Pumpkin Coffee Cake Birthday Cake

So, you say it’s your birthday? It’s my birthday too! It’s really impossible to say that without thinking of Anthony Michael Hall trying to figure out how to ask Molly Ringwald for her panties, right? Since I’m thinking of it, I might watch Sixteen Candles tonight. I can, because it’s my birthday and I can do whatever I want.

And if I want a coffee cake- loaded with crumbs and filled with sweet sugary buttercream- I can have it because it’s my birthday and I bake the cakes around here.

In the spirit of fall (my favorite season because it’s the season my birthday falls in, NOT because it’s trendy!!) I made this a pumpkin coffee cake. By substituting half of the butter with pumpkin, I made it healthy because pumpkin is a vegetable and it’s filled with fiber. And coffee cake is breakfast, so here is a vegetable that you can eat for breakfast. See? Healthy. But why do I care? It’s my birthday so the calories don’t count anyway!

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

Crumb Topping

• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup dark brown sugar
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• pinch of salt
• 1 1/4 stick butter (10 tablespoons) melted

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together all ingredients except the butter
2. Drizzle the butter over the dry ingredients and use a wooden spoon to combine until large crumbs form. Set aside.

Cake:

• 3/4 stick butter (6 tablespoons)
• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie mix)
• 2 1/2 cups cake flour (I love this post from Joy The Baker to make my own)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs plus 2 yolks
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2/3 cup buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 325F and prepare two 8in round cake pans.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice.
3. Using a paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth, beat in the pumpkin puree.
4. Add eggs, and yolks, one at a time, mix together, then add the vanilla.
5. Slowly add 1/3 of the flour mixture. Follow with half of the buttermilk, 1/3 flour mixture, the other 1/2 of the buttermilk, and the last 1/3 of the flour. Mix until everything is incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl when needed.
6. Divide the batter between the two pans, and sprinkle the crumb topping onto one of the layers, pressing the crumbs down into the batter.
7. Bake for about 40-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
8. Let cool in the pan for about 10 minutes then carefully turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely. (I put a plate on top of the pan, flipped it upside down so the cake fell onto the pan, then put another plate on top to flip it crumb side up, then carefully slid the cake onto the rack.)

Frosting:

• 1 stick of butter (8 tablespoons)
• 1/2 cup vegetable shortening (I use Spectrum)
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• Pinch of salt
• Heavy whipping cream (enough to reach desired consistency)

1. Using paddle attachment, beat together the butter and shortening until smooth.
2. Add the powdered sugar, one cup at a time. (Add the vanilla after the first 2 cups of sugar)
3. Drizzle in the cream until the frosting is as thick or thin as you want it.
4. Mix in the salt.
5. Spread on top of the layer of cake without the crumbs. Top with the layer with the crumbs.

Enjoy with your coffee!