Pumpkin Pie Bars

Love the flavors of pumpkin pie, but don’t want to bother making a pie crust? Make these Pumpkin Pie Bars with a crunchy bottom, creamy pumpkin filling, and topped with a streusel topping and chopped pecans.

If you love pumpkin pie, I think you’ll love this easy recipe for pumpkin pie bars. They are the best of both worlds without having to roll out pie dough and commit to making a full pie. In fact, these pumpkin bars make more servings then an average pie would yield. Fifteen large bars to be exact, or you can cut them smaller and probably get about twenty four servings!

Unlike my apple cheesecake bars that utilize a prepackaged crust you make a crust and topping from scratch with my pumpkin pie bars recipe.

Ingredients

• Pumpkin Puree – You can use the can stuff to make life easier and for the recipes to work quicker. Check out my FAQ section if you decide to use fresh pumpkin instead.
• Cream Cheese – The cream cheese needs to sit at room temperature for at least one hour prior to mixing.
• Eggs – Whenever I mix eggs and cream cheese together I ensure that both have sat out at room temperature.
• Butter – Cold butter is best when cutting into flour.
• Sugar – This recipe calls for both granulated white sugar and brown sugar.
• Oats – The oats give a nice texture to the crust and topping! I use old fashioned oats but quick cooking work as well.
• Flour – You’ll need this for the crust and topping. All purpose is fine. I have never tested the recipe with whole wheat or white wheat.
• Pecans – These go great in the crust and on the top of the pumpkin pie bars. I like to buy them pre-chopped to save myself a little bit of time.
• Butterscotch Chips – A little goes a long way with this recipe. They surprisingly hold their shape throughout the baking process too!

Directions

For the Crust

• Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit.
• Line a 9×13-inch baking pan with aluminum foil. Make sure to extend the foil over the edges of the pan so you can remove from the pan after baking. Lightly grease the aluminum foil with cooking spray.
• Combine the flour, granulated sugar and brown sugar in a small mixing bowl and toss with a fork. Add the pieces of butter to the dry ingredients and cut it in with a pastry blender or a KitchenAid Mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. The mixture should resemble coarse crumbs. Mix in the oats and chopped pecans.

• Reserve 1 cup of the crust mixture and set aside. Add the remaining crust mixture to the prepared baking pan and press onto the bottom of the pan in an even layer. Bake the crust alone in the oven for 15 minutes.

For the Filling

• While the crust bakes, make the filling. In a KitchenAid Stand Mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or a handheld mixer) beat the cream cheese and sugar for one minute.
• Scrape the sides of the bowl down, then add in the eggs on at a time on low speed. Add the pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla. Mix on medium speed for 30 seconds until smooth and well combined.

• Once the crust has been removed from the oven, pour the filling into the pan and smooth over the crust. Sprinkle with the reserved crumb mixture on top. Then evenly sprinkle the butterscotch chips on top.
• Bake for 25 minutes, remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool for 30 minutes. Chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Then, slice and serve.

FAQs

Tips & Tricks

Here are a few of my favorite tips and tricks I’ve found helpful when making these easy pumpkin pie bars.

• Wet Ingredients – Do not add all the wet ingredients together at one time. It is important to cream sugar and cream cheese together before adding each egg. This will allow for no clumping of the batter and will yield a smooth creamy filling.
• Rest – These bars need to rest for at least 30 minutes. They are best if you can wait the additional 2 hours to chill in the refrigerator.
• Servings – This recipe makes 15 large bars. You could easily get more if you cut them into smaller size pieces.

Pumpkin Recipes

If you love pumpkin I think you’ll love these other pumpkin recipes I’ve created over the years.

• Sweet and Savory Pumpkin Empanadas
• No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
• Pumpkin Spice Frappe
• Pumpkin Spice Popcorn
• 75 Pumpkin Recipes
• Pumpkin Buttermilk Pancakes

If you make this pumpkin pie bars recipe, I would be honored and love for you to take the time to leave a star rating and comment! I spend hours developing and testing these recipes, and always love to hear feedback and user experience!

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