Two Ingredients Pumpkin Cake with Apple Cider Glaze [From Big Red Kitchen]

The church we go to here in Phoenix is pretty small.  Small enough they can do potlucks every week after church.  As much as I looove free food, I am a bit of a hypocrite.  I do not like having to bring something every time. I feel like each week I need to come up with something even more fantastic than what I brought last week.

 Which, in reality, is ridiculous.

 I think I should start creating a potluck menu of, I don't know, maybe six [no, seven - seven is supposed to be a holy number] different recipes that I cycle through for these potlucks.  Then people at church can go, "oh wait, she brought x last week, so its totally time for y!"  Yeah, I am going to be that person :)

 The pressure is on, too, to make something that the Hubs can eat.  Potlucks are super yummy, unless you have a food intolerance.  Then its really depressing watching everyone else eat casseroles while you're stuck eating carrot sticks.

 One recipe that I made for him to eat at the potluck a couple weeks ago was a super simple pumpkin cake.  Yeah, I know.  Carrot sticks and a dessert aren't exactly filling.  

 So, in honor of fall being here tomorrow, I'm sharing it with you!  The original recipe was a find on Pinterest, but I had to change up a couple things to [1] make it gluten-free, and [2] not have to run to the store.

 The origin of this cake comes from Robin Sue at Big Red Kitchen.  And it only requires two ingredients [plus three more for the glaze].  Sound intriguing? I thought so.

 Here's where to go for her original recipe. 

However, in order to make this gluten-free, I had to use gluten-free cake mix.  This idea was a little scary for me, because like I've said before, gluten-free baking can go awry really quickly.  I also decided to use apple juice instead of cider, because we're not really juice drinkers.  Buying a pitcher of cider for 2 tablespoons would have been a waste for our family.  This fact was confirmed by the apple juice in our fridge that had been sitting there for a week, half full.  In the spirit of adventure, and in typical form for me, I decided to give it a try for the potluck without testing the recipe first.

 So, here's how this baking thing went for me:

Ingredients

• 1 box gluten-free cake mix
• 1 can of pumpkin puree [not pumpkin pie filling]

You Also Need For the Glaze

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons apple cider or juice [I used apple juice, and it worked pretty well too]
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.


2. Mix the pumpkin puree and gluten-free cake mix together in a bowl with a mixer.


3. Take a quick taste [no eggs, so you can!], then pour the yummy stuff into a greased 11 x 7 pan.


4. Pop it into your oven and let it bake for 28 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  *This is apparently a big deal, as I learned over at The Noble Pig.  I was a couple minutes late pulling my cake out.  Turns out, it really is important.  My edges were a little over-baked and dry. Good news, however; the glaze covers up any overcooked imperfections.*


5. Whip up your glaze while your cake is baking. Mix the powdered sugar, apple cider/juice, and pumpkin pie spice together until it is smooth. Don't get distracted like I did and have to scramble to make it right as your walking out the door to church.


6. After your cake cools down a bit, top it with your glaze.  


7. Please, enjoy.

Here are some pics of the adventure:

all mixed up

radar waits for the pam spray to waft his direction

Is it good?  Well, good enough the cake was gone within 20 minutes.  I had to fight a kid for the last piece [in my defense, it was for my husband!].  

Just kidding.  I beat the kid to it before he got a chance to see what he was missing out on.

The Verdict: Awesome recipe [thanks Robin Sue!].  Awesome for dinners, awesome for potlucks, awesome for holidays.  And it can be adapted into a gluten-free recipe that your guests won't know is gluten-free, unless you choose to tell them.  That is a pretty awesome cake :)

Here's the link back to this recipe's origins again, in case you missed it.  Don't forget to give some love over at Big Red Kitchen too!

Two Ingredients Pumpkin Cake with Apple Cider Glaze by Robin Sue @ Big Red Kitchen