Pompom Pumpkin Pound Cake

Source: Tailgate Ted's

A good tailgate desert needs to travel well, and this cake gets tops marks for travel-ability.

It’s no slouch in the flavor department either: dense, compact, and shot through with crunchy walnuts and chocolate chips, it will have your tailgaters coming back for seconds and thirds.

The pumpkin is a nice touch for fall football games, too.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups sugar
1-teaspoon baking soda
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon baking powder
1-teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 teaspoon each: cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg
1/3 cup milk
3/4 cup chocolate mini morsels
3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 5- by 9-inch loaf pan; set aside. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter in mixing bowl, gradually adding the sugar. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in vanilla and pumpkin.In separate bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices. Blend one-third of dry ingredients to creamed mixture, followed by half the milk, another third of the dry, the rest of the milk, and the rest of the dry, blending batter until uniform. Fold in chocolate morsels and walnuts.Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake about 1 hour, until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out fairly clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then invert cake onto cooling rack. Cool thoroughly before slicing. Makes about 10 servings