Fall Favorite: Pumpkin Bars With Cream Cheese Frosting

Fall is my favorite season. Crisp air, crunchy leaves, football games, cozy clothing, darker beers and heartier fare... I don't understand how anyone could NOT love fall. As the Cubs season inevitably gets exponentially sadder come September, the white knight that is a new football season blazes in with the promise of an uninjured Bears defense, potential Ws and of course, fall's national pastime: the tailgate.

I love tailgating. A football game sandwiched between hours of eating and drinking outside? That's like an experiential double-down. No filler here: just all amazing all the time. What's more, it's eating and drinking outdoors -- sans the humidity (and sweat) associated with these activities during the summer months!

Following the the Bears' home opener this weekend and thinking about all of the deliciousness to come, I'd like to highlight one of my favorite ways to ring in the season with a treat that's perfect for any football tailgate: pumpkin bars with cream cheese icing.

I first experienced these pumpkin bars during my college days at U of I, when my former roommate Jenny Buckler's culinary master mom used to bring them down for their family's amazingly decadent tailgates at all Illinois home games. I could easily eat an entire pan of them -- and they always made me look forward to home games, no matter how poorly Illinois was playing! (And trust me, it got progressively worse each year we were there.)

I baked a batch this weekend to bring to an Oktoberfest party and figured I'd share the recipe in case people were looking for a new way to celebrate Fall -- and all of the fun it's sure to bring.

Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:

Bars

4 eggs
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

15 oz. can pumpkin

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

Icing

8-oz. package cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Prep:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Using an electric mixer at medium speed, combine the eggs, sugar, vegetable oil and pumpkin until light and fluffy. Stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until all elements are thoroughly incorporated and the batter is smooth. Spread the batter into a greased 13 by 10 inch baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting and cut into bars.

To make the icing: Combine the cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and mix at low speed until combined. Stir in the vanilla and mix again. Spread on cooled pumpkin bars.

Enjoy! (Note: Because the frosting is a cream cheese-butter combination, these bars should be chilled when not being consumed.)