Paula Dean’s Pumpkin Bars

Do you need another dessert? Of course you do. And you’re in luck because these pumpkin bars are FABULOUS!!!! So, so happy to have tried this recipe!! It is one I will keep forever!! This is a perfect fall dessert, and you just can’t beat delicious pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting. OK, pumpkin pie is obviously a winner, too, but if you want something more cakey, these bars are it.

This is really a simple recipe with a cake base covered with cream cheese frosting. The pumpkin flavor shines through, and with one bite, you know fall is here. These do freeze well, so if you find yourself with a lot of puree to use up, make a few batches of this and slice them up into individual snack cakes. Freeze them, and pack a pumpkin-filled snack in everyone’s lunch boxes and bags for the next few weeks. Chances are, they won’t mind!

The cream cheese frosting is a great backdrop, by the way, for all sorts of decorations. Add sprinkles or pipe cartoonish Halloween figures onto the frosting if you make these in October. Decorate them with sugared cranberries or candied pecans in November, too. Or, just have them plain. They taste terrific on their own.

SO GOOD!

Scroll to bottom for printable recipe card.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• The texture of these family friendly Paula Deen’s pumpkin bars is amazing. This is absolutely on point in terms of mouthfeel.
• All the ingredients here are affordable and easy to source, so this cake is economical. If you’re shopping on a budget, this is a good recipe to keep in your pocket.
• This is the best Paula Deen’s pumpkin bars recipe version you’ll find. Her recipe is one of the easiest bars to make.
• Like so many other cake and bar recipes, these are easy Paula Deen’s pumpkin bars for beginners who are learning to bake. Teach your kids how to mix frosting and experiment with other ingredients to show your kids how baking works.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 40-45 minutes

Servings: 16

Ingredients:

For the bars:

2 C. All-purpose flour

3 tsp. Baking powder

1 tsp. Baking soda

2 tsp. Cinnamon

15 oz. Can pumpkin puree

1 C. Oil

1 ¾ C. Granulated sugar

4 large eggs

For the frosting:

½ C. Butter unsalted and softened

8 oz. Cream cheese softened

2 C. Confectioners sugar

1 tsp. Vanilla extract

Ingredient Notes & Substitutions

Pumpkin puree: Be sure you’re using pumpkin puree and not pie filling. Pie filling already has spices in it, and that may make the cake taste too intense.

Confectioners sugar: Confectioners sugar contains cornstarch to stop the sugar from clumping up. If you want a smooth frosting, get either confectioners sugar, or powdered sugar that specifically lists cornstarch in the ingredients.

Baking powder and baking soda: The cream of tartar activates the baking soda in the baking powder, but you’ll also want extra baking soda on top of that into the recipe. This is because pumpkin is slightly acidic, and too much acidity in a recipe can overwhelm the baking soda that’s in the baking powder. So, this recipe calls for extra baking soda to counter the acidity of the pumpkin.

Unsalted butter: Don’t use salted butter for the frosting. Even mildly salty butter is going to make the frosting taste off.

How to Make It

Step 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Do that now, instead of when everything is mixed, so the oven is ready for the baking stage when the batter has been prepared.

Step 2. In a mixing bowl, blend the pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, and sugar until well blended. See the tip about cracking eggs into a separate bowl first.

Step 3. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon to the mixing bowl and beat until smooth. Add the flour gradually so that it doesn’t clump up that much.

Step 4. Pour the batter into a well-greased 13×9 baking dish, and bake for 40 minutes. Test the bars to ensure they’re done.

Step 5. Remove the bars from the oven and allow them to cool to room temperature. Consider placing the cake on a wire rack to cool so that there’s better airflow around the whole cake.

Step 6. Mix together the ingredients for the frosting until smooth and creamy.

Step 7. Frost the bars, slice, and serve. You are going to adore these bars!

Enjoy!

Tips for Success

This recipe uses four eggs, and each time you crack an egg, you risk having shell pieces fall into the bowl. Plus, a lot of eggs have blood spots, which don’t look very nice in cakes. Crack one egg into a bowl other than the one you’re mixing everything in. Pour the egg (if all shell bits are gone) into the mixing bowl, and then repeat for each egg. It sounds unnecessary, but if you’ve ever cracked a bad egg into your food, you’ll understand why keeping them separate initially is a good thing.

Storage & Reheating

Storing cakes made with cream cheese frosting can be tricky because of the cream cheese. You’ll have to keep this cake in the refrigerator; homemade cream cheese frostings don’t usually have the stabilizers and preservatives that commercially produced cream cheese frosting does. So, that frosting is perishable.

Place the cake in an airtight container and store it in the fridge for up to two days. If you’re not going to eat it all by then, cut the cake into pieces, place each on a baking sheet, and freeze them for 30 minutes. That firms up the frosting so that you can wrap up each piece without smashing the frosting (at least, not that much). Wrap each piece in plastic wrap and then foil, and store them in a freezer bag for up to three months. Thaw them in the refrigerator.

Serving Suggestions

Pumpkin is associated with fall, so other fall foods would be nice to have along with this simple Paula Deen’s pumpkin bars meal. If you’re having the bars as a snack, add some sliced apples and maple ice cream. Or, if you’re having them for dessert after a meal, pair them with this Turkey Shepherd’s Pie for the main and these Roasted Potatoes, Carrots, Parsnips, and Brussels Sprouts? With homemade Paula Deen’s pumpkin bars ideas for fall-themed meals are simple to plan. By the way, if you’re trying to watch calorie intake, you can also leave the frosting off for a more-healthy Paula Deen’s pumpkin bars version.

Notes

Everyone’s done this, right? It’s not just me? I mean, buying a lot of cans of pumpkin puree each fall because you’re afraid you’re going to run out because you want to make so many pumpkin pies. But then you end up with all this extra pumpkin puree. Well, this quick Paula Deen’s pumpkin bars recipe is the perfect way to use them up. You may find yourself buying even more pumpkin puree next year just so you can make these every month.

Now, remember to save this recipe on Pinterest for later 🙂

Paula Dean's Pumpkin Bars

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour

Servings: 16

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Ingredients 

For the bars:

• 2 C. All-purpose flour
• 3 tsp. Baking powder
• 1 tsp. Baking soda
• 2 tsp. Cinnamon
• 15 oz. Can pumpkin puree
• 1 C. Oil
• 1 ¾ C. Granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs

For the frosting:

• ½ C. Butter unsalted and softened
• 8 oz. Cream cheese softened
• 2 C. Confectioners sugar
• 1 tsp. Vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• In a mixing bowl, blend the pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, and sugar until well blended.
• Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon to the mixing bowl and beat until smooth.
• Pour the batter into a well-greased 9x13 baking dish and bake for 40 minutes.
• Remove the bars from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature.
• Mix together the ingredients for the frosting until smooth and creamy.
• Frost the bars, slice, and serve.
• Enjoy!

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 452kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 76mg | Sodium: 235mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 38g

Author: Laura