The Gold Standard

There comes a time of year when we have to put away the Scharffen-Berger (bummer, I just bought a bunch and it's amazing) and pull out the pumpkin desserts. It is a wonderful time filled with pumpkin pie, pumpkin cheesecake gelato (it's best from Coolato Gelato!), and pumpkin spice whipped cream (yeah, I know!) However, my favorite thing of all time ever is pumpkin cheesecake. When I go home for Thanksgiving, I try to get some from The Cheesecake Factory (I recently heard we're getting one in Knoxville: score!!), but sometimes I just can't wait. I really don't have the patience or brain capacity to do the whole water bath, springform pan routine that goes into real cheesecake, so I made pumpkin cheesecake bars and, bonus, I got to use my Goldtouch pan that I recieved for my birthday!

These were uber delicious and I can't wait for you to try them. And, for the record, the Goldtouch was totally awesome and lived up to its reputation. My edges and corners came out perfectly brown (not burnty brown like normal) and it was super non-stick. If you're in Williams-Sonoma soon, I would definetely suggest picking one up in every size!

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

• 1 c all purpose flour
• 1/3 c packed dark brown sugar
• 5 tbsp COLD butter
• 1 c chopped pecans (two of those mini bags that Kroger sells)
• 1 package cream cheese (slightly softened)
• 3/4 c sugar
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin (make your own if you feel adventurous)
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 11/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Directions:

1. In a bowl, combine flour and brown sugar. Then, cut in butter until crumbly (or, if you're me, use your hands to combine.) Incorporate pecans and leave out about 3/4 cup for topping

2. Press the remaining crumbs into a greased baking pan (I used 9 in) and bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Cool if you have time. If not, be impatient like me and ignore that step.

3. Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth (this is important!). Then, beat in pumpkin, eggs, vanilla, and spices. Pour over your crust and sprinkle with left over crumbs.

4. Bake 30 minutes and cool (this time it's important!) before you store in the fridge until cool. Cut and enjoy!

Happy Fall!

Lauren