Dear makers of jeans,
Why are you under the impression that I am 6’3” simply because I wear a 10/12 in jeans? Can’t I just be short and plump? Why do women who are above a size 4 have to be Amazon women? And what about the women who are size 4 and tall (other than the fact that I hate them :P)? The average woman in the USA is 5’4” tall and a size 14…yet at 5’6” my pants have what seems like an extra foot of fabric to them.
Is this some conspiracy with the high heel makers of the world to force us all to wear 4-inch heels in order for our pants not to drag onto the ground? Or perhaps it’s a conspiracy with the seamstresses of the world to force us to go and get our pants hemmed. Either way it’s highly suspicious and a giant waste of material.
And don’t even get me started on to how today’s plus size models start at size 6 and go to size 14. Ummm? Cindy Crawford would not have been able to be a supermodel these days. She would be considered a cow. She’s a darn good looking cow if you ask me.
Speaking of jeans…it’s Thanksgiving week and with that the holidays will be in full swing so I will need to let my jeans out a little. This year I was feeling a little non-traditional in terms of dessert. I decided to make a Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake. It’s pumpkin spice so it’s a little traditional but the addition of coffee swiss meringue buttercream puts a little spin on that tradition. What about you? What are you making for Thanksgiving dessert this year?
Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
4 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups pumpkin puree or cooked mashed pumpkin
This will make 2 9-inch cakes or 6 4 ½-inch diameter cakes. I made minis.
Combine sugar, vegetable oil, and eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat until well combined, about 3 minutes.
Sift dry ingredients into a separate bowl; pour into oil mixture, beating well. Stir in pumpkin puree.
Pour batter into two greased and floured 9-inch round layer cake pan or mini pans. Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes for full sized or 25- 30 minutes for mini. Turn out onto racks to cool.
Adapted from Southern Food at About.com
Coffee Swiss Meringue Buttercream
5 large, fresh egg whites
1 ¼ cups baker’s sugar
1 ½ cups unsalted butter, cut into cubes and cool, but not cold
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. instant coffee (I used Via)
pinch of salt
In an non-reactive metal bowl add egg whites and sugar, and simmer over a pot of water (not boiling), whisking constantly but gently, until temperature reaches 160°F, or if you don’t have a candy thermometer, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the egg whites are hot.
Put mixture into the clean bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment attached and begin to whip until the meringue is thick, glossy, and the bottom of the bowl feels neutral to the touch (this can take up to 10 minutes or so). *Don’t begin adding butter until the bottom of the bowl feels neutral, and not warm.
Switch over to paddle attachment and, with mixer on low speed, add butter cubes, one at a time, until incorporated, and mix until it has reached a silky smooth texture (if curdles, keep mixing and it will come back to smooth). *If mixture is too runny, refrigerate for about 15 minutes and continue mixing with paddle attachment until it comes together. Add vanilla, instant coffee, and salt, continuing to beat on low speed until well combined.
Recipe slightly adapted from Sweetopolita.com
Frost between layers only and drizzle with caramel.
This sounds absolutely yummy. For Thanksgiving this year (in October, I’m Canadian) I made a simple apple crisp, but it was so deilcious.
Also, I hear you on the pants thing. I am 5’11” and very much plus size, and getting things that fit my legs and my butt and my waist all at once is impossible!
What a lovely tower..thank you.
The icing sounds so good too~
This looks delicious! I think I just found my non-traditional Thanksgiving dessert for this year!
And I hear you on the pants thing… I’m 5’4″ and a size 16, and it’s waaaaaay too difficult to find jeans that aren’t too long (and petite jeans are too short!). I don’t know why they don’t have a sizing system for women’s pants like they do for men’s pants, it’s so much more practical – find the size that fits your waist size, then find the length that fits your legs. Done.
I’ve actually had really good luck with Lee jeans that come in shorter lengths….they are cheap and fit me well – I’m over the $100 pair of jeans 🙂
Your cake looks yummy – I’ll be making a pumpkin cake too, but I’ll just slap some simple cream cheese icing on mine 😉
That looks like the best cake ever! Well we are the same size. I have some of those jeans too and they are handy for my cowboy boots but they drive me crazy with regular shoes!
I’m 6’1.5″ and I’ve never been able to buy a pair of jeans off the rack a day in my life. I have to special order 37″ inseam pants for a bajillion and one dollars plus shipping and they still aren’t long enough to wear with heels (if I could wear heels without hitting my head on door frames.) Clothing is definitely not made for the super tall either. It seems like if you’re 5’8″ you’re golden and all else need not apply.
Still, cake fits everyone and I’ve just confirmed I have all the ingredients for this one…
Oh, jeans. I’m 5’10” and I wear a size 3 or 5, depending on the pants. On me, any jeans that fit my middle look like capris, so I’m constantly wearing tight belts or tugging up my pants. Don’t envy me, either. For every “you look good,” I get five “you need to eat a sandwich” or “have you been purging?” Reeeally, don’t envy me. 😛
For Thanksgiving dessert this year, I made a three-layer pumpkin spice cake with a cinnamon oat streusel crust on the cake layers, brown sugar cinnamon cream cheese frosting, and streusel crumbles on top. Funny how I say that like it’s the only thing I made. Also a pie, fudge, two quick breads, bar cookies, two kinds of frosted cookies, ice cream and caramel. I like to go all out whenever I get a break from college, and my brothers are coming over anyway. 🙂
Your cake looks great. It looks better than cakes I’ve bought from pastry shops. Very nice.
