Ultra-Easy Pumpkin Pie Squares

Note from Cheri: This recipe for "Ultra Easy Pumpkin Pie Squares" was given to me by my sister Bambi. Evidently it has been traded among the ladies in her church for years, so I'm not really sure where it originated. It is, however, delicious, and so simple that even absolute beginner cooks should have no trouble achieving great results.

Crust 1 package yellow or spice cake mix (set aside one cup of the dry mix before proceeding) 1/2 cup melted butter or margarine 1 egg Filling 1 29 oz. can pumpkin 2 eggs 2/3 C evaporated milk 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 1 tsp. ground (dried) ginger 1/2 tsp. nutmeg 1/4 tsp. ground cloves 1/2 cup brown sugar Topping 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 cup brown sugar 1 T cinnamon 1/3 cup butter or margarine (optional) 1/3 cup chopped walnuts

1. Grease and flour a 8X11 inch baking pan. 2. Preheat oven to 350°. 3. Disregard instructions on cake mix box, you're not going to bake a cake. Mix dry cake mix (minus 1 cup dry mix) and melted butter. Add egg and mix till it holds together (different cake mixes react differently, so you may need to add a small amount of milk 1/2 tsp. at a time, if necessary to hold mixture together). 4. Pat crust mixture into pan with your fingers, coating bottom and up the sides about 1 inch. 5. Mix together the filling ingredients, along with the reserved 1 cup of dry cake mix, and pour into the crust. 6. Mix the topping ingredients (minus the optional nuts) together with a fork or pastry blender till mixture is crumbly. Mix in nuts, if desired. 7. Sprinkle topping mixture over filling and bake for 45-60 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. 8. Cool and serve with whipped cream.