We have a lovely cookbook called Tartine, written by the owners of the bakery, Tartine, in San Fransisco.

I sometimes find this sort of cookbook frustrating, because the recipes are often linked very closely with the specific specialty ingredients available in that location. Which is great for a bakery—they should be using local ingredients. It makes it harder to reproduce those recipes, however, from the other side of the planet.

Tartine, however, is full of recipes that are remarkably simple to make, with ingredients available just about anywhere. I’ve enjoyed making several of the recipes from the book, and some of them are ones I return to regularly.

My husband first made their Pumpkin Tea Cake as the base of a birthday cake for me years ago. Since then, I’ve used the recipe similarly—baked in layers for special-occasion cakes.

But the recipe is technically for a loaf cake.

So last week I decided to make the recipe as it was meant to be made. Sort of. I did increase the quantities so that it would be the perfect amount for a Bundt cake, rather than a loaf. And I adjusted the spice quantities to taste. And I switched out some of the regular flour for wholemeal. Oh, and I reduced the sugar a bit. So yeah, maybe not exactly Tartine’s cake, but …

The result was the fluffiest, most divine Bundt cake ever. And it’s so easy to make that it may become my go-to cake for all occasions from here on out.

Here’s my version of the recipe. But do find yourself a copy of Tartine and try out the original, along with all the other lovely recipes in the book.

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup wholemeal flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp cloves
1 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp salt
4 large eggs

Whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and spices in a mixing bowl. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat together the pumpkin, oil sugar and salt until well mixed. Then add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture, beating just until smooth.

Pour the batter into a greased Bundt pan and bake for 1 hour at 180℃ (325℉), until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes before removing it from the pan and cooling completely on a wire rack.

The original recipe was sprinkled with sugar before baking, but this cake needs no embellishment at all. Eat it with a fork and knife, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or with your fingers, standing up in the kitchen. It’s delicious however you’d like it.