Thanksgiving this week…

And today I have Pumpkin Sponge for you.

I haven’t got a lot of knowledge about this holiday but one thing I know is that I love pumpkins.  Round ones, skinny ones, ghost and grey ones, huge and small.  You name it I have probably seen it all.

As long as they are organic I will always have an idea to make something amazing.  Sweet or savory, main or a treat they are very versatile.

Pumpkins are not only delicious but also they are very good for you.  Pumpkins contain loads of vitamin C & A, potassium, zinc, are high in antioxidants and fiber.  Sadly we don’t appreciate this amazing fruit enough in the UK.  To start you slowly if you are not familiar with it give a try and make this super tasty Pumpkin Sponge.

Not just ordinary sponge. It’s Pumpkin Sponge.

My Pumpkin Sponge is not too sweet, velvety and moist. Can be eaten on its own as we found out pretty much straight away .

But if you have more patience than us you can top Pumpkin Sponge with many different creams.  Sadly I haven’t had a chance to make any toppings because the minute I took Pumpkin Sponge out the oven it was almost gone.

The next time I make Pumpkin Sponge I will top it with vanilla whipped cream or simple cream cheese frosting.  I think this would be the perfect combination for it’s delicious and delicate taste to compliment the pumpkin and aromatic aftertaste of the spices.

Ideally you can just cover the top, sandwich it or even stack a few layers deep together.  That is only if you can wait that long.

 

Method.

Turn on your oven to 155C fan, 165-170C without fan.

Prepare 8″ or 9″ round tin depending  how would you prefer to present it. I wanted this to be a little bit flatter as I was planning on one layer of cream and baked it in 9″ pan.

Grease the tin and line with baking paper. Set aside.

Prepare all the ingredients.

Melt in a cooking pan on a low heat stirring regularly:

  • 250g mascarpone
  • 250g white chocolate
  • 450g pumpkin puree (you can use canned or make your own – recipe to follow soon)
  • 400g sugar

Wet ingredients for Pumpkin Sponge

Sieve all the dry ingredients in a separate bowl and stir evenly.

  • 150g self raising flour
  • 150g plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp bicarbonate soda
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/4 – 1/2 tsp powder ginger depending on your taste

Check the cooking pan and if all the ingredients are combined and melted add a

  • dash of vanilla and

half of the dry ingredients.

Gently mix together Pumpkin Sponge.  Be careful don’t stir to vigorously or for too long as you don’t want to knock any air bubbles out.

Add the other half of dry ingredients, stir gently again and pour in the tin.

Bake for approximately 90 minutes.

Voila!

Happy baking.

Aggy xxx