Pumpkin Cake With Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

By Leite's Culinaria

Ingredients

2 cups cake flour (plus more for the pans)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper ((I mean freshly ground!))
1 stick (4 oz) unsalted butter (at room temperature, plus more for the pans)
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk mixed with 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups canned solid-pack pumpkin
Two (8-ounce) packages Philadelphia brand cream cheese (fully softened)
1 stick (4 oz) unsalted butter (at room temperature)
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup (preferably grade B amber)

Prep Time30mins
Cook Time30mins
Servings8

Instructions

Make the pumpkin cake

Crank the heat to 350° (175°C) and position a rack in the middle of the oven.

Butter two 8-by-2-inch cake pans and line them with parchment circles cut to fit the pans. Butter the parchment and coat the pan with flour, tapping out any excess. (You can instead spritz the pans with cooking spray for baking, if that's easier for you than buttering and flouring.)

Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and pepper in a bowl until well combined. Take a whiff. Heaven.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or in a large bowl using a good old-fashioned hand mixer on medium speed, beat the butter, dark brown sugar, and granulated sugar until fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Plop the eggs, 1 at a time, into the bowl, beating and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Alternate adding the flour and buttermilk mixtures to the bowl, starting and ending with the flour.

Scrape in the pumpkin and beat just until the pumpkin is incorporated and the cake batter is smooth.

Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pans, dividing it evenly. Give each filled pan a good smack flat against the counter to release any air bubbles.

Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully turn out the cakes from the pans onto the rack, peel off the parchment paper, turn them right side up, and let them cool completely.

Make the maple-cream cheese frosting

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a bowl using a good old-fashioned hand mixer on medium speed, beat the cream cheese, butter, confectioners' sugar, and maple syrup until fluffy.

To assemble the cake, place a cake layer on a plate or cake stand and generously frost the top of it. Place the other cake on top and frost the sides and top, swirling the frosting like the pro that you are. TESTER TIP: If the frosting seems a touch on the soft side, slip the cake in the fridge for at least 30 minutes until the frosting is set or, if you notice it before you frost the cake, see our note above the recipe.