Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake with Buttermilk Icing

I'm not a huge fan of pumpkin; however, I can't get enough of pumpkin bread! There is something about the spices that lure me in every time! Growing up my mom always made pumpkin bread from a box mix. Me being the naive young child I had no idea that people could make this from scratch. I hardly ever use my fancy William's Sonoma Bundt Pan that I received as a wedding gift, so when I was searching for a recipe this one caught my eye. Not just because of the bundt pan, but because I was looking to use up my buttermilk! 

This cake by far out beats any stupid box mix out on the market. It's amazing. It's moist, and full of fall flavors. I did alter the icing recipe. I only used 1 cup of confectioners sugar opposed to the additional half cup the recipe suggested and I used 3 tbsp of buttermilk. I've made this recipe now, twice in the past week since making it. Just looking at these pictures intrigues me to make another one for my family arriving in town this week! 


Source: Epicurious via Gourmet Nov 2005
Prep Time: 10 minutes:
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 12 


Ingredients for the Cake: 

• 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened, plus additional for greasing bundt pan
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour plus additional for dusting pan
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/4 cups canned solid-pack pumpkin 
• 3/4 cup well-shaken buttermilk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 
  
• Ingredients for the Icing:
• 3 tbsp well-shaken buttermilk
• 1 cup confectioners sugar


• Directions: 
• 1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Butter bundt pan generously, then dust with flour, knocking out excess.
• 
  
  2. Whisk together flour (2 1/4 cups), baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, and salt in a bowl. Whisk together pumpkin, 3/4 cup buttermilk, and vanilla in another bowl.
  
  
  3. Beat butter (1 1/2 sticks) and granulated sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes, then add eggs and beat 1 minute. Reduce speed to low and add flour and pumpkin mixtures alternately in batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture and mixing until batter is just smooth.
  
  
  4. Spoon batter into pan, smoothing top, then bake until a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center of cake comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan on a rack 15 minutes, then invert rack over cake and reinvert cake onto rack. Cool 10 minutes more.
  
  
  5. While cake is cooling, whisk together buttermilk and confectioners sugar until smooth. Drizzle icing over warm cake, then cool cake completely. Icing will harden slightly.