Pumpkin Bars

I know it's getting toward the end of pumpkin season, but I'm going to have at least two more pumpkin recipes for you. This week I'm bringing you Pumpkin Bars. My version is a mixture of several online recipes I found.

Basically, it's just a pumpkin cake that you smother in cream cheese icing and cut into bars. I made it for a Thanksgiving pot luck lunch at work. Yummy! 

Pumpkin Bars

Ingredients for bars:

4 eggs

1-2/3 cup sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

15 oz can pumpkin

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

3 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (or use 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, and ¼ teaspoon ground clove)

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

(1 cup raisins, optional)

Ingredients for icing:

8 oz cream cheese, softened

½ cup butter, softened

3 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 13x9 pan with cooking spray.

In a mixer, combine the eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin until light and fluffy. 

In a different bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and baking soda. Hand mix the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture. (Stir in raisins if desired.)

Spread into prepared 13x9 pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

When cake is cool, make the icing by beating the cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Beat in the sugar, vanilla, and milk. Add more milk if the icing is too thick. Spread over cooled pumpkin bars.