Orange and Ginger Upside-down Cake

The ingredients for May's Improv Cooking Challenge were Orange and Ginger. A very tasty combination whether used in a savory dish or a sweet treat. Well since we've all been working so hard getting ready for our move next month  I decided we deserved a sweat treat for a reward. I thought it would be the perfect  way to cool down after all of our packing and purging.

I found this Orange and Ginger Upsidedown Cake recipe on The Chew website.  I decided that I was going to cheat a little though, and make the recipe using a white cake mix I already had at the house. It was very simple and worked out wonderfully. My family really enjoyed the finished product and I'm sure I'll  make it again. Here's my ingredients.

Zest the three oranges and set the zest aside.  Slice off the tops and bottoms of  the oranges. Now slice away the rind and pith, from top to bottom. Just  follow the curve of the fruit. Segment each orange, discard any seeds and set them aside. Reserve 2 tablespoons of orange juice.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 3 tablespoons of butter. Add the brown sugar and reserved orange juice and stir until everything is dissolved, about 2 to 3 minutes. Place this mixture into the bottom of your cake pan. Place the orange segments on top of the brown sugar mixture in a circular fashion, overlapping as necessary. 

Now to get the cake mixed up. Put the cake mix, 3 eggs, 2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg, 2 tsp. ground ginger, 1/3 cup of sour cream and 1/4 cup water. Mix on medium for about 3 minutes. Gently spoon over the oranges. Tap the pan on the counter a couple times to remove any air bubbles. Bake in a preheated oven at 350* for 25 minutes. Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edges and turn out onto your cake platter. Serve with a dollop of slightly sweetened fresh whipped cream.

*since I modified the recipe, I had a little leftover batter. I used it to make cupcakes for lunch treats for my brother.

Come check out the other tasty creations in this month's Improv Cooking Challenge.

An InLinkz Link-up

Spiced Pumpkin Coffee Cake

FALL is here and I love the colors, smells and flavors during this time of year. One of the things I love about fall is pumpkin.  Another thing I love is a good coffee cake. It brings back so many great memories of my childhood and the sights and smells of the many different baked goods and coffee cakes my mom would make. Coffee cake isn't just for breakfast y'all. Growing up we had it as desert for lunch and supper too. Anytime of day is the perfect time for coffee cake in my humble opinion. So when I saw this recipe for a spiced pumpkin coffee cake from Jamie over at Anderson And Grant I was in love and knew I had to try it. However, I wanted to lighten it up a bit, so I made a few modifications. 

Here is my lighter version.

~Spiced Pumpkin Coffee Cake~ 

1 box yellow cake mix 

1 small can of pumpkin puree 

4 eggs 

1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice 

~Streasel~ 

1/2 cup brown sugar 

1/2 cup sugar 

1 cup chopped walnuts 

~Glaze~ 

1 cup of powdered sugar 

1/4 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice 

1-1/2 tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 375*

Grease and flour a 9x13 cake pan

Mix sugars and walnuts together and set aside. Place all ingredients for the coffee cake in a medium bowl and mix together until all are incorporated and smooth. evenly spread half of the batter in the prepared cake pan. Top with half of the streussel and then top with the remaining batter. Now lastly sprinkle the remaining streussel over the cake and bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. While cake is cooling mix up the glaze. Place in a ziploc bag, remove air and seal it. Cut a small corner from one corner and drizzle over the cake when it has completely cooled. Enjoy!

Taking one for my co-workers. They are like family.