It’s the season for pumpkin treats, but I have a confession to make: I’m not actually all that big a fan of pumpkin pie itself. The flavor is great, and I love it in things like my pumpkin spice cookies or pumpkin cake, but the pie itself? I don’t know, it’s something about the texture that I’m not a huge fan of.
These bars were an experiment to see if I could make something similar, but with enough of a difference to make them tick all my boxes. The verdict: kind of. The texture is still there, soft and creamy in the middle, but the crumble base and topping give it a bit of variation beyond what pie crust does.
One area you can vary up this recipe is on the pumpkin itself. The base calls for a standard can of pumpkin puree, but if you wanted more flavor to it, you could use a pre-made pumpkin pie filling that already has spices in it. I like to use my own pie spice mix, so I used normal pumpkin puree.
If you’re a fan of spiced pumpkin, but want something a little different than a pie, this is a great alternative. If you’re hoping for something with a different texture, you might want to try a different one of my pumpkin recipes.
Pumpkin Pie Bars
Equipment
- 8×8" Baking Dish
- Parchment Paper
- Mixing Bowls
- Rubber Spatula
Ingredients
For the Crumble
- ½ Cup Butter Melted and cooled
- ½ Cup Brown Sugar
- 1½ Cups Flour
- ½ Tsp Baking Powder
- ½ Tsp Baking Soda
- 1 Tsp Cinnamon Or my pumpkin pie spice mix (see post for link)
- ¼ Tsp Cloves
For the Filling
- 1½ Cup Pumpkin Puree A standard 15 oz. can, give or take.
- ¼ Cup White Sugar
- ¼ Cup Brown Sugar
- 1½ Tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice See post for link to my recipe.
- 1 Egg
- ½ Tsp Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- Grease your baking dish and line it with parchment paper, leaving some overhang for easy extraction later if you want. Preheat your oven to 375℉.
- In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon (or pie spice), and cloves. Add the melted butter and mix until you get a crumbly sort of dough.
- Take a quarter of the dough and press it into the bottom of the baking dish, flattening it to make your bottom crust for the pie bars. Set the remaining three quarters aside.
- In another bowl, beat together the pumpkin puree, sugars, pie spice, egg, and vanilla, until well combined. You can do this by hand or with a mixer, whatever you prefer.
- Pour the pie filling over the prepared crust and spread it evenly. Crumble the remaining topping over the top.
- Bake this for 32 minutes, or until the topping is golden. Let cool and enjoy with a bit of whipped cream or cool whip!