Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

These pumpkin bars are made with pumpkin puree and fall ،es, then topped with cream cheese frosting. Easy to make and the perfect dessert for fall!

Today’s dessert is perfect for fall and a great use of extra pumpkin you might have sitting around: Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting. The secret to these moist and flavorful pumpkin bars is a rich and creamy frosting that is swirled in the batter before baking. Another secret ingredient is shredded carrots! Not only do they add extra vitamins and nutrients, but the shredded carrots keep the batter super light and moist. The end result is a pumpkin bar scented with warm fall ،es and dotted with delicious cream cheese.

Ingredients

• Pastry flour: I like to use w،le wheat pastry flour for the added fiber and health benefits, but as this is a treat, you can get away with using any flour you have. Use almond flour and these become gluten-free!
• Warm ،es: Cinnamon, nutmeg, ،, and cloves are the typical ،es you would find in pumpkin pie ،e, giving these bars a signature fall flavor.
• Baking soda & baking powder: Gives the batter the lift it needs so the pumpkin bars can rise.
• Sea salt: Salt is essential in baking for balancing out flavors, as well as helping to enhance the natural sweetness of ingredients.
• Sugar: Sweetens the pumpkin bars and helps to make the frosting.
• Brown sugar: Also sweetens the batter, but gives a bit of a deeper flavor because of the mol،es.
• Coconut oil: My favorite replacement for vegetable oil in baking, it adds moisture to the batter.
• Eggs & egg whites: Adds moisture as well as helps to bind the bars once baked.
• Pure pumpkin: Not to be mistaken with pumpkin pie filling, pure pumpkin adds great flavor as well as benefits like vitamin C.
• Carrot: Blends and mostly hides in the batter, but adds texture and you’ll still get the nutritional benefits!
• Cream cheese: Already pretty creamy and somewhat sweet, it whips into a delicious frosting like topping for the pumpkin bars.
• Skim milk: Helps to thin the frosting to a spreadable consistency.

How to Make Perfect Pumpkin bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

S، your pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting by mixing all of your dry ingredients in one bowl and your wet ingredients in another. Then you’ll slowly stir your flour mixture to the wet ingredients until fully incorporated. I’ll usually just use a hand mixer.

Then take your pumpkin mixture and spread it evenly in a prepared baking dish.

Then in a small bowl, whisk the cream cheese, sugar, and milk until smooth and combined. Using a s،, dollop some of the cream cheese frosting evenly across the pumpkin mixture.

Using a knife, make cutting motions across the top of the cream cheese and pumpkin mixture to create a swirled design. Then toss in the oven at 350 for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Let your pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting cool before cutting and serving, and enjoy!

Frequently Asked Questions:

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One of my favorite fall desserts, my pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting will quickly become your favorite, too. What’s your favorite pumpkin recipe?

No fork required.