simple pumpkin toffee bars

tis the season for pumpkin right? the second the leaves start to change i go into full on fall girl mode. gimme the scarves, the jackets, the pumpkin (although i’m not a PSL fan) but i love everything else baked and cooked with pumpkin. i found this great little magazine at the checkout while getting groceries from better homes and gardens it was all about pumpkin. breads, pastas bars etc. i am such a sucker for specialty magazines (or magazines in general) at the checkout counter. i combed through all the recipes with my coffee one morning and these simple pumpkin toffee bars sounded perfect to go with my coffee. i’m not a huge nut fan in bars and cookies so i made a few adjustments to the recipe.

here is what you need:
2 cups of crushed gingersnaps. i ended up just using the whole bag (minus one two cookies)
1/4 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of flour
1/2 cup melted butter
1 15oz can of pumpkin
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1.5 cups of half and half
4 lightly beaten eggs
1 bag of crushed heath bits (found them in the baking aisle next to chocolate chips)
caramel

1. heat the oven to 375 F. in a food processor or blender mix up the gingersnap crumbs, flour and sugar. place in a bowl and mix in the butter. spray a 9×13 and press the crumb n butter into the pan to make a crust. i put a baggie over my hand to press everything down without sticking.
2. mix the pumpkin, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, salt, cloves and half and half together until just combined. mix in each egg and stir until just combined. pour over the gingersnap crust.
3. bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. sprinkle on the toffee bits.  let cool in pan about an hour and a half then cut into squares. let sit another 30 minutes until completely cool. if you are going to eat right away drizzle on caramel. if you are going to wait to bring them to the office… keep in fridge up to two days. drizzle caramel just before serving. i found they got a little soggy after the 2 day mark.
4. enjoy!