Pumpkin Pie Cake
The genius of this recipe is in the way the pie filling and cake batter meld into one sliceable cake in the oven. This recipe starts with a layer of graham cracker crust at the base of a springform pan. We pour most of a pumpkin pie filling over top of the crust. Some is reserved and mixed into a box of yellow cake mix to create a thick batter to spread on top of the pumpkin layer in the pan.The moisture from the pumpkin filling hydrates the crust in the oven so that the layer of graham bakes into the bottom of the pie filling. On top of the pie filling, the cake batter relaxes as it heats and fuses with the pumpkin underneath it, allowing for some of the pumpkin filling to maintain its smooth custard texture while the remaining filling flavors the thick yellow cake above. Once the whole cake cools, it can easily be removed from the springform pan and sliced to reveal all of the different layers connected into one. This makes for a delicious pie-cake that defies the conventional standards for a cake or a pie alone. It's both rich and smooth as well as soft and moist, and like most pies and cakes, it's extra delicious served with freshly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
