Pumpkin-Spice Cake

Mmmm...the smell of cloves.  It reminds me of my Grandma's house around the holidays.  Today I have a recipe I've adapted from the Betty Crocker Cookbook.  It's called Pumpkin-Spice Bars in the cookbook, but to me it's more of a cake.  The original recipe called for cream cheese icing for the topping.  Years ago I found this mock cream cheese icing recipe.  I found it on the internet, but it was before the days of Pinterest, so I don't remember what sight I found it on.  I tried to make the cake look pretty by piping on the icing, but it would have been better if I had just iced the entire cake and sprinkled the crushed walnuts on top.  

Pumpkin-Spice Cake
Ingredients
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup mashed pumpkin
1/2 cup rice flour (you can use white or brown, or a mixture of both)
3 Tablespoons cornflour
1 Tablespoon tapioca starch
1/2 teaspoon guar gum
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup chopped dates (or raisins)

Method

1. Heat oven to 180 degrees C.  Line a 9x13 inch pan with baking paper.

2. Beat eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin together until smooth. (I like to use a stick blender for this).

3. Stir in remaining ingredients.

4. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until light brown.  Cool completely before icing.

Mock Cream Cheese Icing

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups icing sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons margarine

1 1/2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

1 - 2 Tablespoons water

Method

1. Mix salt and icing sugar together.

2. Stir in margarine.

3. Stir in vinegar and slowly add water until you reach a smooth consistency.