Alice’s Pumpkin Spice Cake with Citrus Cream Cheese Frosting

Makes 1 large Bundt cake, serves 15-20.

Total time: Approximately 1 ¼ to 1½ hours.

20-30 minutes (prep); 45 minutes to 1 hour (cook).

INGREDIENTS:

Cake:

1 cup orange flavored Craisins®
¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 tablespoon real lemon extract
1 box Betty Crocker’s® Extra Moist Spice Cake —This item is available year round; but, some stores have them on sale for less than a dollar a box during the holidays. Make sure to stock up every fall!
1 can pumpkin puree
2-3 organic brown eggs
¾ cup low-fat organic vanilla yogurt
¼ cup brown sugar (optional)
3 teaspoons pumpkin pie seasoning
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1½ teaspoon baking powder

Frosting:

1 stick (4 ounces) of softened organic butter
4 ounces (half of an 8 ounces package) of softened Neufchatel cheese (Neufchatel is the same as reduced fat cream cheese; fat-free cream cheese is disgusting, so don’t even bother!)
2 tablespoons medium or dark molasses
2 cups of powdered sugar
¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice.
2 tablespoons organic lemon rind
2 teaspoons orange extract

Optional:

1 cup Christian Brother’s brandy

PREPARATION:

Reconstitute the Cranberries.

· Put the dried cranberries in a microwave-safe bowl ¾ preferably a small, shallow one.

· Add the orange juice, water and lemon extract. (Use just enough water to cover the berries while they cook.)

· Cook the cranberries until they are soft and moist. (This should take 3-5 minutes, depending on the power of your microwave.)

Make the Cake:

· While the cranberries are cooking, start making the cake. In a large mixing bowl, empty the contents of one box of spice cake mix.

· Mix in the pumpkin puree, eggs, yogurt, sugar, spice and baking powder.

· Drain any residual liquid from the cooked cranberries.

· Mix in the cooked, moistened cranberries.

· Coat a Bundt pan with spray-on oil and flour — to prevent sticking.

· Place the batter into the pan and cook for 45 minutes to one hour — depending on how well your oven performs — at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Make the icing:

· While the cake is cooking, make the icing.

· In a clean bowl, cream together the butter and cream cheese.

· Add the powdered sugar ½ cup at a time, adding the molasses, orange juice and lemon rind sometime during the mixing process.

· Place the icing in the refrigerator to thicken while the cake continues to cook. (If it’s still a little runny for you, add a little more powdered sugar, but realize that this will affect the taste ¾ lessening the citrus and increasing the sweetness.)

Assemble the cake:

· Take the cake out of the oven and let it cook for about 5-10 minutes.

· Invert the cake onto a serving plate.

· If you so desire, take the brandy and pour it over the top rim of the cake ¾ allowing it to seep into the entire cake. Be careful! A little goes a long way.

· Ice the cake with the citrus cream cheese frosting.

· Serve immediately or sometime within the next three hours. If serving later, refrigerate the cake to it keep fresh.