for the love of food and my father: Cinnamon Roll Pumpkin Vanilla Sheet Cake

This may be possibly the best dessert I have made to date.

This past week was midterms, let me just say it was less than a fun week for Mariah and I and the boys. We decided to celebrate the ending of a terrible week on Thursday with dinner and some drinks. I had a midterm until 8:15, so Mariah offered to make lasagna and bring it to the boys and we could eat when I got done. This was no little dinner, more like a full blown feast. The boys made mozzarella sticks for an appetizer while they waited for me, then for the main course we of course had the lasagna and they also whipped up fried ravioli, salad and garlic bread. And plenty of wine. We all ate ourselves silly and I was nervous no one would want dessert (that I just happened to whip up that afternoon trying to waste time before my test). But, as soon as it was put on the table I don't think anyone could say no, no matter how full they were.

I'm pretty sure everyone died a little bit after their first bite.

Now, this comes from a box but after you doctor it up, you would never know.

Cinnamon Roll Pumpkin Vanilla Sheet Cake
source: Picky Palate

Ingredients:

1 box yellow cake mix
4 eggs
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1/2 cup milk or buttermilk
3.4 ounce box Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix
1/2 cup sour cream
15 ounce can pumpkin
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cups powdered sugar
1/4-1/2 cup heavy cream (start w 1/4 cup and add a little more cream if needed)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and spray a jelly roll pan with non stick cooking spray.
2. Place cake mix, eggs, oil, milk, pudding, sour cream and pumpkin into a stand or electric mixer, beating until well combined, about 1 1/2 minutes. Pour into prepared pan, spreading evenly.
3. Place butter into a microwave safe bowl and melt, about 30-40 seconds. Add brown sugar and cinnamon to bowl, mixing until combined. Drizzle mixture evenly over cake then take a knife and run it through to swirl.
4. Bake cake for 30-35 minutes, until cooked through and remove. Place powdered sugar and cream into a large bowl and mix until creamy and smooth. Drizzle over warm cake then let cool for 20 minutes before cutting into squares. Refrigerate if not serving same day. Enjoy with milk!