Pumpkin Layer Cake

The first time I made this cake was on an autumn afternoon when I had a good few kilograms of cleaned pumpkin and didn't want it to spoil. The sheets are not hard to make, but they require a little patience when kneading, especially if you don't have much space on the table. I process the pumpkin in a food processor to get it done quickly. Once the filling cools, everything goes pretty fast, and I usually like to let the cake sit overnight because the next day it cuts much nicer.

Quick Info

Total time: about 2 hours (including cooling time)
Servings: 24 (one large tray, 26x40 cm)
Difficulty: medium

Ingredients

Sheets:
2 eggs
300 g butter (room temperature)
300 g sugar
300 ml yogurt (preferably a bit tangy)
4 tablespoons oil
900 g white flour (may need a bit more or less)
1 packet baking powder (with saffron, 10 g)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons cocoa
salt (a pinch)
orange essence (to taste)
caffeine essence (to taste)

Filling:
800 g cleaned pumpkin
4 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons semolina

Preparation Method

1. Clean the pumpkin, weigh 800 g, and process it in a food processor or grate it. Place it in a pot with sugar and cinnamon. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, until the pumpkin softens and releases a little syrup.
2. Remove the pot from the heat, add the semolina, mix, and let the filling cool completely. If the filling is too runny, add a bit more semolina.
3. For the dough, cream the softened butter with sugar and a pinch of salt until it becomes fluffy. Add the eggs and mix well.
4. Add the yogurt, baking powder, baking soda, and 2-3 tablespoons of sifted flour. If the yogurt is homemade and more liquid, it helps with the homogenization.
5. Divide the mixture into two equal bowls.
6. In one bowl, add the cocoa and coffee essence; in the other, the orange essence.
7. Gradually incorporate the flour into each bowl until you obtain two homogeneous, slightly sticky doughs, not as hard as bread. It is important not to add all the flour at once.
8. Grease the table and your hands with a little oil, knead each piece quickly, just enough to bind and smooth it out.
9. Cover the doughs and let them rest until the pumpkin filling has cooled.
10. Roll out the first dough (without cocoa) on parchment paper or on a greased surface, shape it to fit the tray. Place it in the tray (26x40 cm), and poke it with a fork in several places.
11. Spread the pumpkin filling over the first sheet, leveling it gently with a spatula.
12. Roll out the cocoa dough to the same size and place it on top of the filling. Poke the top sheet with a fork so it doesn't puff up while baking.
13. Bake the cake at 180°C for 45-50 minutes. If using a smaller tray, the baking time may increase slightly.
14. Remove the tray and let the cake cool completely in the tray; otherwise, it will crumble when cut.

Why I make this recipe often

It’s practical if you have a lot of pumpkin to use. It cuts nicely the next day, and the sheets soften. It keeps well and doesn’t dry out too quickly. The filling can be made in advance, as can the sheets if needed.

Tips and Variations

Tips

- If you notice that the pumpkin filling releases too much liquid, add half a tablespoon of semolina or drain a bit of syrup to prevent the cake from being too wet.
- Try not to knead the doughs too much to keep them tender.
- If you use thicker yogurt, you can add a tablespoon or two of milk.
- For rolling out, grease the table and make room. The dough may stick, but with a little oil on your hands, it works easily.

Substitutions

- Butter can be replaced with special margarine for baking, but the texture will change.
- Yogurt can be swapped with kefir or buttermilk.
- If you don’t have cocoa, the top sheet can remain plain, without cocoa.
- Coffee essence is optional; you can use vanilla or rum instead.

Variations

- You can add chopped nuts to the pumpkin filling for more texture.
- Cinnamon can be replaced with a pie spice mix: ginger, nutmeg, cloves.
- It can also be made with roasted pie pumpkin, but the filling texture will be denser.