We never feel inclined to escape the traditional buffet of pies. At the very least we will have Apple Pie and Pumpkin Pie, we nearly always have Chocolate Pudding Pie, and we often tack on Pecan Pie and/or Cherry Pie. And that’s after the list got trimmed down. When I was a kid we celebrated at my Grandma’s and there would also be lemon meringue, blueberry, mincemeat, and chocolate cheesecake. Definitely about the desserts in this family. 🙂
Ah, Peabody, I really need this cake…now! Please…then you could make another.
That looks absolutely beautiful. And why, I believe I’m making your very own pumpkin cheesecake with salted caramel sauce ::evil grin:: and I am quite excited about those jean expanding bites.
Dear makers of jeans, why do you assume that because I am plus sized, I have hips? I am size 18 with all the hips of a 12 year old boy but the stomach of an aging politician. Why do I have to choose between balloon thighs and muffin top?? There exist no jeans that have an equal waist and hip measurement or a larger waist than hips. I have to settle for bulging waist cinched with a belt to keep from falling down (remember, no his to hold them) and baggy behind/thighs. Levi’s 590 jeans are the closest I can get to a “good” fit. I fear the day they are discontinued.
That looks soooo yummy!! I wish I could do that. And dang, I have never felt so lucky to be my size 14, 5’9″-ness and never have to hem stuff. Thank you for making me feel not too bad!
Yeah, the jeans industry needs to go die.
Love this cake!
Send the extra fabric to me. I’m too tall to be short and to short to be tall, and doesn’t matter what size I am. Although to be fair, if I want to spend more than $100, I’m pretty sure I could find jeans that fit. But I’m not willing to spend that much money on 1 pair of jeans.
Love the recipe, the picture looks lovely.
I am 5’5″ and have been wearing American Eagle jeans ever since I worked for them in undergrad. They are sometimes just an inch too long, but most of the time fit me just right.
I am making a chocolate birthday cake for desser since my son turns 4 that day. I can’t get very gourmet or the birthday boy won’t eat it but it does make it easier. I do refuse to use a box though.
Amen, sister! I’m wearing size 12 pants today on my 5’4″ body and didn’t feel like wearing heels, so I have the annoying fabric dragging and flapping syndrome as I walk around today.
I am 5’6″ and a plus size. Yes, the pant legs always want me to grow a foot, but that isn’t the only problem. As a friend put it “I don’t have gorilla arms.” The arms are so long that you could wrap them around my back and make straight jackets. And the upper arm is usually wide enough for thighs instead of arms.
Enough rant. Your Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake looks wonderful. I think it just might grace the table on Thursday … along with the pumpkin pie and the caramel cake … hmmmm I may have just figured out why I am plus size … :-} [I really do know why I am that was supposed to be a joke]
I’m 5’2″ and wear like a 2/3/4 ish and even most of the short jeans are long on me. I once had a pair of jeans hemmed by about 2.5 inches. The jean industry is rediculous.
This cake also looks rediculous lay delicious. 🙂 I made pumpkin cake for thanksgiving. It’s the best pumpkin cake I have ever tasted. I’ve made about 4 batches in the past month.
I am 5 foot 1. I specifically look for petite pants, but sometimes I end up getting capris or ankle pants that fit me like regular pants. It works. That cake looks divine.
I want a piece!
I can get in on this rant! I used to be a 16/18 pant size. Dug the fat out from between my ears and should be about a 6/8 now. I SHOULD BE…but, alas, there are no jeans that fit. I think my thighs all sank to my knees and ALL THE JEANS’ KNEES ARE TOO TIGHT!! Somehow, I have great doubts that wide-leg jeans will ever return to popularity, so I’m not holding my breath, but I AM crossing my fingers!! Seriously, when will the jean manufacturers get a clue?
I’m 5’10” & I usually wear a 16-18 in pants. My hips are ten inches larger in circumference than my waist. The last pair of jeans I got were supposedly specifically made for women with bodies like mine, but I still have a gap at the waist — I can wear them without a belt, but I have to hike them up a lot. The pair I got before that weren’t for a specific shape but were bought at a plus-size shoppe, & the waist-gap for those is so bad that I can’t wear them at all without a belt cinched very tightly. In this case, apparently the clothing industry thinks that women of my comparable size can’t have small waists. And the length! Until this “heels phase” in fashion started, I couldn’t buy women’s jeans at all because none of them were long enough — I had to buy men’s jeans like my mom does* just so I could get the correct length. I could go on an entirely separate rant on top/dress/jacket-sizing…
*My mom is 6′ & has the opposite body shape as me, with a large tummy & no hips at all. She can’t buy women’s jeans because they all have space for hips she doesn’t have & are never long enough.
my daughter used this recipe to make cupcakes yesterday. she made a cinnamon buttercream since we don’t drink coffee. delicious!
I picked pumpkins from the garden this week. What a way to use them!!!!!!!!!