I am a huge fan of pumpkin, yet, not pumpkin pie. There's something about the texture that just really bothers me. But, I LOVE other pumpkin items- pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, breads, ice cream. But, my absolute favorite I discovered last year. My friend Alecia made this dessert called pumpkin dessert squares and I was in complete hea-ven. I demanded the recipe and she reluctantly it to me- mostly because it is somewhat pricy. It is a jar of Muirhead Pecan Pumpkin Butter that you buy from Williams and Sonoma- thus, it is like $10 a jar (I did manage to get like $2 off). Alecia said that she had tried other pumpkin butters, but they just weren't as good. It also involves a yellow cake mix to provide the great crumbly texture on top. I think that the bars are better after they have fully cooled- they were still good warm out from the oven. While it is an expensive dessert, it is SO WORTH IT. I ate nearly 2/3rds of the pan over the weekend while William was gone- he isn't a pumpkin fan at all. I have one more jar and I am saving it for a little while later before making it. And I want to share
the recipe so that everyone can have a little pumpkin heaven deliciousness.
Preheat oven to 350° F. Divide yellow cake mix, placing all but one cup in a mixing bowl. Stir in 1/2 c. melted butter and one egg into the cake mix. Press the mixture into the bottom of a 9" × 13" pan. Mix the jar of Muirhead Pecan Pumpkin Butter with two eggs and 1/2 c. milk. Pour this result over the cake mix. Stir the reserved 1 cup of cake mix with 1 tbsp flour, 1/4 c. sugar, 1/4 c softened butter, and 1 tsp cinnamon. Mix together until crumbly. Sprinkle over top of the pumpkin layer. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown. Cut into "2 squares.
Other than the Williams-Sonoma filling, which I'm sure is a definite improvement, this is just like an old recipe from my file. Here's the filling ingredients that I was given, in case you want to try:
ReplyDelete15oz pumpkin
1/2c brown sugar
1 1/2t cinnamon
1t allspice combination
2 eggs
2/3c milk