Cast Iron Pumpkin Cranberry Cake

A fun twist on pumpkin cake: Cast Iron Pumpkin Cranberry Cake. Combining two ultra seasonal recipes into one and pulling out my favorite cast iron pan to make this cake happen.

Why is it every time we travel on an airplane someone gets sick? The day after we got home from Boston last week my littlest had a sore throat and was congested. Three days later it was my older son and yesterday it was me. Not full blow sick just an annoying cold. I had a headache a good part of yesterday and the back of my nose (where it meets my throat) is raw and sore. Sorry if that was too much information but I just really hate being sick. Mountain Mama 0, Sick 1.

I’m not really all that surprised as I’ve been running and gunning this past month and haven’t taken much time to take care of myself. I don’t get sick that often but when I’m run down in life, that’s when the colds sneak in. I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to kick it quick as I’ve promised myself the next few days will be mellow and I’m drinking a ridiculous amount of water. My two favorite aids to help me when I’m fighting a cold are this and these. You can bet they’re both in full force right now.

But I didn’t invite you here today to talk about colds, I really want to talk cake! And more specifically Cast Iron Pumpkin Cranberry Cake. I am so in love with my cast iron right now, I’m cooking in it everyday. This cake is a 10 and if I do say so myself, damn good. Obviously it would make a great dessert or potluck contribution but I’m loving the idea of this for brunch. Or in my case, full on breakfast. Life is too short not to have cake every once in a while for breakfast. No eggs or protein to balance it out. Just cake. And tea; very strong tea.

This cake is the same recipe base as my Orange-Pumpkin Bread with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing minus the cream cheese icing plus the cranberries. Instead of orange juice concentrate, I used Wild Orange Essential Oil. It’s not only one of my favorite oils for diffusing, I love it for cooking and baking too. The combination of sweet orange and pumpkin together with the tart cranberries is a total winner!

Have a good one everybody and enjoy!

Cast Iron Pumpkin Cranberry Cake

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Description

If you’d like to make this and you DON’T need to adjust for high altitude make the following changes: increase granulated sugar to 2 full cups, decrease vanilla extract to 1 1/2 teaspoons, increase baking soda to 1 3/4 teaspoons, and increase baking powder to 2 1/2 teaspoons. Follow directions as is.

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Ingredients

• For the cake:
• 4 eggs
• 1– 15 oz can pumpkin puree
• 2 tablespoons orange juice concentrate OR 15 drops Wild Orange Essential Oil
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh cranberries

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
2. Prepare cast iron with a touch of butter if your pan isn’t seasoned. Otherwise let it be!
3. In a medium bowl sift flour, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder and salt; set aside.
4. In a large bowl, combine eggs, pumpkin puree, orange juice concentrate or essential oil, sugar, oil, applesauce and vanilla. Mix well with wire whisk. Add flour mixture to wet ingredients and with a wooden spoon mix just until combined. Stir in chopped cranberries. Pour batter into cast iron and bake until done about 35-40 minutes. Let cool on rack for 10-15 minutes before slicing and serving with a sprinkle of powdered sugar.