These pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting are a must every fall - they're easy to make and feature pumpkin puree, cinnamon, and olive oil for a soft texture, with tangy cream cheese frosting on top. This is a smaller batch, less sweet version of the traditional recipe and fits in a 9x9 inch square pan.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword fall, pumpkin, pumpkin bars
Prep Time 15 minutesminutes
Cook Time 25 minutesminutes
Cooling Time 30 minutesminutes
Total Time 1 hourhour10 minutesminutes
Servings 16bars
Author Katiebird Bakes
Equipment
9x9 inch square pan
Mixer
Ingredients
For the Pumpkin Bars:
1cup (125g)all-purpose flour
1teaspoonbaking powder
1teaspooncinnamon(or pumpkin pie spice)
1/2teaspoonbaking soda
1/2teaspoonsalt
1/2cup (120 ml)olive oil(or any neutral oil, or melted butter)
1/2cup (100g)brown sugar, packed
2largeeggs
3/4cup (195g)pumpkin puree(not pumpkin pie filling)
1/2teaspoonvanilla extract
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
4ounces (113g)cream cheese, cold
1/4cup (56g)unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4cup (90g)powdered sugar
1/4teaspoonvanilla extract(or vanilla bean paste for specks of vanilla!)
Pinchsalt
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 9x9 inch square pan with parchment paper or grease it, and set aside. Note: you can use an 8x8 inch square pan instead, but the bars will be thicker and bake time will be longer.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together olive oil, brown sugar, eggs, pumpkin puree, and vanilla until well-combined and smooth. Gently stir in the dry ingredients until no pockets of flour remain, but do not overmix. The batter may be a bit lumpy and that's ok!
Pour batter into greased or parchment-lined pan. Bake for 23-25 minutes for a 9x9 inch pan, or 28-32 minutes for an 8x8 inch pan, until the top springs back when tapped and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool completely before frosting.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
In a large bowl using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, or a hand mixer, beat cream cheese and butter at high speed until pale and very fluffy - this should take 2-3 minutes. You want to incorporate as much air as possible into the mixture to make it light and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt, and beat at medium to high speed until fully combined and light.
Spread cooled pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting (you can either use the parchment paper to lift them out before frosting, or frost them in the pan). It should make a thick layer, and can be swirled in pretty patterns with an offset spatula (I like this one). Dust with cinnamon if desired. Cut into bars and serve!
Notes
Storage: Pumpkin bars with the cream cheese frosting keep up to 5 days in the refrigerator, tightly covered. Unfrosted pumpkin bars will keep up to 3 days at room temperature or up to a week in the fridge.Make Ahead: Pumpkin bars can be made up to two days ahead and stored in the fridge before frosting. They can also be frozen, frosted or unfrosted, for up to 3 months, wrapped tightly. Thaw overnight in the fridge and serve cold or let come to room temp.Spices: I prefer to use cinnamon only in this recipe rather than pumpkin pie spice, as it's nostalgic and uncomplicated. However, pumpkin pie spice will work perfectly here.