homemade pumpkin cake muffins.

As much as I love (read: swoon, gush, ooh and ahh over) a gorgeous elaborate baby shower or bridal shower, and as much as I love to throw them, it just sometimes isn’t in the cards. In fact, I welcome the challenge of doing it up nice on a small budget. For tonight’s a little pumpkin soiree we agreed upon an open house, serving sweets only. Grown up kinds of sweets that could be made ahead of time.

And so I share with you: Aunt Jan’s Pumpkin Cake, which I’ve adapted for cupcakes because I think they are tad more festive than a sheet-cake. I made them ahead of time and will be frosting them today. They are really good.

4 eggs

1 cup oil

1 2/3 cup sugar

2 cups pumpkin

2 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 1/4 tsp. salt

Blend together until smooth. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes (rectangular cake pan) or 20 minutes (cupcakes). Top with your favorite cream cheese frosting. I like to add a pinch of cinnamon to the frosting, and also found it sorta cute to dollop the frosting on top a la a slice of pumpkin pie.

A most popular treat this evening was my Toffee Apple Dip. I’ve shared it on several occasions and it’s always the first to go, and garners the most requests. Alas, mine was devoured before I could snap a pretty photo. Use your imagination.

1 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

dash of vanilla

1/3 cup toffee chips

Blend with an electric mixer til well combined. serve with sliced tart apples. Take it to your next party, play-group, church social, office luncheon. you will be adored. you will be begged for the recipe. you will hestiat to share it because you want all the glory for yourself. share anyway.

More details to follow. It’s been so fun to pull this together; I hope the mommy-to-be will be pleased.

***UPDATE: at least one guest was quoted as saying “these cupcakes are freakin’ awesome.” Just sayin.

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Kimberly

...by day, making a home where the buffalo roam. By night, pretty much the same thing, punctuated by the occasional fantasies of sunny beaches, italian movies and sparkling lemonade.