Happy H-A-L-L-O-W-E-E-N!

Halloween is hands down my favorite holiday. Yes, I realize by saying this, I am putting Halloween over Thanksgiving and Christmas. Don’t get me wrong, I love eating myself into a turkey-induce coma and will always praise the big ol’ JC, but there’s something magical about Halloween.

As a kid growing up, my mother would always make a big deal out of Halloween. She would help us with our costumes (if you ever need to look like a killer zombie, my Mom is your makeup lady). She would decorate the house with witches, goblins, cobwebs, and a dummy we called Ferdinand. She would even get into costume herself to hand out candy to all the trick-or-treaters. One year she was the bride of Jason, it was quite hysterical.

But the magic didn’t stop there! We also would volunteer at our school’s haunted house production. I once played a severed head on a platter that was pretty sweet. But, if I had to choose a favorite tradition of Halloween, it would be going on haunted hay-rack rides with my family. I loved sitting on the hay sipping hot cocoa waiting to be scared. The guys running around with the  chainsaws were always the SCARIEST!!

Even though I’m a little old for trick-or-treating, I still enjoy getting into the spirit of Halloween. Since we just moved, I didn’t have time to work on decorations or a costume, so I thought I would keep things somewhat interesting by baking a spicy dessert. Oh lordy, you must be shakin’ in your boots. Is this what happens when you’re almost 30? Baking a spicy dessert becomes the highlight of your Halloween. Someone save me.

Anyway, if you need a break from the pillowcase full of bite size candy, you should give this spicy fig cake a try. It’s loaded with all sorts of awesome goodies like drunken figs, vanilla bean, orange marmalade (holla!), sugar, and more sugar. This spicy cake will come in handy if for some reason you need to barter with a ghoul on Halloween night. I suggest giving that said ghoul a bite of this cake and making a run for it. Oh, and always call the Ghostbusters. Because they aren’t afraid of no ghost…

Happy Halloween everyone!

Print Recipe

Halloween Spicy Fig Cake

Yield: one 9-inch loaf

Prep Time: 24 hours + 10 minutes

Cook Time: 40 to 45 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup dried figs
1 cup water
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 vanilla bean
1/4 cup sour cream
3 tablespoons orange marmalade
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest of one orange
3 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 ground cloves
1 1/8 cups cake flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
Confectioners sugar, dusting

Directions:

Place figs in a small bowl. Top one teaspoon of grated fresh ginger and pour 1 cup. Cover and let it sit overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drain the figs and dice. In a standmixer, cream butter and sugars together. Add eggs one at a time. Slice the vanilla bean in a half and scrape out the seeds and place the seeds into the batter. Add sour cream, marmalade, honey, vanilla, zest, two teaspoons fresh ginger, ground ginger, allspice, and cloves. Mix well and add cake flour slowly. Gently fold in figs, and pour patter into a loaf pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. To serve, cut slices and dust with confectioners sugar.
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