Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Spice Cake

I love fall. Everyone knows that I love fall. It’s still hot down here, but I had to get a jump on the season by making this yummy cake last night. My house smelled SO good. Yours will, too!

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Spice Cake

1 box Duncan Hines French Vanilla cake mix (if you can’t find this flavor, just use white or yellow)

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

1 cup vegetable oil (yes, that’s a full cup—this ain’t diet food)

4 eggs

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1/2 to 1 cup miniature dark chocolate chips (I only used half a cup—I think it needed a little more)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan and set aside. Put the cake mix, pumpkin, oil, eggs and pumpkin pie spice into the bowl of your stand mixer. Mix on low for a minute to moisten all ingredients. Scrape the sides of the bowl, then beat on medium for a good ten minutes or so, scraping sides as needed.

(I realize that length of time goes against all conventional knowledge on cake-baking, but my grandmother shared that was one of her secrets for transforming cake mix into something really special.)

Stir in chocolate chips with your spatula or a wooden spoon. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for one hour. Let cool in pan a few minutes before flipping it out onto a cake rack to cool another ten minutes or so before slicing.

If you can wait that long….

Oh, and by the way—this is a great recipe for using up jars of baby food. Just substitute two 4-oz. jars of baby food carrots, sweet potatoes or squash for the pumpkin.