Things to do with Canned Pumpkin

When I moved in with the boyfriend I discovered a small fortune of forgotten canned goods in the pantry. Since apparently canned pumpkin could survive a nuclear holocaust, I decided I would google some recipes to put it to good use...

After sitting around in my "possible recipes' folder for a good month or so, I finally decided to try out this little baby from Paula Deen on the food network: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/pumpkin-bars-recipe/index.html

I rarely make "bars" of any kind but these were super yummy, so get ready to see more of these "experiments" in the near future. I made them for last weekend's family ski trip, and they were very well received, particularly by the squirrel who ripped apart our trash can and devoured all the leftover frosting. Hope it was good, little guy.

Ingredients:

4 eggs
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
15-ounce can pumpkin
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

First things first, mix together the eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin with an electric mixer, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl. mix until you have a nicely blended, light and fluffy texture, this will make the bars very cake-like and moist.

In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda, then add the dry ingredients into the light fluffiness. Slowly to prevent flour explosions.

Spread the batter into a greased 10x13 baking pan and smooth out the top. bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until set. let cool completely on a wire rack before attempting to frost.

For the icing:

8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Simply combine all the ingredients, creaming together the cream cheese and butter first. This stuff is DEADLY. You could literally eat it with a spoon.

The recipe told me to cut the bars first and then frost them, which I dutifully obeyed. However, when I make this again I will probably frost the whole thing like a cake, then cut them individually from there. I tried piping the frosting onto the bars, as well as just spreading it on with a knife. The piping was much cleaner, but I got impatient as it was 11:00PM and I was busy watching a movie in front of the fire. These weren't exactly the prettiest desserts I've ever made.

But MAN were they good. Just ask the squirrel. Now I have to figure out what to do with all the canned coconut milk... ideas are welcome ;)