Pumpkin Pie Bars
These Pumpkin Pie Bars are the perfect fall dessert!
They’re such a fun twist on the classic Thanksgiving dessert so many families enjoy together every year.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe for Pumpkin Pie Bars
- Perfect texture and flavor! – In these creamy pumpkin pie bars, you’ll get all of the flavors of good old-fashioned pumpkin pie – a sweet and buttery crust, delicious pumpkin pie filling, a burst of warm fall spices, and a small dollop of cool whipped cream.
- An easy way to enjoy pumpkin pie! – Traditional pumpkin pie can be somewhat finicky to make. Admittedly, most of that lies in the crust. However, these pumpkin pie bars utilize a simple press-in shortbread crust, so it’s super easy!
- Holiday crowd-pleaser! – Not that you need any excuse to enjoy homemade pumpkin pie, but the bar form of this recipe makes it a perfect way to feed a crowd. This is especially fun at Thanksgiving time.
- Quick and simple! – The shortbread crust is easy to mix together – no pastry cutter needed! It presses quickly into the prepared pan. Using a mixer, the pumpkin pie mix comes together in less than 5 minutes, and then it’s off into the oven. Easy as, well – pie!
Ingredients Needed for this Simple Fall Recipe
Pie Crust Ingredients
- 3/4 Cup of Butter – Use room temperature, unsalted butter. Although pie crusts are typically made by using a pastry cutter to work cold butter into dry ingredients, the crust we’re making is a bit more like a shortbread. It will be sweeter and slightly less flaky.
- 1/2 Cup of Powdered Sugar – This adds sweetness to the crust, but without any sort of granulation since there won’t be any liquid for the sugar to dissolve into!
- 1 1/2 Cup of Flour – All-purpose flour works great for this pumpkin pie recipe, but you can use almond flour or whole-wheat flour if that’s your preference.
Pumpkin Pie Filling Ingredients
- 30 Ounces of Canned Pumpkin – Double check that you’re holding cans of pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling! They look similar and are almost always right next to each other on the grocery store shelves, but they are not the same thing.
- 4 Eggs – Set your eggs out on the counter a couple hours before you start up this recipe. Room temperature eggs combine with other ingredients much more cohesively than cold eggs.
- 1 Cup of Brown Sugar – Not only is it sweet, but the molasses in the brown sugar adds a warm, caramel flavor that is perfect for this time of year.
- 3 Teaspoons of Pumpkin Pie Spice – During the fall, it’s handy to have a container of premixed pumpkin pie spice. It’s a combination of ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cloves, and ground nutmeg.
- 1 Teaspoon of Salt – Just a dash, to balance the sweetness.
- 24 Ounces of Evaporated Milk – When it comes to classic pumpkin pie recipes, they all usually use evaporated milk or sweetened condensed milk. Both have some of the water evaporated away, but I like to use evaporated milk because it doesn’t have any sugar added.
How To Make This Pumpkin Pie Bar Recipe
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit, and grease a baking pan with nonstick cooking spray or butter.
- In the medium bowl of a stand mixer, blend the butter, powdered sugar, and flour to make the dough for the crust. It will come together into coarse crumbs.
- Pour the crust into the bottom of the pan, and then flatten into an even layer using either your hands or the flat bottom of a measuring cup.
- In a large bowl, mix the pumpkin puree and brown sugar. Then add each egg one at a time. When the eggs are fully incorporated, add the pumpkin pie spice and salt, and then the evaporated milk.
- Pour the creamy pumpkin filling ingredients over the buttery shortbread crust.
- Bake the pumpkin pie bars for 15 minutes at the preheated 425 degrees, then lower the oven temperature down to 350 degrees and continue baking for an additional 50-55 minutes, until the pumpkin pie filling has set.
- Allow the pumpkin pie bars to cool completely. Use a wire rack to help speed up this process. Then place the pan into the refrigerator for a couple of hours.
- After the pumpkin pie bars have chilled completely, use a clean sharp knife to cut them into squares. Top each square with a small dollop of whipped cream, and enjoy!
Storing Leftover Pumpkin Bars
Storing leftover pumpkin pie bars couldn’t be easier!
If the bars are still in the pan, simply cover the pan with it’s lid or a sheet of aluminum foil.
Then place it in the refrigerator.
If the bars have been removed from the pan into their individual servings, no problem!
Simply place them one by one into an airtight container and, again, place it in the fridge.
Need to layer up the pumpkin pie bars?
Use a sheet of parchment paper or wax paper to separate the layers.
Top Tips For Perfect Pumpkin Pie Bars
- For an extra smooth and creamy consistency, pop the pumpkin puree into a blender or food processor first! It will make the puree super silky smooth.
- The main concern when baking pumpkin pies is cracks across the top. That’s true of pumpkin pie bars as well. The trick to avoiding cracks? Don’t overbeat the filling! As soon as the final ingredient is added (evaporated milk), mix until it is combined well and then stop.
- Pumpkin pie filling gets creamier and sweeter as it sits and chills. If you can, don’t just set the bars into the fridge for a few hours – leave them there overnight. And anyways, it’s handy to make something ahead of time and not have to worry about it the next day, isn’t it?
- For crisp, clean edges, use a sharp knife to cut the bars rather than a butter knife. Be sure to clean off the knife blade using warm water after each cut, and use a towel to dry it off.
- Feel free to get creative! Add a small amount of maple syrup, make the pie crust using melted butter and graham crackers, mix in some chopped pecans or walnuts.
Pumpkin Pie Bars
In these Pumpkin Pie Bars, you'll get a sweet, buttery crust, delicious pumpkin pie filling, a burst of warm fall spices, and a dollop cream.
Equipment
- 1 Mixer
- 1 Glass Mixing Bowl
- 1 Glass Baking Dish
Ingredients
Pie Crust
- 3/4 Cup of Butter
- 1/2 Cup of Powdered Sugar
- 1 1/2 Cup of Flour
Pie Filling
- 30 Ounces of Canned Pumpkin
- 4 Eggs
- 1 Cup of Brown Sugar
- 3 Teaspoons of Pumpkin Pie Spice
- 1 Teaspoon of Salt
- 24 Ounces of Evaporated Milk
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit, and grease a baking pan with nonstick cooking spray or butter.
- In the medium bowl of a stand mixer, blend the butter, powdered sugar, and flour to make the dough for the crust. It will come together into coarse crumbs.
- Pour the crust into the bottom of the pan, and then flatten into an even layer using either your hands or the flat bottom of a measuring cup.
- In a large bowl, mix the pumpkin puree and brown sugar. Then add each egg one at a time. When the eggs are fully incorporated, add the pumpkin pie spice and salt, and then the evaporated milk.
- Pour the creamy pumpkin filling ingredients over the buttery shortbread crust.
- Bake the pumpkin pie bars for 15 minutes at the preheated 425 degrees, then lower the oven temperature down to 350 degrees and continue baking for an additional 50-55 minutes, until the pumpkin pie filling has set.
- Allow the pumpkin pie bars to cool completely. Use a wire rack to help speed up this process. Then place the pan into the refrigerator for a couple of hours.
- After the pumpkin pie bars have chilled completely, use a clean sharp knife to cut them into squares. Top each square with a small dollop of whipped cream, and enjoy!
More Pumpkin Dessert Recipes
- Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Sweet Pumpkin Fluff Dip
- Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
- Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
- Walnut Pumpkin Pie
