Pumpkin is the foreplay to the holiday season. This time of year, we are bombarded with pumpkin flavored everything, and for good measure- that shit is bomb. When you see that pumpkin latte at starbucks, you know it’s only a few days until you’ll start making those christmas (or Hanukah, kwanza??) lists and checking them twice. I’ve personally been amping up my pumpkin intake through my breakfasts (a little pumpkin in your oatmeal or green smoothie goes a long way), and of course dessert!

This recipe is a take on pumpkin pie, and adapted from a recipe I found on a blog en Español (thank you google translate), which made for an interesting baking adventure. The crust is baked a bit beforehand, which browns the butter and makes a deliciously nutty base to a thick, rich pumpkin cheesecake-like bar. It’s really simple and only calls on a few ingredients. Pumpkin needs less than a bit of cinnamon and sweetness to take center stage.

Happy holidays y’all!

Pumpkin Pie Bars

Adapted from here

Ingredients for the crust:

.5 C + 1 TBS butter, at room temperature
.5 C brown sugar
3/4 C flour
1/4 C + 1 TBS oats

Ingredients for the cake:

2 eggs
½ C + 3 TBS sugar
1.5 C (400 g) pumpkin puree
1.25 C (350 ml) sweetened condensed milk
½ TBS salt
1 TBS cinnamon
½ TBS ground ginger

Make the crust: In a medium bowl, beat butter brown sugar. Add flour and rolled oats gradually. Line an 8 x 8 baking pan with tin foil. Dump the crust mixture into the pan and pat down to condense. Bake at 350F degrees for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven.

In a large bowl whisk the eggs with the sugar. Add the pumpkin puree, condensed milk, salt, cinnamon and ginger. Pour the mixture over the base and bake at 350F degrees for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted wood comes out clean (if it tends to brown too much, cover with foil ). Chill in the refrigerator overnight (or at least 4 hours, to desired consistency).