Gingerbread Pumpkin Bars

Kind of like the last post on pecan pie, these gingerbread pumpkin bars are a wee bit tardy.  I realize that although there's no law stating you can't whip up a pumpkin based recipe after Thanksgiving, Christmas always takes over and most of the recipes are geared towards all things red, green and peppermint.

[Just a forewarning though...I still have some homemade pumpkin puree to post....]

But alas I couldn't let this recipe go to waste.  I saw a ton of pumpkin recipes floating around Pinterest all throughout the fall, but these bars caught my eye because they deviated just ever so slightly from your standard pumpkin pie bars....these bars have a gingerbread base and a streusel topping.  I know, it sounds kinda funny; gingerbread AND pumpkin?  Isn't gingerbread supposed to be reserved for Christmas and gingerbread boys and girls with those cute m&m buttons?

I know it sounds weird, but somehow it works.  Gingerbread is a bit spicy, pumpkin pie is a bit spicy....so together they go, right?

I only made one change from the original Land O' Lakes recipe and omitted the glaze.  These bars were sweet enough on their own and I didn't feel they needed it.

While the bars are so delicious they probably won't last that long, I will admit that these little guys did get a bit soggy by day 2.  So just a word of warning:  if you're making them ahead of time for an event I wouldn't do so really far in advance.  To combat this I might bake the bottom layer solo for a few minutes while preparing the filling the next time I make these.

And there will definitely be a next time.  Yum!

PS If you want lots of streusel you can make extra.  There was just enough, but I might try doubling the amount I use next time.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread with Brown Sugar Pecan Streusel

Geez, do you think the title is long enough?  I was trying to think of a way to pare it down, but it didn't seem fair to cut out the cream cheese part or the very descriptive streusel part.  That's what makes this pumpkin bread different from your basic, run of the mill (yet still delicious) pumpkin bread.

My mom always made pumpkin bread from, well, as long ago as I can remember.  You knew fall had officially arrived when the first batch was made.  Even when we were too young to help with the baking my sister and I would gather in the kitchen because we knew we would be given one of the beaters to lick.  And I've been obsessed with the stuff ever since.  I'll eat it for breakfast, dessert, dinner, as a snack...

She has made this pumpkin bread so many times that the cookbook she uses is permanently creased and falling apart on the recipe page....splatters of dried batter everywhere.  I love seeing those worn and stained pages almost as much as I love the recipe itself.  It conjures up all kinds of warm and fuzzy childhood memories.

But alas I didn't have that beloved recipe two nights ago when I set out to make some for myself.  So what's a girl to do?   Well, I turned to everyone's good friend Google and sought out every type of pumpkin bread recipe I could find.  I combined aspects of two recipes to come up with my final version below.

I was a little apprehensive about adding all these new things into the bread.  Sure, cream cheese and pecans are great, but did I really want them messing up a classic?

It turns out I did :)  You can definitely omit the cream cheese, pecans or the streusel if you'd like, but you'll be missing out if you do.

I know it's not officially fall yet, but since it's been in the mid-50's here in Georgia a few mornings lately I feel like it's okay to pull out the fall recipes.  Here's to fall.....leaves, football, boots, scarves and PUMPKIN RECIPES!!!