Serving Ideas

- The cake is served cut into cubes, cold. It can be dusted with powdered sugar after cooling.
- It pairs well with coffee or tea, or as a dessert to pack.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How can I prevent the dough from sticking to the table?
Grease the table and your palms with a little oil and work quickly. If you want, you can roll out the dough on parchment paper, which can then be easily transferred to the tray.

2. Can I make the dough a day in advance?
Yes, you can keep it in the fridge, well covered. It should be left at room temperature for a bit to soften before rolling out.

3. Can I freeze the cake?
It can be frozen cut, in airtight bags or containers. When thawing, let it sit at room temperature for a few hours.

4. What if I don't have a food processor, can I grate the pumpkin?
Yes, a large grater does the job just as well. It comes out slightly more “fibrous,” but there is no difference in taste.

5. What do I do if I don't have a 26x40 cm tray?
You can use a slightly smaller tray or two medium-sized trays. The layer of dough will be thicker, and the baking time may increase by 5-10 minutes.

Nutritional Values

One serving (approx. 70 g, from 24 servings):
Calories: 220
Carbohydrates: 33 g
Fats: 8 g
Proteins: 3 g
Fiber: 1 g
(The values are estimated, depending on the ingredients used and the thickness of the sheets.)

Storage and Reheating

It keeps covered at room temperature for up to 3 days. In the fridge, it lasts up to 6 days, but it may harden a bit. If you want to bring it back to its original texture, leave it at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving. It doesn’t need reheating, but if you prefer, you can warm a portion for 10-15 seconds in the microwave. The sheets become more tender the next day.

We start with the filling that needs to be prepared over heat and then left to cool. We peel the pumpkin from its skin and seeds and process it in a food processor or grate it (for those who have patience), I use a food processor but do not chop it completely. I weighed the pumpkin after peeling. We place the pumpkin in a pot over low heat, along with sugar and cinnamon, and stir occasionally. We let it cook until it forms a syrup and the pumpkin softens a bit (about 10 minutes), then we remove it from the heat, add the semolina, mix well, and let the pot cool. Meanwhile, we prepare the dough sheets. In a bowl, we beat the butter with sugar and a little salt until it becomes frothy, then we add the eggs and mix well. We add the yogurt and the baking powder mixed with baking soda and 2-3 tablespoons of flour. I usually sift the baking powder together with the baking soda and flour to ensure even distribution. I had homemade yogurt, which is usually more sour than store-bought and has a thinner texture. The acidity of the yogurt helps to immediately dilute the baking powder and baking soda. We divide the mixture into two equal parts. In one part, we add cocoa and coffee essence, and in the other, orange essence. We incorporate flour into each part as needed, so the dough is not too firm like bread; it will remain slightly sticky. We grease the work surface with a little oil and knead the dough on the surface to combine it well. We use oil to prevent the dough from sticking to our hands, meaning we pour a little oil on our hands and the work surface. We do this with both parts of the dough, then let it rest until the filling cools. We line the baking tray with parchment paper or grease it with oil and dust it with flour, according to preference. We roll out the white dough in the tray, prick it with a fork in several places, pour the pumpkin mixture over it, level it, and then spread the cocoa dough on top. We prick this layer as well in several places with a fork. We put the tray in the oven for 45 minutes at 180 degrees. I used a tray of 26/40 cm, but I could have used a larger one since the sheets rose a lot. It is a very good cake for those who like pumpkin! The cake will be cut cold. It can be dusted with sugar. If too much syrup forms in the pumpkin filling, it can be drained, or more semolina can be used. The sheets become crumbly starting the second day due to the baking soda (if the cake lasts until the second day).

 Ingredients: For the dough: 2 eggs, 300 g butter, 300 g sugar, 300 ml yogurt, 4 tablespoons oil, 3 tablespoons cocoa, 900 g flour, 1 packet baking powder with saffron, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, orange essence, coffee essence. For the filling: 800 g pumpkin, 3 tablespoons semolina, 4 tablespoons sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon.

 Tags:  layered cake pumpkin pie