Warriors ever glorious

There is a small but strong army of us who insist on ignoring the seasons. We care not whether the thermometer keeps rising. We scoff at the fact it remains daylight well past 7pm. We are the few, the proud, the autumn cookers. We make Thanksgiving dinners in June, chili in May, and pumpkin recipes in July.

This one is dedicated to Amber, because my last pumpkin cake had raisins, and she doesn't like raisins. Well Amber, this one's for you. Raisin free. Instead I used caramel. Because nothing says "Suck it, Summer" like the sweet fall flavor of caramel. The only thing that would have give Mother Nature more of the finger would have been adding apple - which isn't a half bad idea.....next time!

This time however I stuck with the caramel and pumpkin and topped with a caramel glaze. So sweet, so dense, so downright Autumnal. So we march on valiantly, as most armies do, on their stomachs. (A nickel for whoever remembers what famous leader gave us that quote.) After all, soon it will actually be fall!

Pumpkin Caramel Cake

• 2/3 cup shortening
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 cup Caramel Topping
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 5 eggs
• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray bundt cake pan with Cooking Spray.
2. Beat shortening, butter and sugar on medium speed of kitchenaid until well blended.
   
3. Beat in 3/4 cup caramel and pumpkin.
   
4. Beat in eggs one at a time.
5. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and spices; stir to combine.
   
6. Add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture and beat on medium for 2 minutes.
7. Pour batter into pan and smooth top. Bake 1 - 1.5 hours or until cake is springy to the touch.
8. Cool in pan 15 minutes, then remove and cool completely.
9. Combine powdered sugar, remaining caramel, and 3 Tbsp water. Pour over top of cooled cake. Sprinkle with walnuts.
   

Serves 16.

Amount Per Serving
Calories		449.2
Total Fat		12.1 g
	Saturated Fat	5.3 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	2.8 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	3.2 g
Cholesterol		82.1 mg
Sodium		178.8 mg
Potassium		93.6 mg
Total Carbohydrate		82.2 g
	Dietary Fiber	1.3 g
	Sugars	52.7 g
Protein		4.8 g

And as if that wasn't enough, I've been tagged for a very cool meme by the equally cool Elly. Elly has some of the best taste in music of all people I know. And that's saying a lot since I know quite a few people with fantastic musical taste.

The rules for the this particular meme are:

List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre, whether they have words, or even if they’re not any good, but they must be songs you’re really enjoying now, shaping your spring (or whatever season). Post these instructions in your blog along with your 7 songs. Then tag 7 other people to see what they’re listening to.

I'm going through a very blue-sy phase right now, or maybe it's just a dark phase. I dunno, but these are my current "listen to over and over again" songs.
1. Amy Winehouse - Back in Black. I know. I know. I hate Amy Winehouse and all she stands for. Nevertheless, I just can't help but sing this song over and over again. It just sticks in your head. Plus her voice is so Shirley Bassey-esque.
2. Ludo - Love Me Dead. So dark, and yet funny. Kinda like me...right? right? RIGHT?????
3. Duffy - Mercy. This is one of those songs that's always playing in stores and on the radio and has you humming after. But this week on SYTYCD it officially made it onto my favorites list. And after all, wouldn't this convert you?

4. A Man's Got to Do. If you haven't downloaded this series yet, there's something wrong with you. And I pity you. I made Thatboy listen to this song over and over again on a long drive lately. He loves me very much.

And some old favorites.
5. As Long As it Matters - The Gin Blossoms. Right now I just can't get enough. I listen to the Gin Blossoms daily and this moody ballady song gets me every time. I croon it to Thatboy, Thatdog, and my zucchini as I chop.
6. Ohio - Bowling for Soup. This is such a summer guilty pleasure for me. It's a "rock out in your car" kind of song...and then the whole day because you just can't get it out of your head.
7. Calling You - Bowling for Soup. Another moody ballad. See what I mean about the mood I'm in. Plus I just like the tinny quality of the chorus. It makes me think of those tin can phones we used to use as a kid and summer sleepovers in the tent in the backyard.



The seven bloggers I'm tagging:

1. Psychgrad
2. Trisha
3. Kylee
4. Miss T
5. Nicole
6. Carrie
7. Lynn