‘Tis the season for pumpkin, gingerbread, and all the other wonderful classic holiday flavors that make you feel as though you’ve gone home to Grandma’s house for the weekend.

Those flavors that make you feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Yes, we talk about this often, especially when it comes to pumpkin. There’s just something about this time of year that perfectly suits that flavor.

Then you throw in the gingerbread. Could pumpkin be perfected? Yes, apparently with the flavor of gingerbread.

Those two are a match created in heaven, and then you add in the maple icing. The classic — but wait, there’s more! — scenario.

Absolute dessert perfection right here.

While I hope that you don’t mind my talking about it so very often, I have to acknowledge that I probably have talked about it way too much by this time of year.

With Thanksgiving in our immediate future, I thought I would take the opportunity to share a perfect pumpkin dessert recipe for the holidays.

A three-ingredient recipe, which makes it absolutely perfect for the host or hostess who also has side dishes and a turkey to prepare.

When you’re already working on several dishes, you need at least one of them to be easy, right?

Well my friends, that is precisely what this is.

This is also one of those somewhat accidental recipes.

One of those instances where we had a friend coming over, and I had been wanting to be creative with the can of pumpkin I had picked up earlier in the week, and the box of gingerbread cake that was just sitting and waiting in my cupboard.

I know that I usually advocate for everything homemade, and while I do stick to that for the most part, gingerbread box cake mix is simply one of the best things around.

I’ve tried making it from scratch, and while it obviously doesn’t save any time, it also didn’t taste like it took longer. The blend of spices that are present in the cake mix just couldn’t be duplicated in my homemade recipes, so for the time being, I am letting the box be the winner.

Although we both know that I could continue talking, and talking some more about both pumpkin and gingerbread, I’m going to stop right here so I can give you the recipe.

As always, thank you for reading, and Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family from our family at hbk!

Pumpkin Gingerbread Cake

INGREDIENTS

1 can Pumpkin puree, 15 oz.

1 box Gingerbread cake mix

1 large egg

ICING

™ C. salted butter, or ¢ stick, melted

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 ¢ – 2 C. powdered sugar

3-4 Tbsp. hot water

2- 4 Tbsp. maple syrup

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare either a Bundt pan or an 8×8 square pan with cooking spray.

2. Mix together the puree and gingerbread cake thoroughly, then add in the egg. Once mixture is smooth, pour into pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted to the center of the cake comes out clean.

Please note that a Bundt pan will cook faster than a square dish and should be on the lower end of cooking time to avoid over baking.

3. Allow cake to cool for about 15 minutes on a cooling rack, and prepare icing while cake is cooling.

For icing — melt butter, then whisk in vanilla and powdered sugar. Start with one and a half cups of powdered sugar. Add hot water to thin out icing, one tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency.

Can add as much powdered sugar or hot water as needed to have a proper drizzle icing. Icing should drop from the spoon like a thick fluid.

Stir in Maple syrup to taste.

4. If using a Bundt cake, flip out of pan onto baking rack and generously drizzle with icing. For a square cake, you can cover the cake with icing right in the pan.

5. Serve warm and enjoy! This cake will yield between 8-12 servings.