Last day of August means that I should have almost all of my Halloween decoration on display. And yes, last Sunday I spent a couple of hours cleaning and opening all my Fall/Halloween boxes and decorating. I still have to hang some lights to hang and buy a couple of things but it’s looking spooky and cute.

Also, I started my Fall baking season with a new and perfect recipe to open your first canned pumpkin that you might have hidden in your pantry. This recipe is easy, quick, delicious and looks pretty.

This cake is made with regular flour, pumpkin pie spice, pumpkin puree, dark cocoa powder and other simple ingredients that you might have already at home or that you can find easily at the store.

Let’s start with the recipe and if you want to watch the video of how I made this cake, visit me on Instagram @pastry_tales

Yield one 8×8 square pan

Ingredients

1 and 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

2 large eggs at room temperature

3/4 cup white granulated sugar

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 cup canola oil

1/4 cup orange juice

3 tablespoons dark cocoa powder

4 tablespoons hot coffee (maybe 5 if needed)

Directions

1.- Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Lightly butter and flour your pan. Set aside.

2.- You don’t need a mixer for this recipe.  In a large bowl sift all the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.

3.- In a medium bowl whisk the eggs until foamy. Then, add white granulated sugar and light brown sugar. Mix for 2 minutes. Then, add the pumpkin puree, oil and orange juice. Mix well.

4.- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently mix with a spatula. You might see a few lumps, do not overmix.

5.- Divide the batter in 2 bowls.

6.- In a small bowl mix cocoa powder and hot espresso. This mixture should look like a thin paste, if it is too thick add another tablespoon of coffee Add this chocolate mixture to one of the pumpkin batter bowls. Mix well.

7.- Using a big spoon or an ice cream scoop, make big dollops of each batter and place them into your prepared pan, alternating colors. (You should see the video on Instagram so you have a better idea of how I made this part)

8.- Using a knife or a skewer to make swirls all over the batter. Don’t be afraid and insert the knife/skewer all the way down and make swirls.

9.- Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with a few dry crumbs.

10.- Let it cool in the pan for 30 minutes and then place it on the top of a cooling rack.

11.- Slice and serve!