Recipe: Scrumptious Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

SCRUMPTIOUS PUMPKIN BARS

4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1 can (15 ozs) pumpkin
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cinnamon*
1/2 tsp ground ginger*
1/2 tsp ground cloves*
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg (freshly ground is best)*
*You may substitute all these ingredients with 1 and 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a jelly roll pan with pam, or grease and flour.

Combine first four ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
In a separate small bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices; add to the pumpkin mixture and mix well.

Pour into jelly roll pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.

FROSTING:
4 oz Philadelphia cream cheese, softened
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract (or 1 Tbsp lemon juice)
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

In a small bowl, beat together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla, gradually add the powdered sugar. Frost cooled cake. Cut into bars.

*I like to add a couple of drops of yellow food coloring to make it a very pretty pale yellow.