Harvest Spice Roll

There's nothing I hate more than seeing precious ingredients go to waste, especially if they're hard to get, expensive ingredients. In this country, pumpkin classifies. The can I used was actually one absconded from America because of its rarity in Israel. After the Cheesecake Pumpkin Pie, I had a bit of it left in the fridge. I considered eating as it was as I like squash (is that gross?) but it turned out it was just enough to whip up this Harvest Spice Roll. This cake is made as a jelly roll and then filled with a cream cheese filling. The cake was easy to make and bakes in no time. I used a mix of fall spices instead of the pumpkin pie spice and omitted the lemon juice and nuts and the ginger from the filling. The cake cooled fast but shrunk when unrolled and had cracked a bit. It was very moist and sticky as well. Thankfully, the filling hid the cracks and a nice chilling in the fridge made it easier to handle. Surprisingly, my girls LOVED this cake and they had multiple slices a piece. Points for me for sophisticating their palates! When asked E what she thought, she said I love anything you make with cream cheese, but this was exceptional- I loved it. Will you make it again? The answer to that is probably no, but it says something about this recipe that she asked. Make sure that your filling ingredients are all at room temperature. This ensures a lump free filling. This dessert is perfect for fall and would be lovely on your Thanksgiving table as well.

Harvest Spice Roll

adapted from King Arthur Flour Baking Companion

Cake:

3/4 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice or a mix of cloves, ginger, and allspice

1/2 tsp fresh nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup sugar

2/3 cup pumpkin puree

Filling:
1 cup powdered sugar

6 tbsp margarine, softened

1 tsp vanilla

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup crystallized ginger, optional

Preheat the oven to 375.

Line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, spices and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together until thick, fluffy and light colored. Beat in the pumpkin. Add the dry ingredients and mix well. Pour into prepared pan and spread evenly with a spatula. Bake about fifteen minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from the oven and loosen the sides with a knife. Invert it onto a clean kitchen towel dusted heavily with powdered sugar and peel off the paper. Trim the hard, crusty edges from the cake. Roll up the cake and towel together, starting with the long side. Place the roll, seam side down, on a rack to cool completely.

Sift the sugar into a medium bowl and beat it with the butter until smooth. Mix in the vanilla. Add the cream cheese in chunks beating well after each addition. The mixture should be completely smooth. When the cake is completely cooled, gently unroll it and spread the cake with the filling then reroll, without the towel to place the seam side down. Refrigerate until ready to serve then dust with powdered sugar.