Pumpkin Pie Bars Recipe (2024)

Made these last night and just tried one! I did sub Biscoff cookies for the ginger snaps as that’s what I had (added 2tsp ground ginger). Came out great! However, I don’t think 20-30 min is accurate baking time. They were still basically liquid at 20 min, and at 30 they were closer to done but my guess is it’s more like 35 min at 350. I let them cool for 30 min in the oven with the oven turned off and door cracked and then finished the hourlong cooling at room temp before refrigerating.

Apologies, all! Technical glitch, but the ingredients are all in now. Happy baking!

This is a great dessert for people who love dessert but may feel guilty eating dessert. Consider: It's relatively lean (if you don't count the cream), low in sugar (if you don't count the cookies), and even manages to incorporate almost a pound of a healthy vegetable rich in beta carotene, Why, it's practically a health food :-)!

Unless you're going to finish the entire pan in one go, I'd suggest holding off on the whipped cream topping. It won't keep if there are any bars left over for another day. Instead, whip just enough cream to garnish just those bars you plan to serve just before serving them.

Cooked about 35 minutes to set pumpkin filling. Used Trader Joe’s Triple Ginger Snaps which made the crust absolutely delicious! This was a hit in our house.

Increase cooking time for crust to ~15 to 20 minutes. Bake the pumpkin squares at 425 for ~12-14 min, reduce down to 350 for another 10 min or so. The bars will not be cakey but more like little pieces of pie. You also don't need the cream - this is based on the pumpkin pie recipe on the back of pumpkin cans. I also added a tsp of flour to the pie mixture. Add the spices you like. W these changes they came out great! Adding candied ginger to the crust made the whole thing sublime!

I loved these! I made a gluten free ginger snap as the base, crushed them and they turned out awesome. A smooth and creamy base for the pie, I may do these every year instead of handling regular pastry crust.

Made this but added pecans to the ginger snap cookies because I didn’t have enough. Cooked it for 30 minutes at 350° and it came out perfectly. Couldn’t resist trying it out before refrigerating it for four hours😃. Will definitely be making it again.

Made the crust with Biscoff cookies and had no regrets.

Outstanding. Still needed a fork - not a hand held bar. I used speculoos (so?) cookies as the store was out of ginger snaps and it was still tasty.

If these tasted good, thank the recipe. If these were "very ugly", you can't blame the recipe. If the crust was soggy and they took 15 minutes longer to cook, your oven isn't hot enough.

Loved it.. just added some pecans because I did not have enough gingersnap cookies. Will definitely be making it again. I cooked it for 30 mins @. 350 & it was perfect !!

Do what you would do with pumpkin pie. See Step 6: "To serve, top the bars with whipped cream and cut into bars. Cover and refrigerate any untopped leftover bars for up to 3 days."

Very nice recipe-the spice mix is quite good, and more noticeable when you forgo the whipped topping. I like the cookie crust far better than any pastry crust-used a mix of gingersnap and Windmill cookies and it was just right. Will make this for Thanksgiving next year. I cut down the sugar load by using erythritol based sugars for both the crust and the filling. I cooked it for 32 minutes and it was perfect, but no-where near done at 20 minutes.

Delightful alternative version of pumpkin pie! Glad I read the comments — it’s not just me, it really did need longer baking times. I’ve never known anyone to pre-top the entire pumpkin pie with whipped cream before serving, but if that’s what we’re going to do, use this tip. While whipping the cream add 2 tablespoons of softened cream cheese. Once the cream sets up it will STAY set up. Helps prevent the unpleasant separating of whey (if there’s leftovers).

Thanks to another reader's suggestion (thanks, jess!), I used Biscoff cookies instead of ginger snaps. I loved this dish and will likely never make plain old pumpkin pie again.

Alternate serving suggestion: cut bars and freeze them. Serve frozen with a dollop of whipped cream on top.

I also wish I had read the comments. The baking time was not long enough. I did 35 minutes and then pulled them because I was worried I would burn them. They still didn’t set right. If make them again, I am going to bake for longer or try some of the suggestions in the comments about starting at a higher temp and lowering it mid-bake.My oven is brand new and very nice too, so it’s not an oven problem.

Made these and subbed crust with Biscoff cookies and added a tablespoon of ginger. Baked with the filling for 25 minutes, but either I needed to use a 9x9 pan because the filling either deflated or didn’t rise. Also, I think I needed to whip the topping longer because the final product didn’t match the photo. Any tips?

Yummy! Made as written. Baked for 30 minutes. Fork required if cut into large squares as shown, or plan on licking your fingers. :)

I did not think the pumpkin bars were sweet enough, nor was the whipped cream. 1.5 Tbsps of sugar for 1.5 cups of whipped cream? The crust was not crisp, but soggy. Overall, not great.

Without the whipped cream topping, any thoughts on how well these would freeze as leftovers? I have a small group this year and these are too delicious to waste!

I made this for a potluck and it was good! I think I overbaked the custard, and it did not turn out at all like the picture so a huge mountain of cream was definitely in order. That being said, it was not too sweet and very pumpkin forward, and people seemed to enjoy it. Next time I would invest in a proper metal bakeware pan.

How long will the whipped topping keep if making ahead before serving?

I want to make 3-4 desserts for Thanksgiving so I am wondering if I could cut this recipe in half and make it in an 8 x 8" pan. Any thoughts

Has anyone tried to sub lactose free milk for the evap milk and cream?

I wish I had read the comments. 40 minutes in the oven!! They turned out delicious but the bake time is way off and I have a nice oven. Cafe and less than 2 years old. Glad I did a test run before thanks giving.

I didn't know when to remove the parchment paper. SHould I have? Put it into fridge with that still in place. Very hard to get it off after that, so serving was a bit of a mess. I would have loved to have some instruction as to when to remove it from pan with paper , if that should have happened before the 4-hour fridge period. Tasty, but it was hard to get out. Also agree about timing. I added about 15 minutes, since it was very very looose.