Pumpkin Cranberry Bars

This weekend, I had the urge to decorate for Autumn (which ended up turning to Halloween!) and bake. Aahhh....Fall is in the air-I LOVE it! This recipe is from Buttercup Bakes at Home by Jennifer Appel. The bars were very good! I didn't have a 9x9 pan, so used an 8x8 and adjusted the baking time.

Pumpkin Cranberry Bars

Ingredients:

1 C Pecans, toasted & chopped finely

2 C Flour

1 tsp. Baking Powder

1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

1 tsp. Ground Cinnamon

1/4 tsp. Allspice (I used Nutmeg)

1/4 tsp. Ground Ginger

1/4 tsp. Salt (I omitted this)

1 C Unsalted Butter, room temperature (I used salted)

1 C Sugar

1 Large Egg

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

1 C Pumpkin Puree

1-1/2 C Dried Cranberries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9x9 pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, cream the butter & sugar until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes). Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Beat in the pumpkin until combined (the batter will look curdled at this point). Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing only until combined. Stir in the pecans and cranberries. Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 35 minutes (mine took about 50) or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cook. Cut into squares-enjoy!