Thanksgiving - Pumpkin Cobbler

There are some moments and some meals that you will remember for always. I remember the first time I had a Starbucks coffee and I knew my life would never be the same as well as my first experience eating a good expensive steak and knowing that I had found the promise land. This recipe is one of those meals that was shared in a moment that I will never forget.
Last year around this time we had just had our second baby, we were homeless living with family waiting for our house closing to go through and living out of suitcases. Enough said. We were crazy. Thanksgiving morning we awoke to the sound of the phone ringing with the arrival of a new cousin being born (6 weeks early and out of town) and the day after Thanksgiving we were called late that night and received word that one of my dear mom friends from church had taken her life. It was an overwhelming feeling. I remember gasping for breath and asking over and over if it was real. I replayed my last moments with her just days earlier over and over in my head and one of those memories was sitting with her at her beautiful dining room table enjoying this dish she had made as she and I talked about babies and life and the reservoir of Halloween candy leftovers as we listened to our children running through the house playing and giggling together. It was a beautiful moment and had I known it would be my last with her I would have told her how blessed I was to call her a friend and how thankful God had put her in my path and would have hugged her neck a bit tighter that night when I left. I was not ready to say goodbye but I am so happy she is dancing with the Father and I look forward to sitting around her dining room table again on the other side.

Pumpkin Cobbler
3 eggs beaten
1 15 oz can pumpkin
1 12 oz can evaporated milk
1 c sugar
1/8 t salt
1 t ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 T vanilla extract
1 pkg yellow cake mix
1/2 c butter melted
1 c chopped nuts (optional)
Mix the first 8 ingredients together, pour into an ungreased 9x13 (must be this size) pan. Sprinkle cake mix over the top, drizzle with butter. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Top with nuts (or not) and Bake for an additional 20 minutes (will have a slight wiggle in the center like a pumpkin pie but will set up once removed from the oven and cooked) Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream.
This is the perfect end to a beautiful fall day! Enjoy