Spice Cake with Maple Frosting

Spice cake with maple frosting is a great cake to take to a friends house for a dessert at a dinner party.  This cake is always a hit!  It can be made from late September through March when the weather is cooler.  It is also a welcomed accompaniment as a dessert for Thanksgiving.

• 2 1/4 cake flour 
• 1/2 t salt
• 3 t baking powder
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 1/2 t cinnamon
• 1/2 t nutmeg
• 1/2 t ground cloves
• 3/4 c milk
• 1 c canned pumpkin
• 1/2 c vegetable shortening
• 1 1/4 c sugar
• 2 eggs

Grease and flour two 8 inch cake pans and put aside.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Into a medium bowl, sift flour, salt, baking powder, baking powder and spices a couple of times.  Put aside.  In another medium bowl, mix milk and pumpkin together. Put aside.  In the bowl of a mixer, mix the shortening and sugar until fluffy.  Add one egg and mix well.  Add the second egg and mix again.  Mix in the flour mixture alternately with the pumpkin mixture.  Divide the batter between the two prepared cake pans.  Bake for 30 minutes or until tooth pick comes out clean.  Cool on racks for half an hour, then remove from pans and cool for 40 minutes.   Frost with maple frosting.  Recipe below.

Maple Frosting

• 6 T of room temperature butter
• 3 c confectioners sugar
• 6 T maple syrup

In the bowl of a mixer, cream butter and sugar.  Slowly add the maple syrup, one tablespoon at a time, until smooth.  Frost cake.