Creamy and delicious pumpkin pie bars made with an oatmeal and pecan shortbread crust and a spiced pumpkin filling. Perfect for Thanksgiving, Christmas or holiday gatherings.
This tasty dessert is great for serving a crowd!
Why make this dessert
Pumpkin pie is a must for Thanksgiving! But sometimes I want just a little bite of a dessert and that's where these pumpkin pie bars come in!
These bars are baked up in a casserole dish and then cut into small two inch squares. They are perfect for bringing to a potluck or serving on a dessert buffet.
The bars are different than a regular pumpkin pie. The filling has pumpkin and all the regular spices, but it also has cream cheese making it even creamier than ever!
The crust is made with oatmeal, pecans and flour and is whirled together in a food processor. It's just a crumbly crust that gets pressed into the baking dish. No rolling out the dough!
Easy peasy and delicious!
Key ingredients
Crust
- Oats - old fashioned oat or rolled oats
- Pecans
- Brown sugar
- Flour
- Butter
Filling
- Pumpkin - pure pumpkin puree, not pie filling
- Eggs
- Cream cheese - regular, not low fat
- Half and Half or cream
- Spices - cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves
Step by step directions
Crust
- Place flour, oats, pecans, butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a food processor
- Blend until everything is a coarse mixture
- Reserve 1 cup of the mixture and pour the rest into a greased baking dish
- Push mixture down firmly with your hands or the bottom of a flat measuring cup
- Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 15 minutes
Filling
- In a mixing bowl, mix cream cheese until smooth and creamy
- Add eggs and sugar. Mix well.
- Add pumpkin, cream, spices and salt
- Pour filling over baked crust
- Sprinkle reserved crust mixture over the filling
- Bake for 30 minutes
- Allow bars to fully cool and then cut into squares
Recipe tips
- Make certain cream cheese is at room temperature. If it's cold, it will not mix into the other ingredients and you'll have small lumps of cream cheese throughout.
- No need to cool crust before adding filling. Just pour the filling on while the crust is still hot.
- Allow bars to fully cool before slicing
- Store covered in refrigerator
- Serve with a dollop of whipped cream or a sprinkling of powdered sugar
Recipe Faqs
The bars will be good for 3 days. Once cooled, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Add whipped cream when ready to serve.
Yes, these pumpkin pie bars can be frozen. Allow bars to fully cool and then wrap casserole dish with plastic wrap and then foil.
They can also be cut and removed to a storage container. Pack in a single layer.
Freeze for up to one month.
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear about it! Leave a comment below and snap a picture and tag me on Instagram @beyondthechickencoop
Be certain to check out all my delicious dessert recipes.
Pumpkin Pie Bars
Ingredients
Crust
- ¾ cup butter (cut into small cubes)
- 1 ⅓ cups flour
- 1 cup old fashioned oats (or rolled oats)
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup pecans
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Filling
- 8 ounces cream cheese (at room temperature)
- ⅔ cups granulated sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 can pumpkin puree (15 ounces)
- ½ cup half and half (or cream)
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
Instructions
Crust
- Preheat oven to 350°F
- In a food processor, place butter, flour, oats, brown sugar, pecans, cinnamon and salt.¾ cup butter, 1 ⅓ cups flour, 1 cup old fashioned oats, ¾ cup brown sugar, ½ cup pecans, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Puree until well mixed and mixture has coarse crumbs. Reserve 1 cup of mixture for topping.
- Place in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Press crust down firmly with your hands or the bottom of a flat measuring cup.
- Bake in preheated 350°F oven for 15 minutes
Filling
- Mix cream cheese well with a mixer until smooth and creamy8 ounces cream cheese
- Add sugar and eggs. Mix well.⅔ cups granulated sugar, 3 eggs
- Mix in pumpkin, cream and the remaining spices and salt1 can pumpkin puree, ½ cup half and half, 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- Pour pumpkin mixture into baked crust. The crust should still be hot from the oven.
- Sprinkle reserved crust over the top of the filling
- Bake in preheated 350°F oven for 30 minutes
- Allow bars to fully cool before slicing. Slice into 30 bars or larger if you prefer.
Notes
- Make certain cream cheese is at room temperature. If it's cold, it will not mix into the other ingredients and you'll have small lumps of cream cheese throughout.
- No need to cool crust before adding filling. Just pour the filling on while the crust is still hot.
- Allow bars to fully cool before slicing
- Store covered in refrigerator
- Serve with a dollop of whipped cream or a sprinkling of powdered sugar
Nutrition
Stephanie says
I stumbled on your site while looking for some canning information and I spied this recipe. Being a huge pumpkin pie fan I thought I would have to try this. Not only was it super easy, they came out beautifully. This recipe is a keeper. I am now going to have to work my way through your recipe box!!
Kathy says
Thank you, Stephanie!!! 🙂
Valentina says
Yum! I love the shortbread crust, and these are so much fun for fall and holiday parties. 🙂 ~Valentina
David @ Spiced says
I always crave pumpkin pie this time of the year, but bars are such a better choice than pie! (Plus, I can sneak extra bars while it's difficult to sneak extra slices of pie!) The pecans in the crust here are such a good idea!!