Best Pumpkin Bars Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting

Name: Best Pumpkin Bars Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 2 cups all purpose flour; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 2 teaspoons cinnamon; 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger; 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice; 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1 cup packed brown sugar; 1 cup granulated white sugar; 4 eggs; 1 can Libbey’s pure pumpkin, 15 oz.; 1 cup canola oil; 1 teaspoon vanilla; 6 tbsp butter, room temperature; 3 cups sifted powdered sugar; 8 ounce package regular cream cheese, room temperature; 1 teaspoon vanilla; 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice, (optional but adds a bit of flavor)

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Last Updated on October 6, 2026

Enjoy moist Pumpkin Bars with cream cheese frosting this autumn. This Pumpkin Bars Recipe is perfect for sharing with loved ones. This is a must-try fall treat, with a blend of pumpkin spice, cinnamon, allspice, and brown sugar that the whole family will crave.

The recipe makes a half-sheet pan full of bars, enough for 32 servings! Enough to hand out to friends and relatives. Let’s make some!

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Fall is the perfect time of year to start thinking about cooler weather and Pumpkin spice! This pumpkin bar recipe with cream cheese frosting is the ultimate dessert treat that everyone will drool over. And it is full of the wonderful pumpkin flavors that you love.

Why This Pumpkin Bar Recipe Works

Because they are made with tasty pumpkin spice ingredients.
A recipe makes a 12″ by 17″ sheet pan (also known as a half sheet pan) #ad, full of the best pumpkin bars. Enough for a crowd!
They bake in 20 minutes.
The result is super moist, fluffy pumpkin bars.
Cream cheese frosting.
Pumpkin desserts are in season! This is one of my favorite Halloween Recipes!
They make great treats to give to friends and neighbors.

Ingredients Needed for Pumpkin Bars

If you are a person who bakes a lot, you probably have most of these ingredients on hand.

For the bars, you will need:

All-Purpose Flour

Baking Powder

Baking Soda

Pumpkin Pie Spices

Brown Sugar

Granulated Sugar

Large Eggs

Pure Pumpkin Puree

Canola Oil

Vanilla Extract

Salt

How to Make the Pumpkin Bars Recipe

Mix the Dry Ingredients

In a medium bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, and salt. Use a spatula or whisk to mix these.

Combine the Wet Ingredients

In a large mixing bowl, add the canned pumpkin puree, brown sugar, granulated white sugar, eggs, canola oil, and vanilla.

A whisk works well to combine all these ingredients. An electric mixer could also be used.

Now, add the dry ingredients to the wet.

Start with about a cup of the flour mixture and whisk until the flour is wet.

Then, add the remainder of the flour and whisk until a consistent batter is formed.

If you have a few small lumps of flour left, that is alright because it will bake just fine.

Baking The Pumpkin Bars

Use a half-sheet 12-inch by 17-inch rimmed baking sheet to bake the bars in.

Lightly spray the baking dish with cooking oil spray. Then pour the pumpkin bar batter into the prepared pan.

Use a spatula to even out the batter. Lift the sheet and drop it back onto the kitchen counter to make it more even.

Place the baking sheet into your preheated 350°F oven for 18 to 20 minutes. Turn the sheet 180° after 10 minutes.

The bars will be done when there is slight browning and separation around the edges, and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Let the pumpkin cake bars cool. Next, mix up a batch of cream cheese Frosting.

Step-By-Step Recipe For Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients For The Frosting

You will need:

6 tablespoons of butter at room temperature.
1 – 8-ounce package of cream cheese at room temperature.
3 cups of sifted confectioners’ sugar (powdered sugar).
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (optional).

Mix the room-temperature butter with the room-temperature Cream Cheese in a large bowl until it is smooth. A hand mixer works well for this, or even a stand mixer.

Next, add the pumpkin pie spice and vanilla. Mix until smooth.

Then, add the sifted confectioner’s sugar, one cup at a time, and mix until smooth.

Continue to add the powdered sugar until it is all combined and smooth. (Use a spatula to incorporate the dry sugar from the edges of the bowl.)

Now you are ready to frost the cooled baked pumpkin bars.

It is best to place dabs of frosting on the baked bars. Use an offset spatula to evenly spread the cream cheese frosting.

Once the frosting is applied, refrigerate the bars for 60 minutes or more before cutting into squares. The cooled frosting will make slicing the bars easier.

Storing the Pumpkin Bars

The bars need to be stored in the refrigerator. They would last 5 days, covered in the refrigerator, but I don’t think anyone has gone that long without eating them all.

They would be perfect to make a day ahead, refrigerate, and serve the next day. (Think about taking them to work to share.)

To freeze the bars, put them into an Airtight Container and freeze them for up to 3 months. Defrost them by taking them out of the freezer and letting them defrost at room temperature.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the pumpkin bars be made in a different-sized pan?

If you don’t have a 12 by 17-inch half-sheet pan, the bars can be baked in a 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Just add 5 or 6 minutes to the baking time. Use the toothpick method to determine if it is done baking.

This is an easy recipe to put together, and the result is much more than the sum of its parts. This pumpkin bar recipe is a perfect way to satisfy your pumpkin cravings. Every time I bring these pumpkin bars to a gathering, they get eaten up quickly. I’d say that is a testament to how good this recipe is.