As a kid, the hardest part of Halloween was deciding what costume to wear. Should I be cute or scary, daring or simple? While my more creative friends would dye their hair, dabble in the application of fake blood or construct elaborate outfits from scratch, I was always searching for a costume that took minimal effort but was fun. I take the same approach with my Halloween treats. When I want to make something festive but simple, I always turn to these cake truffles. The concept is perfect for Halloween because it’s just like baking a cake but giving it a great costume. These cake truffles are as easy as they are delicious and your friends will think you’re a wizard in the kitchen.

Pumpkin Cake Truffles
Makes about 30 Truffles

Ingredients
For the cake
2 cups of all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of ground clove
1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger
4 eggs
1 2/3 cups of white sugar
1 cup of vegetable oil
15 ounces of canned pumpkin
15 pecan halves for garnish

For the frosting
4 ounces of cream cheese, softened
6 tablespoons of unsalted butter, softened
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

For the glaze
4 cups of confectioners’ sugar
2/3 cup of milk
Orange food coloring

Directions
Preheat your oven to 350° F. Prepare a 9 x 11 brownie pan by greasing it and lightly dusting it with flour.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin, sugar, and oil.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix together with a whisk. Mix until just combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared brownie pan and place in the oven. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through.

When the cake is brown around the edges and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, the cake is done. Set aside to cool.

While the cake cools, make the frosting.

With an electric mixer, cream together the butter and cream cheese.

Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and mix until smooth.

Once the cake has cooled completely, cut it up into small cubes and place it in the mixer
with the frosting. Mix the two together until completely combined.

Using an ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, make one inch balls of the cake truffle. You can roll them in your hands to make them smooth.

Place the cake truffles on a baking sheet lined with parchment and transfer to the refrigerator to chill while you make the glaze. The longer they chill the better, because they are easier to work with when they are firmer.

To make the glaze, whisk the confectioners’ sugar, milk and food coloring together in a large bowl. The mixture should be the consistency of thick syrup. Thin enough that you can pour it, but thick enough that it will coat the cake truffles. You can adjust the consistency by adding more sugar if it is too loose or more milk if it is too thick.

I like to coat my cake truffles twice to ensure a smooth glaze. For the first round, I dip the cake truffle in the bowl of glaze. This makes sure it is completely coated. I remove it with a fork and let some of the glaze drip off before transferring it to a wire rack set over a piece of parchment paper. Repeat with all truffles.

Next, with the truffles on the rack, I spoon additional glaze over for a smooth outer layer. I let the excess glaze fall to the parchment paper below the rack and then scrape it back into the bowl and reuse it if I need to.

Let the cake balls sit for 20 minutes to set before carefully transferring them to the serving platter using an offset spatula.

Finally to make the stem, take each pecan half and cut it in half vertically. Take each pecan fourth and stick it into the top of the cake truffle.

Keep the truffles in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve them. They can be kept for up to a week in an airtight container in the refrigerator.