Pumpkin Bars with Dairy-Free Spiced Buttercream Frosting

Do you have a holiday dessert that even the pickiest eaters in your family devour? For us, it’s these incredibly moist and flavorful dairy-free pumpkin bars. Years ago, before dairy-free baking became more mainstream, my mom caught Paula Deen making a version of these on the Food Network. My dad tracked it down online, I made a few tweaks, and a beloved family tradition was born. We’ve since perfected many dairy-free holiday treats, including a classic pumpkin pie, but these bars hold a special place in our hearts.

Why You’ll Love these Dairy-Free Pumpkin Bars

• Rich Holiday Taste: The high pumpkin ratio combined with a generous dose of spices makes these cake bars very flavor forward.
• Tender Crumb: These bars have a very moist cake-like texture that simply melts in your mouth.
• Kid-Friendly: They’re a particular favorite with the younger crowd, who often turn up their noses at squash pies.
• Ready for a Crowd: I often cut them into 48 smaller squares, instead of 24 bars, to make delicious finger desserts for parties and holiday potlucks.
• Customizable: You can spice them up or down (I do up!), use all white or half whole grain flour, and I have a few different frosting and topping suggestions below!

Kids Can Cook Tips

What makes these dairy-free pumpkin bars a true holiday lifesaver is how easy they are for kids to help with. It’s a fantastic way to get them involved in festive preparations for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or even Halloween!

You can bake the bars a day or two ahead, leaving just the frosting for the big day. This means little hands can contribute to the Thanksgiving feast without being underfoot during the busiest moments. Young kids can help to measure and stir all of the ingredients, while older kids experienced with baking and manage the whole process!

While the original recipe featured a cream cheese icing, we’ve adapted it over the years. Sometimes, a simple dusting of powdered sugar is the perfect, easy topping for young chefs to handle. But recently, my daughter Katherine and I were inspired to create a decadent Dairy-Free Spiced Buttercream Frosting.

Topping Suggestions for Your Dairy-Free Pumpkin Bars

• Powdered Sugar: Skip the icing. Before cutting into bars, hold a fine mesh sieve over the cake, add some powdered sugar, and shake to sprinkle some of the powdered sugar all over the cake.
• Dairy-Fee Spiced Buttercream: This is our favorite. Spices in both the cake and the frosting add warmth and intense flavor to each decadent bite.
• Nuts: A sprinkling of nuts or pecans adds a nice finish on top of frosted bars. You can alternatively press a single nut half into each bar.
• Sprinkles: Turn them into a Halloween favorite with festive orange and black or spooky sprinkles.

Special Diet Notes: Pumpkin Bars

By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, nut-free, peanut-free, soy-free, and vegetarian. Just be sure to choose the frosting that suits your dietary needs.

For gluten-free frosted pumpkin bars, your favorite gluten-free baking flour blend should work well as a flour substitute.

Alisa Fleming

Dairy-Free Pumpkin Bars

5 from 1 vote

This tender, moist, and flavorful dessert recipe is adapted from a Paula Deen favorite. We use part spelt flour for a richer taste and texture (more like a cake bar than cake), and I add more spices for a bolder, seasonal taste.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Total Time 50 minutes mins

Servings: 24 cake bars

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Calories: 190

Ingredients Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x?

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup spelt flour can sub wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground allspice
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree
• 1 ⅔ cups sugar
• 1 cup oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 batch Dairy-free Spiced Buttercream Frosting or Dairy-Free Cream Cheese Frosting

Method

 

1. Preheat your oven to 350ºF and grease a 9x13-inch baking pan.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, allspice, and nutmeg.
3. Add the pumpkin, sugar, oil, and eggs to a large mixing bowl. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, mix until light and fluffy.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until thoroughly combined.
5. Spread the batter into your prepared baking pan and even out.
6. Bake the cake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Let cool completely.
8. Evenly top the bars with your choice of frosting.
9. Cut into fourths vertically and sixths horizontally to make 24 slices.
10. Store leftovers in an airtight container in your refrigerator for up to 4 days, or freeze them to enjoy later.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cake bar without frostingCalories: 190kcalCarbohydrates: 23.2gProtein: 2.4gFat: 10.2gSaturated Fat: 1.5gSodium: 182mgFiber: 1.5gSugar: 14.5g

Notes

Pan Options: Bake the batter in a 10x15-inch jelly roll pan for 25 to 30 minutes for thinner bars. For a smaller batch, halve all ingredients, and bake in an 8x8-inch pan for thicker bars and a 9x9-inch pan for thicker bars.

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