Name: Pumpkin Bars
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: baking spray; 2 cups flour (all purpose); 2 cups sugar; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon; ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg; ½ teaspoon ground cloves; 1 15 ounce can pumpkin puree; 4 large eggs; ¾ cup vegetable oil; 2 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 cup dried cherries; 8 ounces cream cheese; ½ cup butter (unsalted, room temperature); 1 cup powdered sugar; 1 tablespoon lemon zest

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This tender and incredibly moist Pumpkin Bar recipe is gently spiced with the best fall flavors: pumpkin, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and dried cherries. Finished with a thin layer of cream cheese frosting, these dessert bars are the perfect fall dessert.

If you love tender and moist cake-like treats like our Banana Nut Bread or Easy Zucchini Bread, this pumpkin dessert is for you.

While you can use fresh pumpkin, I generally opt for canned pumpkin puree. This one has been my go-to brand for years.

Table of Contents show

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

2 cups all purpose FLOUR
2 cups granulated SUGAR
1 tablespoon GROUND CINNAMON
1 teaspoon SALT
2 teaspoon BAKING POWDER
1 teaspoon BAKING SODA
½ teaspoon GROUND NUTMEG
½ teaspoon GROUND CLOVES

Wet Ingredients

15 ounce can PUMPKIN PUREE
4 large EGGS
¾ cup VEGETABLE OIL
1 cup dried CHERRIES
1 teaspoon VANILLA EXTRACT

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces CREAM CHEESE
1 cup POWDERED SUGAR
½ cup BUTTER, unsalted, room temperature
1 tablespoon LEMON ZEST

How To Make Pumpkin Bars

While at first glance this recipe seems to have quite a few ingredients, it's pretty much everything we all have in our pantries and fridges. And it's super straightforward to make. You'll have it ready in the oven in less than 15 minutes.

PREP

Preheat the oven to 350º degrees Fahrenheit.
Grease a 15x10x1 inch baking sheet.
Take 1 tablespoon of flour and dust the dried cherries. Shake off any excess flour.

Making The Frosting

Step 3 and Step 4: Combine butter, cream cheese, lemon zest, and powdered sugar and mix until creamy

Combine softened butter, softened cream cheese, lemon zest, and powdered sugar in a large bowl.
Use an electric mixer and and beat powdered sugar, cream cheese, and butter on medium speed. Increase speed and beat until the frosting is thick and creamy. Set aside

Taking a slice of freshly baked pumpkin bars from a baking sheet

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Recipe Notes

Let's talk cream cheese frosting! Whenever I make this recipe I halve the amount of frosting because some people in our family like the pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting and others just prefer it without frosting.

I'm in the ladder group. While I love a good cream cheese frosting, for this recipe I think the flavors unfold even more if you skip it, but you can't go wrong. Either way, it's delicious.

But if you can find any or don't have them in your pantry try making this dessert with raisins or cranberries! You can even toss a few pecan or walnuts in for an extra bit of crunch.

a slice of freshly baked pumpkin sheet cake on a white plate

Dried Cherries

If you've been following the blog for a while you know I love cherries in desserts.

It might be my German upbringing, but we had so many desserts with cherries such as the German Cherry Crumble or the Cherry Pound Cake. Although for these recipes I used fresh cherries.

But in for this pumpkin dessert I used dried cherries. I think the sweet and tart flavors of the cherries go exceedingly well with the other flavors in this recipe. B

Decorate!

Are you ready for Halloween? Try adding some of these sprinkles on top of the cream cheese frosting.

If You Like This recipe, Try These!

Streuselkuchen - German Crumb Cake
German Cheesecake - traditional German style cheesecake
White Chocolate Cranberry Bars - perfect as an anytime sweet treat!
Bread Pudding - baked in a delicious custard and topped with a gooey caramel sauce!
Banana Nut Bread - incredibly moist banana bread

Pumpkin Bars