Pumpkin-Oat Strawberry Cake Baked in a Jar

If you share in the love of "everything pumpkin" and want to share some of this sweetness with friends and family this fall season...then try out this adorable recipe and bake your cake in a mason jar! You can even send a bit of autumn to family members who may be far away. I created this pumpkin-oat strawberry recipe and baked it for some of my friends recently.

Here is the easy recipe:

Pumpkin-Oat Strawberry Cake in a Jar

Ingredients:
2 2/3 cups sugar
2/3 cup shortening
4 eggs
1 (16 ounce) can of pumpkin
2/3 cup water
3 1/3 cups flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup of oats
1 teaspoon pumpkin spice
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
8 medium strawberries chopped with sugar added

Directions:
1. Grease inside of 8 (1 pint) sterilized wide mouth canning glass jars.
2. Cream shortening with sugar.
3. Beat in eggs, pumpkin, and water.
4. Combine flour, spices, oats, baking soda and powder.
5. Add to pumpkin mixture.
6. Stir in sugared strawberries
7. Pour into jars until 1/2 full.
8. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes at 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
9. When done, remove jars and wipe down.
10.Seal with new lids; the heat will seal the jars.

These also make great party favors or hostess gifts. Stack the dry ingredients for your favorite soup or cookie recipe, add a festive bit of cloth and a recipe card to the top of the jar and you have created a very pretty, unique and inexpensive home-made gift!The possibilities are endless. 

Some more fun ideas are: put chili in the bottom of a jar, then pour cornbread batter on top of it, pop it into the oven until the cornbread is baked and seal it up to bring to a fall football gathering.  Or bake individual apple and peach cobblers in glass jars. 
Happy fall!

Darien resident Janine Vairo is the founder of PartyStyle Box and a Real Estate Agent at Kelly Associates, Real Estate Inc. 

Janine blogs about party ideas, recipes, home decor and trends in the real estate market. 

Email: partystylebox@gmail.com 
Visit her website www.partystylebox.com
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