Maple Spice Cake

Nutmeg, Cinnamon and Clove mix with a touch of maple in this surprisingly light cake. Spice cakes are often dense, so this one makes a nice change. Top it with a simple maple buttercream and a dusting of freshly ground nutmeg.

2 Cups All-purpose Flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 Cup White Sugar
1/2 Cup Maple Sugar * (See note below)
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
3/4 cup shortening
1 1/4 Cups Buttermilk
3 Eggs
1/2 teaspoon maple extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan and line with parchment (or you could use two 8" round pans for a layer cake.)

Mix dry ingredients in a kitchenaid mixer on low, until well blended. In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs with the maple extract. Set aside. Add shortening and Buttermilk, on low, until moistened. Turn mixer up to medium and mix for one-and-a-half minutes to aerate the batter. Scrape the bowl down and add eggs in three small batches, mixing after each addition just enough to incorporate them. Scrape down the bowl again to make sure all the batter is mixed well, then pour into pan. Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes.

Maple Buttercream:
1 Stick Butter
2 Cups Confectioner's Sugar
1 Tbsp milk
1/2 teaspoon maple extract (can use more for stronger flavor)

Beat all ingredients in kitchenaid mixer with paddle attachment for two minutes. Add more milk, a couple of drops at a time, for a softer icing.

*Note: Maple sugar is available at specialty stores or online. The granules are a large grain, so you will need to put it through a food processor to get it finer before measuring. If you can't get maple sugar, no worries - just use brown sugar and then increase the maple extract to a whole teaspoon.