Nutty Whole Grain Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Bourbon Glaze

Put down that Tootsie Roll, you know you don't really want it.  You know it tastes like an old tire.  Have this instead.  

I paced around the kitchen for a long time this morning fighting with myself about whether to make my original recipe for pumpkin bread one more time, or strike out in a new direction.

I crave the moist pumpkin-y crumb, the dark, half melted chocolate chips and the crunchy walnuts of my tried and true recipe.  But I'm a food blogger, damn it---and innovation is the name of my game.  I can't just sit back on my laurels and happily eat Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread for the rest of my life, much as I'd like to.

This cake is perfect for getting you out of bed in the morning, but will also come in handy when you're sitting on the couch waiting for those inevitable stragglers late tonight, the ones who ring the doorbell even after you've turned out the lights and closed your curtains.  They can see the faint glow of the tv, they know you've got a couple more pieces of candy left in that bowl.  They're not going to let you go to bed.  You might as well cut yourself another slice of cake.

Nutty Whole Grain Pumpkin Coffee Cake
oven to 350
spray a bundt or tube pan well

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp each of nutmeg, cardamom, allspice and ginger

• Whisk the above ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup oat flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cup rough chopped pecans

• Whisk together the dry ingredients and add them to the wet.  Mix just until combined, don't over mix.  Fold in the nuts.
• Pour the batter into a well greased bundt pan.  Bake for about 50 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Cool the pan on a rack for about 15 minutes, then carefully remove the cake and continue cooling on a rack before glazing.

Vanilla Bourbon Glaze

1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 Tbsp bourbon

milk or cream to thin

• Mix the sugar with the vanilla and bourbon, adding enough milk or cream to make a spreadable glaze.  Spread or drizzle it over the cooled coffee cake.

Happy Halloween!