Quick Summary: Light, spiced pumpkin bars topped with silky cream cheese frosting. Made with canned pumpkin so there’s no squash prep, just mix and bake. Sturdy enough for care packages, pretty enough for a holiday dessert table. Prep: 25 min | Cook: 30 min | Makes: 30 bars
Jump to: RECIPE | Canned vs Fresh Pumpkin | Recipe Ingredients | Secrets for Best Pumpkin Bars | Cream Cheese Frosting | Sweet and Savory Pumpkin Recipes | FAQ
Always a decision this time of the year as to which pumpkin bars to make: silky pumpkin cheesecake bars, pumpkin bars with a crunchy oat crust, pumpkin bars with a maple sugar streusel topping, and the list goes on.
I’m starting the Fall season off with this light cake pumpkin bar with a silky cream cheese frosting. It is the ultimate in comfort foods as the weather turns cool.
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Canned Pumpkin vs Fresh Pumpkin or Squash
Although I do grow a lot of different varieties of pumpkins and squash on our small farm, I’ve found simple canned pumpkin to be the go-to pumpkin filling for bars and other sweet treats.
It’s usually butternut squash in the cans and it is so much easier for this type of recipe. The canned pumpkin is just as nutritional if that is a concern.
We are, after all, making a sweet treat and sometimes it’s difficult to justify the prep work required of fresh pumpkins for something with plenty of sugar.
To me it is similar to my earlier years as a bartender when customers would order a really expensive bourbon and coke. The sweetness of the coke was so overpowering I’m sure they could not tell the difference between that expensive high-end bourbon and the less expensive house bourbon.
Now, a bourbon on the rocks or with a splash of something less sweet, well that’s a different story.
So, I save the heirloom varieties of pumpkin and squash for meals where I can truly savor the differences in their nuttiness and sweetness, and use the canned (100% pumpkin) for sweet treats.
What is in Canned Pumpkin?
It turns out that most canned pumpkin includes Dickinson pumpkin, a tan squash closely related to butternut.
The main thing to watch for is that you don’t purchase canned “pumpkin pie filling”. That option has spices already added, and sometimes it includes sugar, so your recipes will be off.
You want to make sure you get a can that states 100% pumpkin. Libby is my go-to brand.
Ingredients for Pumpkin Bars and Cream Cheese Frosting
Below is a photo of the ingredients you will need for this recipe. Check the recipe below for exact measurements and directions.
Secrets for the Best Pumpkin Bars
- Use the right pan. A 10 x 15-inch pan gives thin, even bars that bake through in about 30 minutes. In a 9 x 13-inch pan the middle takes longer, so bake it longer or hold back a quarter of the batter for muffins.
- Use oil, not butter, in the cake. It keeps the bars soft even after they have been chilled.
- Mix the dry ingredients thoroughly before they go in, then mix only until the batter is smooth.
- Cool completely before frosting, about an hour and a half. Warm bars melt the frosting.
- Chill before cutting for clean edges.
Cream Cheese Frosting for Pumpkin Bars
The frosting is 6 ounces of cream cheese and 6 tablespoons of butter, both at room temperature, beaten with 1 tablespoon of milk and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Add 4 cups of powdered sugar a little at a time until it is smooth and spreadable.
Room temperature cream cheese and butter are what keep it from turning lumpy.
Sweet or Savory Pumpkin Recipes for Fall
Here are a few of my favorite recipes using pumpkin and winter squash. Some are sweet and some are savory. The sweet ones all work with canned pumpkin and the savory ones are better with Winter squash varieties.
Favorite Savory Recipes
- Using Spaghetti Squash as a Low Carb Pasta
- Pepperonata with Butternut Squash and Romesco
- Brazilian Shrimp in Pumpkins – Camarão na Moranga
- Low Carb Pumpkin Ancho Soup
Favorite Sweet Recipes Using Pumpkin or Squash
- Low Carb Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Pumpkin Amaretto Bread
- Pumpkin Chai Biscotti
- Pumpkin Martini
- Pumpkin butter (and why to freeze it instead of canning)
FAQ
Yes. Replace the cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg with about 1 tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice. Just make sure it’s fresh, as spices lose potency over time.
Canned 100% pumpkin works perfectly and is much easier. Make sure the label says “100% pumpkin,” not “pumpkin pie filling” (which has added sugar and spices). Libby’s is a reliable brand.
Yes. Cream cheese frosting needs to stay cold. Cover the bars and refrigerate them for 4 to 5 days. To freeze, cut them into bars, wrap each one, and freeze for up to 2 months.
Yes, but ship them unfrosted. The cake holds up well in the mail, and cream cheese frosting needs refrigeration. Wrap the unfrosted bars tightly, layer them between parchment in a sturdy container, and tuck in the frosting recipe or a simple powdered sugar glaze to add on arrival.
No. With flour, sugar, and cream cheese frosting, these are a traditional dessert. For a lower-sugar pumpkin dessert, try this low sugar pumpkin cheesecake with a nut crust.
Yes. Bake and frost them the day before and keep them covered in the refrigerator, or freeze the unfrosted cake up to 2 months ahead and frost it after thawing.
Yes. Use 1 3/4 cups of thick, well-drained squash puree in place of the 15 ounce can. Homemade puree holds more water than canned, so drain it in a strainer first.
For more recipes that lend themselves to holiday cooking, check out this holiday category of main dishes and treats.
Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
Equipment
- baking sheet 9 x 13 or 10 x 15
- Bowls, spatula and knife
Ingredients
For the Cake Part of Bars
- 1 ¾ cups sugar
- 1 cup oil vegetable oil or refined olive oil
- 15 ounces can 100% pumpkin
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
For Cream Cheese Frosting
- 6 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 6 tablespoons butter at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon milk whole or 2%
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 4 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour (or spray with cooking oil spray) a 10 x 15-inch baking pan. If you use a more common 9 x 13-inch pan, you will have to cook it longer or the middle will not get done. Alternatively you could only pour in 3/4 of the batter into the 9 x 13 and use a muffin tin or small baking pan for the rest.
- In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, beat together the sugar, the oil and the pumpkin until creamy (about 1 min). Beat in eggs until well combined – about 2 minutes.1 3/4 cups sugar, 1 cup oil, 15 ounces can 100% pumpkin , 4 eggs
- In a medium mixing bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and all of the spices. I use a slotted spoon to thoroughly mix these dry ingredients. You could use a sifter instead.Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until thoroughly combined and the batter is smooth.2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 35 minutes, or until evenly golden and a toothpick or knife inserted into the middle of the pan comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. Let cool completely (about 1 1/2 hour) before frosting.
- Using a stand mixer, beat together cream cheese, butter, milk and vanilla. Gradually beat in powdered sugar, a little at a time, until mixture is smooth. Be sure and add powdered sugar slowly or it will fly out and make a big mess. Spread frosting over completely cooled bars.6 ounces cream cheese, 6 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 4 cups powdered sugar
- Chill before cutting into bars. Makes 30 bars (depending on how large you cut them).
Can I use pumpkin pie spice?
Certainly Cathy. Pumpkin pie spice will work just fine. Just make sure it is as fresh as possible, as spices do lose their potency.
My favorite pumpkin bars ever. Super easy to follow recipe.