Vegan Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

There is no dessert that reminds me more of my childhood than pumpkin bars. All year long I would find myself looking forward to October when I knew my mom would be pulling the stained card from her recipe box. Moist pumpkin cake slathered in tangy, cream cheese frosting? Sign me up. When I went vegan this is one of the recipes I missed the very most due to its overall dreaminess and the nostalgia it inspired. As such, I knew it was finally time to develop these Vegan Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting.

This recipe has it all:

• That perfect combination of spices that can only be associated with pumpkins and fall
• A cake recipe that is geared towards insane moistness
• A tangy, cream cheese frosting that you will never believe is vegan

I promise that once you try this recipe it will be added to your own personal recipe box for plenty more fall seasons to come. It hits all of the right flavor notes and boasts beautiful texture and fluffiness.

The 9 to 5 Crowd

In my humble opinion, this recipe will be even more amazing for those of you who work full time jobs. I guarantee that if you bring a tray of these babies into the office you will be dubbed king or queen of fall in no time. Will this recipe lead to a huge promotion? Maybe, maybe not. It won’t hurt though right? While these vegan pumpkin bars won’t necessarily bring you a huge raise, it will certainly make you hugely popular. That said, any crowd is sure to enjoy these.

Try, Try Again

Please know that if you decide to make these pumpkin bars that this recipe has been tested and altered multiple times. As a dessert I loved so much in my childhood it only seemed right that the finished product would mimic that very taste I remember so vividly. Let’s just say it took a few tries to get here.

Despite all of the work that went into this recipe, I am so happy with the result. The pumpkin cake and cream cheese icing are awesome in equal measure and compliment one another just as well as I remember. I guarantee that if you make these they will become a new, seasonal staple in your household.

Vegan Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

These pumpkin bars are slathered in dreamy cream cheese icing and are completely vegan! A fall classic.

• Author: Lyndsey
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 25 minutes
• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: 9 bars 1x
• Category: dessert
• Cuisine: vegan

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

For the Bars

1 c all purpose flour

1/2 c sugar

1/4 c brown sugar

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp cloves

1/2 c pumpkin puree

1/2 c full-fat coconut milk

1/4 c canola oil

1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp vanilla extract

For the Frosting

8 oz vegan cream cheese 

1/4 c vegan butter, softened

2 c powdered sugar, sifted

1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 C) and line a 9 inch square baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside. In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. 

2. In a measuring cup, whisk together pumpkin puree, coconut milk, canola oil, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract. Pour wet mixture into dry mixture and whisk together until smooth. Do not over-mix. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth top with a rubber spatula. Place pan on center rack of oven and bake for 24-28 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center of bars comes out clean.

3. While the pumpkin bars are cooling, prepare the frosting. In a large bowl, beat together the vegan cream cheese and vegan butter with a hand mixer. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and continue to beat until smooth. Frosting should have a soft, runny consistency. Place in the refrigerator to firm up a little while the bars cool. 

4. Once the pumpkin bars are completely cool, spread the cream cheese frosting evenly over the top. Pumpkin bars can keep covered for 3-5 days at room temperature or in the refrigerator. They can also be frozen, unfrosted for up to a month.

Equipment

hand mixer

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Keywords: vegan, dessert, pumpkin

Looking for more vegan dessert recipes? Be sure to check out:

Vegan Apple Pie // Vegan Funfetti Cake // Math Club Cookies // Tahini Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies // Vegan Peach Pie // Vegan Blackberry Cobbler Ice Cream // Vegan Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble Bars // Vegan S’mores Bars