My boys turn 12! And pumpkin cake...

My first born twin boys are 12!!!

How could twelve years go by so quickly?  How can they be 12 if I was just pregnant yesterday?  I want time to stop or at least slow down!    I have very caring, warm, loving boys, who are also BOYS!  Those of you who have boys know what I mean.  Which usually means beating each other with light sabers one minute, building legos the next, then jumping and doing flips on the trampoline that I repeatedly tell them NOT to do, to playing house and reading with their little sister.  Blessed we are to have them!

There is a mad dash in our house.  It begins at Thanksgiving and the Saturday after we decorate for Christmas. Ten days later is my birthday, then two days later is my niece's birthday, ten more days after that is my oldest sisters birthday and then 2 days later is Christmas Eve, which we host!!  Christmas day we go to my parents house.  NYE is pretty low key, we stay home or go to my parents house.  Then a week later is my boys' birthday party.   See?  I wasn't kidding when I said there is a mad dash! 



We had a great family party.  I could not think of what to cook until literally 2 days before the party.  I was making myself crazy.  Then I decided on baked ziti and oven roasted chicken with sausage, salad and Italian bread!  Two BIG baking pans basically, but not a lot of work to feed a crowd!   


My mother always helps me out and makes one of the cakes.  We always have two, since there are two birthday boys.   They requested chocolate this year.  But I needed a non-chocolate choice for our non-chocolate eating guests.   I remembered buying a Mary Engelbreit cookbook at a book fair a year or more ago and there was a delicious sounding  pumpkin cake recipe in there.  And I had a can of pumpkin left over from making Thanksgiving pies.   And let me tell you, it did not disappoint!    

Pumpkin Cake 
1 cup veg oil
1 (15 oz can) pumpkin  (I used half of a 28 oz can)
3 eggs
3 cups of sugar
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cloves (I omitted the cloves, I didn't have any and I think they overpower some recipes but that is my opinion only!)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350.  grease and flour a bundt pan.  In a large bowl add the veg oil, pumpkin puree, and eggs, blend well.  Add remaining ingredients to the bowl and mix until well blended. Pour batter into prepared bundt pan  bake for 60- 75 mins or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Mine took 75 mins, and I checked at 60 but wasn't done yet.
Remove from the oven and turn out onto plate.  Cover with plastic wrap until cook to hold in moisture.  I made mine the day before and then "frosted" it with Cool Whip!  Moist and yummy!

XOXO