How many times have you gotten a recipe from your mom, you know that one recipe that you remember from when you were a kid, one of those delicious treats that you never forget. These recipes get handed down from generation to generation, you get them all from your mom but she got them from her mom, and her grandma. Food is not just something to sustain you and keep you alive it is a connection that can last for generations. This recipe originally comes from my great grandmother and was passed down through my mom.

 Since I am a foodie most of my favorite childhood memories revolve around the food that we had. I am talking about those desserts or dishes that were specific to each holiday or each season. So when these pumpkin bars showed up on the counter at home I knew for sure that it was fall. In our house pumpkin bars were always the predecessor to pumpkin pies. Pumpkin bars would start to be made in October and lead up to the pumpkin pies of November. Yet another reason that fall is my favorite time of the year, the smell of leaves and the crisp frosty mornings followed by the warm afternoon sun and of course the smell of fresh baked pumpkin bars!

 This recipe is so simple and very versatile, you can make it in bar form using a jelly roll pan but if you don’t have one, and we don’t currently own one, you can use a cake pan and make it into a cake. All you have to do is adjust your baking time and leave it in longer until a toothpick comes out clean in the center. You can also add whatever extras you want depending on what you prefer like, nuts, raisins, or chocolate chips. Any of these go really well in this recipe I always usually prefer chocolate chips because I used to not like raisins when I was a kid but for some reason as I am getting older I was craving these with raisins so I guess my tastes are changing in my old age!

Tell me what your favorite holiday treat is, that one thing you have to have in order for it to feel just like you are a kid during the holidays again!

Easy Pumpkin Bars

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 4 Eggs
• 2 C. sugar
• 1 15 oz can pumpkin puree
• ¾ C. melted butter
• 2 C. flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• 12 oz nuts or raisins, or chocolate chips
• Cream cheese frosting

Method

 

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. In a mixer or with a whisk combine eggs, sugar, pumpkin, and butter.
3. Add remaining ingredients and stir by hand.
4. Pour batter into jelly roll pan and bake for 20-25 min
5. Or pour batter into a greased cake pan and bake for 30 min, check on it and keep baking until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
6. Frost with cream cheese frosting. Enjoy!