Autumn is the best time of year. Good things happen when the leaves turn; including my birthday, Halloween, and the ripening of that most wondrous squash: the pumpkin.

As soon as I saw this recipe on the Globe & Mail today I had to try it.

Good to know before you start: This recipe needs pure pumpkin, which is not pumpkin pie filling. Look for a label that says either “100% pure pumpkin” or “pumpkin purée”, and  it should not contain any herbs or spices.

Time required: 3 hours

Yields: about 30 pieces

Cost per slice: $1.83

Total cost if you have none of the ingredients: $55.00

Special kitchen implements I used:

• baking pan: 9″ x 13″
• parchment paper
• digital scale
• Oster blender
• KitchenAid mixer

Ingredients:

BASE

• 2 C flour
• ½ C icing sugar
• 1 C unsalted butter, (cold and cubed)
• 1 TSP fine sea salt

FILLING

• 3 eggs
• 482 grams canned pumpkin (one 14 oz can)
• ¾ C dark brown sugar, packed
• ⅓ C corn syrup
• ½ C heavy cream
• 2 TSP freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 TSP pure vanilla extract
• 1 TSP ground cinnamon
• ½ TSP allspice
• ½ TSP ground ginger
• ¼ TSP fine sea salt

TOPPING

• 2 TBSP butter, softened
• 2 TBSP (28.6 grams) cream cheese, softened
• ½ C icing sugar
• 1 TBSP milk

Instructions:

1.Pre-heat oven to 177°C / 350°F. Line baking pan with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl mix: flour, icing sugar, butter and salt. I used a pastry blender, then switched to doing it by hand. The mixture should be crumbly, don’t form it into a ball.

3. Pat into pan.

4. Bake 25 min, and place on cooling rack.

5. Beat eggs in blender.

6. Weigh out the amount of pumpkin you need and add to egg. Don’t forget to adjust for the weight of the container.

7. Then add: brown sugar, corn syrup, heavy cream, lemon juice, vanilla, cinnamon, allspice, ginger and salt. Blend until well mixed, scrape sides, then blend a little longer.

Did you know brown sugar could float? Neither did I.

8. Pour liquid over base and bake for 40 min, then place on cooling rack.

9. Meanwhile make your frosting. Beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in icing sugar and milk.

10. The recipe suggested drizzling the frosting over the pan, which I tried, but the amount of icing nearly covered the entire surface anyway so I spread it evenly instead.

11. Chill at least 2 hours, and cut into squares.

Verdict:

In this town, we call home, everyone hail to the pumpkin song!

These were really good. Boyfriend says, “They are awesome baby. I could eat the whole pan.”

Playlist: The Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack