Paula Deen Pumpkin Bars

Paula Deen Pumpkin Bars are the perfect fall dessert and you can whip them up with a sturdy spatula, no need to bring out the hand mixer.

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• How to Make Pumpkin Bars
• Substitutions
• Variations
• Equipment
• Storage
• Top tip
• Recipe
• Comments

These bars are tender, kissed with cinnamon and adorned with cream cheese frosting or a drizzle of white chocolate frosting.

They come together quickly and can even be made ahead of time for a fall event or party.

You should know that these bars are more like a snacking cake and less like a bar, which are usually chewier and denser than a cake.

Paula's pumpkin bar recipe is so good that it may just beat the Pumpkin Spiced Latte as your favorite fall treat. 

Pumpkin bars are popular in fall of course.

I make these pumpkin bars again and again throughout the fall.

The combination of moist, pumpkin spice cake and velvety cream cheese frosting is absolutely delicious.

The pumpkin bars are easy enough if you’re a beginner baker, but tasty enough to tempt advanced bakers too.

If pumpkin is your jam, you must try Pumpkin Pie with Sweetened Condensed Milk, Pumpkin Spice Scones (Food Processor Recipe) or Pumpkin Cocktail (Easy, Just 3 Ingredients!) or Pumpkin Pie Recipe, Only 2 cups Pumpkin Puree Needed.

Ingredients

• all-purpose flour 
• ground cinnamon 
• baking powder
• baking soda
• kosher salt or sea salt
• eggs
• granulated sugar
• brown sugar (dark or light)
• pumpkin puree
• vegetable oil or canola or grapeseed oil

See recipe card for quantities.

How to Make Pumpkin Bars

1. Measure dry ingredients, flour through sea salt, and whisk together in a medium bowl. 
2. Break four large eggs one at a time into a large mixing bowl. Beat with a whisk until egg yolks are broken and egg mixture has gotten a bit frothy. 
3. Add can of pumpkin puree, sugars and oil to egg mixture. Stir thoroughly to combine or beat for a minute with a hand mixer.
4. Add dry ingredients to bowl of wet ingredients and stir until no streaks of flour remain. 
5. Spray a non-stick 13 x 9 pan with a baking spray like Baker's Joy. 
6. Pour pumpkin bar mixture evenly into pan.
7. Bake at 350 for approximately 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Hint: Be sure to use a can of pumpkin puree--not a can of pumpkin pie mixture.

Substitutions

• Vegetable oil - If you don't have any oil, you could melt a cup of butter or margarine to use instead.
• Cinnamon - If you find yourself without cinnamon, you can substitute pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice.
• Eggs - You can swap the eggs in this recipe for applesauce. Substitute 1 egg for ¼ cup of applesauce, so one full cup for this recipe. The applesauce adds a nice apple flavor that goes well with the pumpkin. But, it will add some extra moisture to the batter so you may need to add some extra baking time. Also, the bars won't taste as rich if you're using applesauce.
• Sugar - You can swap out the granulated sugar for all brown sugar or vice-versa.

Variations

• Sprinkles - Add sprinkles to the top of the cream cheese frosting. You can use seasonal or themed sprinkles for special occasions. 
• Chocolate - You can make these pumpkin bars even more delicious by adding in about a cup of chocolate chips into the batter before baking. 
• Nuts - Sprinkle chopped nuts over the cream cheese frosting for an extra fall flair. Chopped walnuts or pecans work well. 

Equipment

You'll need a non-stick 13x9 pan for this recipe.

I prefer to use aluminum pans for baking like this one.

But you can also use glass baking pans.

If you're feeling energetic, you can mix up these bars with a sturdy spatula. Or use a hand mixer.

Storage

Pumpkin bars can be easily stored and even frozen.

Wrap the pumpkin bars in wax paper or plastic wrap then tuck them into an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Or wrap the bars, unfrosted, and put them in a freezer-safe container. You can store pumpkin bars for up to three months that way.

Thaw the bars in the fridge overnight before serving.

More Recipes You Might Like

White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Orange Cookies with Icing

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

Do you need a vegan pumpkin dessert? Try this Vegan Pumpkin Banana Bread by my friend Shruthi at Urban Farmie.