Pumpkin Ginger Bars

I have never been in The Magnolia Bakery but have noticed the long lines waiting to get in. So when I saw the Complete Magnolia Bakery Cookbook in my library I grabbed it. There were lots of tempting recipes and most seemed easy to prepare. I selected the pumpkin bars but made a few changes-ramped up the spices, added candied ginger and substituted a light glaze for the cream cheese frosting. The bars were so delicious that I had to freeze half of the batch to avoid eating them all. These are perfect with tea or coffee.

Cake

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ginger

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1 1/4 cup canned pumpkin

1 1/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup vegetable oil

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1/2 cup coarsely chopped toasted pecans

1/2 cup candied ginger, diced

Glaze

1 cup confectioners sugar

2 tbl. water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease and lightly flour a 13x9 inch baking pan

In a small bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the pumpkin, sugar, oil and eggs until smooth-about 3 minutes on medium speed. Add the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Stir in the pecans and ginger. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Remove from oven and cool completely on a rack before glazing.

Glaze-In a small bowl stir together the sugar and water until smooth. Drizzle decoratively over the cooled cake.

Makes 12 3 inch bars

Note: If adding candied ginger doesn't appeal to you, simply leave it out or substitute dried cranberries