle, I did a cursory Google search (as one does) to see if such a thing had been done (and published online) yet. I couldn't find any record of a cake flavored like that, but I did come across this recipe for another type of Firecracker cake - one involving Pop Rocks.

It was one of those things, like an image burned into your head that you can still see even after you look away - I couldn't pretend I hadn't seen the thing, but I couldn't forget about it either. Pop Rocks on a firecracker cake? Too perfect. Too perfect, in fact, to not incorporate into my own cake, so I cannot claim that idea as my own but that's where proper crediting and the remix come in. Building upon one good thing to bring about more good things.

This cake is relatively simple to make but appropriately flavorful. You basically make the cake according to the box instructions, divide the batter into 3, and add Jello powder to each bowl (blue raspberry, lemon, and cherry). The color will be subtle so I chose to add red and blue food coloring for bolder hues. The flavor is also subtle - you can add more than 1 tablespoon of Jello powder to each bowl of batter but then you risk the final cake being gummy and chewy. Koolaid powder and other drink mixes work just as well and open up the door to even more flavor options.

After cutting each cake layer flat to the same height, I iced and spooned some Pop Rocks between each layer, crumb coated the entire cake, and then topped it off with red sugar crystals and more Pop Rocks for the explosion debris. The concept of FIRECRACKER brought to mind the POW! WHAM! CRASH! graphics found in the Batman comics and animated series, so that's the icing on the cake.

cherry, lemon & blue raspberry cake
1 box white cake mix
4 egg whites
1 c. cold water
1/3 c. oil
1 tbsp. ea. cherry, lemon, and blue raspberry Jello powder
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and  grease pans with butter or a non-stick spray like PAM. Separate egg yolks and white, and beat egg whites in a small bowl until foamy. In large mixing bowl, beat cake mix, water, and oil for 1 minute on low speed, fold in egg whites and then beat for 1 minute on high speed. Divide batter equally into 3 bowls and add 1 tablespoon of flavored Jello powder (cherry, lemon, and blue raspberry) to each bowl, stirring well (powder will not necessarily dissolve).

Once flavored, the batters will be slightly colored but you can add in more food coloring if bolder colors are desired (I did). Use the same size of cake pan to bake all 3 cakes - pour batter into pans until each is 2/3 of the way  full. Bake according to the times on the back of the mix box, depending on the types of pans you are using.

lemon frosting
1/2 c. shortening or butter
4 c. confectioner's sugar
4-5 tbsp. lemonade or lemon juice
lemon zest (optional)
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In a large mixing bowl, beat shortening and lemonade until blended. Slowly add in sugar and continue to mix on high speed until frosting forms. You can add in grated lemon zest as well, but I would not use this for frosting you are planning to pipe through a tip.