Tongan Pumpkin Cake

"The Friendly Islands "is the name Captain Cook gave to the island nation Tonga nearly 250 years ago, a title that still holds true. When visiting Tonga  I got to experience the 'Friendly People' first hand, their hospitality and generosity surpasses none.

Today I share the Tonga Pumpkin Cake recipe I got on my trip to Tonga in 1983. I still have it "hand-written" in my first ever personal recipe book.

In summer with a nice light cup of tea, add a dash of whipped cream with a slice of this cake for a sweet treat for morning or afternoon tea. In the winter this cake makes a warming dessert that you can have with custard.

To make it an even richer cake that is often  favoured in the cafe culture of New Zealand, I have added a maple and cinnamon icing decorated with dried tropical fruits, walnuts and pumpkin seeds.

TONGAN PUMPKIN CAKE

Ingredients:

3 eggs                                                                           1½ teaspoon nutmeg

¾ cup vegetable oil                                                         1½ teaspoon cinnamon

2 cups sugar                                                                   ½ teaspoon allspice

2 cups pumpkin pulp                                                        ½ teaspoon ground cloves

2 cups standard flour                                                       Optional: 1 cup raisins and/or ½ cup walnuts

1 ½ teaspoon baking powder                                            icing sugar to sprinkle

1 teaspoon salt                                                                   

Beat sugar, oil and eggs together until the mix goes pale yellow colour.  Mix in pumpkin pulp.

Sift together remaining dry ingredients and mix into the pumpkin mixture.

Finally add the raisins and walnuts.

Place into a high wall 20 cm round baking tray.  

Bake at 180 C for 1- 1 ½ hours until the skewer draws clean when checked. Let rest 10 minutes. 

Then remove from baking tray to cool. When cooled, sprinkle with icing sugar.

Alternatively, ice with a maple and cinnamon icing and decorated with walnuts and/or dried tropical fruit mix that includes pumpkin seeds.  YUM!!

Tongan Pumpkin Cake with Maple and Cinnamon Icing

The cake mixture can be cooked as muffins or cupcakes as shown below. This recipe makes approximately one dozen medium sized muffins. 

Tongan Pumpkin Cake Muffins

Maple and cinnamon icing

150 grams butter

2 cups icing sugar

½ cup brown sugar

4 tablespoons maple syrup

1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

(add more or less maple syrup and cinnamon according to your taste).

Soften butter and mix in brown sugar, maple syrup and icing sugar and beat until the icing goes a pale brown colour.  Mix in the cinnamon. 

My Tips: 

Pumpkin pulp: I used butternut pumpkin, peeled and steamed, then mashed it. Crown pumpkin can also be used. Which ever pumpkin you use, go for something that is sweet and has a dense flesh. You don't want something that when cooked goes really mushy and watery. 

Vegetable oil: I use grape-seed oil as it is a light oil that takes on the flavours of the other ingredients of the recipe. Other light flavoured vegetable oils may be used.