I had seen this Upside Down Spiced Pumpkin Sour Cream Coffee Cake recipe. It sounds fantastic, and I'm sure it is. But I could not bring myself to use that much butter and sugar. The cranberries give up juice anyway, so I can't imagine this being any better than my version. And, I won't have to run extra hours to burn my version off.
Angel's Cranberry-Pumpkin Upside Cake
Cranberry Pecan Topping
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 cups fresh, whole cranberries (if frozen, thaw)
1 cup pecans, toasted, skinned, and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup rolled oats
diced candied ginger if you've got some
Easy method: Take a sheet cake pan and toast the pecans. When they are toasty, take them out and put the butter in the pan, putting it back in the oven if your pan has cooled. Melt the butter, then pour it in to your bowl with the other ingredients, swirling the pan to grease it. Stir the topping and then spread it out in the bottom of the pan. I then took some diced candied ginger and sprinkled it on top of that. Why? Because I could.
Pumpkin Cake
2 cups white whole wheat flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1½ teaspoons nutmeg
½ teaspoon cloves
½ teaspoon salt
zest of 1 orange
1 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 cup milk
½ cup olive oil
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 large eggs, cool room temperature, lightly beaten
1 scant cup pumpkin puree (½ 15-ounce can)
Mix the dry and wet separately, then put together. Pour over topping and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
Invert on a foil lined cookie sheet while warm so you don't have to fight the topping. Eat as is. No need for sauces. My version saves 3/4 cup of butter and a full cup of sugar, as well as having added fiber from the whole wheat flour and the added oats.