Pumpkin Bundt Cake Recipe – GF Option

Warming ginger, sweet cinnamon, pungent cloves and aromatic nutmeg all combine to make this Pumpkin Bundt Cake taste amazing. It also makes the house smell lovely while it is baking. Just thinking about this cake gets me excited for autumn’s arrival!

However, I am definitely in the minority when it comes to being excited about this season. Dark, rainy days are more common here in the UK during autumn than the bright, cool and crisp ones I know from my time in Canada and the United States. Hence, the third season is not welcomed quite as enthusiastically here in the UK as it is in North America. Not everyone will agree with me, but I also think that the fact we have yet to embrace the joys of pumpkin as a nation means we do not get nearly as excited about autumn’s arrival as we could here in the UK. I mean, who would not look forward to a slice of Pumpkin Bundt Cake with a warming cup of tea or coffee – or dare I suggest a Pumpkin Spice Latte?

Pumpkin Bundt Cake

While I see my North American family, friends and colleagues getting excited about pumpkin spice, falling leaves and fall baking, my fellow country-folk are often less enthusiastic. I’m doing my best to adjust the narrative around this but it sometimes feels like I’m fighting a losing battle.

Using Pumpkin in Baking

Desserts like this Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake are still catching on amongst native Brits. From a culinary standpoint, pumpkin is used in savoury dishes here, but there is still a marked hesitation to embrace pumpkin pies and cakes.

It is hard to get the kind of pumpkins that are best for baking here in the UK, therefore I generally use pumpkin puree from a can. The pumpkins available in stores and farm shops here are often field pumpkins. These are best for carving, not eating. Sugar or pie pumpkin varieties are incredibly hard to find because most people are not aware of them. We are even encouraged to use the flesh from our jack o’lanterns after they have fulfilled their purpose, a thought that makes me shudder. After Halloween, I take my jack o’lanterns to the forest for deer and other animals to enjoy.

We Brits are becoming more adventurous when it comes to pumpkin thanks to people like Nigella Lawson, publications like BBC Good Food, and ex-pats and dual citizens like myself. I really hope this trend continues. I also hope we are able to re-frame autumn so it is something we at least embrace, if not look forward to.

Pumpkin Bundt Cake

If one was making a first attempt to embrace the joys of pumpkin and indeed of fall, this delicious Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake would be a wonderful place to start.

This Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake recipe is an adaptation of a recipe by Martha Stewart. I use plain flour instead of cake flour (not easily available in the UK), decrease the salt, and offer the option of using pourable plain yogurt instead of buttermilk. When it comes to decoration, instead of simply dusting the cake with icing sugar as Martha does, I use a simple glaze studded with bits of crystallised ginger to decorate it. I also like to switch up the glaze, using lemon juice instead of water from time to time. Lemon, pumpkin and ginger make a delicious flavour combination.

Watch Your Pan Size

This recipe does make a very big cake so do check your Bundt pan first. Most of the Bundt pans that are available these days only hold 12 cups and some are even smaller. If you don’t have a 14 cup Bundt pan, do not over-fill your pan. You could perhaps make some cupcakes/muffins or a couple of mini loaf cakes with the extra batter. These will, of course, take less time to bake than the larger cake.

If you do over-fill your pan and your cake develops a very puffy bottom, don’t panic. After the cake has cooled, trim the excess cake off the bottom carefully. Then turn the cake over and no one will be any the wiser.

If the thought of throwing away the trimmings has entered your head, dismiss it immediately. The are delicious on their own or you can crumble them to make toppings for puddings or other creamy desserts. Not going to use them straight away? Pop the trimmings or crumbled cake into freezer bags and freeze for up to a month. Thaw completely before using.

Pumpkin Bundt Cake Keeps Well

Lovely with a side of ice cream or a bit of whipped cream on top, Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake goes incredibly well with seasonal blackberries. It also keeps for days at covered or in a sealed container at room temperature. The flavour deepens and mellows as time wears on.

Can I Use Less Sugar In This Recipe?

I have successfully reduced the packed brown sugar by half a cup or 50 grams, meaning I use just 2 cup of sugar or 500 grams. I actually prefer the flavour of the cake when it is made with less sugar.

Is This Recipe Gluten-Free?

The original recipe is not gluten-free. However, if you substitute gluten-free baking powder and a one to one flour blend, the recipe is gluten-free. Substitute 3¾ cups (that’s about 440 grams) of gluten-free one to one flour blend for the 4 cups of all-purpose/plain flour. I tested this recipe very successfully and took it to a Thanksgiving dinner last year.

Serving Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake

I just love having a Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake ready on the sideboard, ready for slices to be cut at a moment’s notice. It’s also delicious for dessert, served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or some freshly whipped cream.

If you find you have any leftovers after about 5 days, this cake makes an amazing bread pudding. Or cut the pieces of cake in small squares to make individual trifles. Drizzle with sherry, port or rum and layer with a bit of custard, fruit and cream for a Pumpkin Trifle you will dream of for days.

Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake is my go-to fall cake. Try it, and I’m sure it will be yours too!

Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake – Printable Recipe

Created by: April J Harris

Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake – GF Option

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 12

This Spicy Pumpkin Bundt Cake is the most versatile of cakes, perfect for anytime – especially in the fall and at Thanksgiving celebrations.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 55 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 4 cups flour, plus more for dusting the pan or use 3¾ cups (about 440 grams) one to one gluten-free flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder use gluten-free baking powder if necessary
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated if possible
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 cup unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pan
• 2½ cups packed light brown sugar I often reduce this to 2 cups or 500 grams
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk or plain pouring yogurt
• 1½ cups canned pumpkin puree This is one 425 gram or roughly 15 ounce can.
• For the glaze:
• 1 cup icing sugar icing sugar is also known as confectioner's sugar
• 3 to 4 tablespoons cold water or fresh lemon juice
• crystallised ginger, chopped, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C, 170° for fan ovens).
• Grease a 14 cup Bundt pan with a little butter. Sprinkle with flour. Tap out excess flour. Set aside.
• Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves into a large bowl. Set aside.
• Using medium speed, beat the butter and brown sugar together in the large bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. This will take 2 or 3 minutes.
• Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Don’t forget to scrape down the bowl from time to time.
• Reduce the mixer speed to low.
• Add the flour alternately with the buttermilk (2 additions of each, starting with the flour), beating until just combined.
• Beat in the pumpkin puree.
• Pour the batter into the Bundt pan you prepared earlier.
• Bake the cake for about 55 minutes. The outside should be beginning to turn a light golden brown colour, and a skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean.
• Remove the Bundt pan from the oven and set it on a wire rack to cool.
• After half an hour, carefully turn the cake out of the Bundt pan and on to the wire rack to cool completely.
• For the glaze, mix the icing sugar gradually with the water or lemon juice, until a smooth, drizzle-able consistency is reached. (Go carefully, as you may need more or less liquid.)
• Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake.
• Sprinkle with the chopped crystallised ginger, if using.
• Allow the glaze to dry before slicing and serving.

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