Pumpkin Pie Snickerdoodle Bars with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

This recipe comes from Julia, author Of Dozen Flours. I was a little hesitant towards using my last can of pumpkin towards this recipe but took the plunge anyways and the result was well worth the trepidation that I may not find any more canned pumpkin until fall. The caramelized cinnamon sugar and snickerdoodle strata sandwich a creamy pumpkin pie layer. Drizzle that in a cinnamon cream cheese frosting? Perfecto. Its a bit more time consuming than, say, a chocolate chip cookie recipe, but the resulting deliciousness (yes, deliciousness) is completely worth it. My impatient self found that they are actually just as good sans the icing, so if you're looking to cut down on time, that'll save you a couple minutes. Regardless of your preferred mode of assembly, this recipe won't disappoint.

INGREDIENTS:

Snickerdoodle Layer

1/2 c. AP flour
1 t. Baking powder
1/2 t. Salt
1 c. Packed brown sugar
1/2 c. Butter, room temperature (1 stick)
1 egg
1 T. vanilla

Pumpkin Pie Layer

1/2 c. AP flour
1/2 c. Sugar
1/4 c. Butter, room temperature (1/2 stick)
1/2 t. Baking powder
1/2 t. Salt
1/2 t. Pumpkin pie spice
1 egg
3/4 c. Canned pumpkin

Topping*

1 T Sugar
1 t. Cinnamon
* (You can sub this with pre-made cinnamon sugar)

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing

2 oz. Cream cheese, softened
1/4 t. Ground cinnamon
1.5-2 c. Powdered sugar
2 T. butter, softened (not margarine)
1/4 t. Vanilla

HOW ITS DONE:

Snickerdoodle layer

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease an 8×8 inch line with parchment paper (optional, but it will be easier to get the bars out later)

2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt- set aside.
3. In large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Blend in egg and vanilla until smooth.
4. Stir in the flour mixture until well blended. Spread evenly into pan.

To make pumpkin pie filling:

1. In a bowl (you can use the same one you used to make the snickerdoodle batter) cream butter and sugar.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined. Pour over the snickerdoodle layer - smooth out the top
3. Combine sugar and cinnamon for topping - sprinkle over the top of the batter.
4. Bake 40 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan comes out clean)
5. Let the bars cool completely

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing

1. Cream together butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and cinnamon
2. Gradually add in powdered sugar and stir to your desired consistency
3. Place in a ziplock bag, cut off a SMALL portion of one corner and squeeze bag to drizzle over bars. Cut.
ENJOY