Best Pumpkin Bars Recipe

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These are the best pumpkin bars I've ever had in my entire life. They're irresistibly moist, perfectly spiced and slathered with the best cream cheese frosting. Plus, they use a whole can of pumpkin - so no wasting ingredients!

Prep Time15

Cook Time25

Cooling3

Total Time3 40

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings: Bars

Author: Laura Sandford

Cost: $8

Equipment

Ingredients

15 ounces pumpkin puree
½ cup salted butter melted
½ cup sour cream room temperature
¼ cup canola oil
2 eggs room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp sea salt
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces cream cheese softened
½ cup butter softened
3 cups powdered sugar
½ tsp pure vanilla extract

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the Pumpkin Bars

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (177 degrees Celsius)
Grease a 9x13” (23x33 cm) baking dish, set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
Whisk the pumpkin, melted butter, sour cream, canola oil, eggs and vanilla together in a large bowl until the mixture is smooth.
Whisk in the granulated sugar and brown sugar into the wet ingredients until dissolved and smooth.
Add dry ingredients and whisk or stir until the mixture is smooth and there are no pockets of flour.
Evenly spread the batter into the prepared baking dish.
Bake in preheated oven for 25-28 minutes or until the top and edges are lightly browned and puffed and a toothpick comes out clean.
Let the pumpkin bars cool to room temperature.

Make the Cream Cheese Frosting

While the bars are cooling, make the cream cheese frosting.
Beat together butter and cream cheese until smooth.
Add vanilla and 2 cups of powdered sugar and beat (starting on low speed and increasing to medium-high) until smooth.
Add remaining 1 cup of powdered sugar and beat until mixture is smooth and spreadable. You may need to pause and scrape down the sides and beat it again to incorporate all the powdered sugar.

Assemble, Chill & Serve

When the bars are cooled, spread frosting evenly over the top.
Chill for at least 3 hours, or overnight. I love chilling them overnight because they're even better the next day.
Then serve cold or remove them from the fridge an hour before serving and serve at room temperature (preferred for the best texture.

Video

Notes

Ingredient Substitution Notes

Pumpkin Puree. this recipe calls for one, 15 ounce can of pumpkin puree, or you can learn how to make pumpkin puree with this recipe and use 1 ½ cups.
Salted Butter. unsalted butter and coconut oil are good substitutes.
Sour cream. I recommend full-fat sour cream for the richest taste and best texture, however low fat works too, or plain Greek yogurt or whole milk yogurt.
Granulated sugar. Organic cane sugar and white sugar both work well.
Light Brown Sugar. If you like a little bolder, molasses taste, use dark brown sugar.
All-purpose flour. use a gluten-free baking flour to make this recipe gluten-free.
Pumpkin Pie Spice. If you’d like to make your own pumpkin pie spice, follow this recipe: homemade pumpkin pie spice. Then, use 2 tsp of the mixture (and use the rest in some of our other pumpkin recipes like pumpkin pie, Pumpkin baked oatmeal, pumpkin bread, etc.)
Cream cheese frosting. see this post for possible substitutions.

Store/Freeze

Store leftover pumpkin bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 1 month. Let the bars sit at room temperature before serving.

Nutrition