Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting {Paleo}

These Paleo Pumpkin Bars are a fun and healthy way to enjoy fall baking season! Soft fudgy pumpkin blondies flavored with lots of pumpkin pie spices are topped with a honey cream cheese frosting for the ultimate fall themed pumpkin bars!

Who’s up for fudgy pumpkin bars with a thick layer of cream cheese frosting?  You are going to absolutely love these bars!

The layer of cashew based cream cheese frosting is so thick and creamy that I almost decided to call them cheesecake bars, but the pumpkin layer is definitely more than a crust.

You have soft gooey pumpkin blondies that are sort of similar to my pumpkin spice latte bars, but without any espresso flavor.  Just pumpkin spice goodness!

I love the combination of the sweet, warmly spiced pumpkin layer and the tangy rich cream cheese layer.  It’s fall baking heaven!

What You Need to Make Paleo Pumpkin Bars

There are two components to these bars – the pumpkin layer and the cashew cream cheese frosting layer.   Here’s what you’ll need to prepare the bars:

Pumpkin Bar Batter:

• blanched almond flour
• baking soda
• pumpkin pie spice
• ground cinnamon
• fine sea salt
• ghee, softened, or coconut oil
• pure maple sugar or coconut sugar
• pumpkin puree
• egg
• pure vanilla extract

Frosting:

• raw cashews
• coconut cream, chilled
• fresh lemon juice
• coconut oil, solid
• pure vanilla extract
• raw honey, or pure maple syrup 
• fine sea salt

How to Make Paleo “Cream Cheese” Frosting

Making cashew cream cheese frosting is super simple and SO rewarding!  It helps to use a powerful blender to get the frosting really smooth and silky.  You’ll also want to make sure you soak the cashews in hot water for a couple of hours before beginning to make them blend easily with the rest of the ingredients.

Prepare the frosting first and chill for at least 2 hours before frosting the bars. You can also make the frosting a day in advance and chill overnight.

Place all the ingredients in a high speed blender (I used a Vitamix) and blend until smooth. This will take anywhere from 1-5 minutes depending on your blender.

Be patient and scrape down the sides as needed, and continue to blend until creamy. Once done, chill the frosting in the refrigerator until ready to use.

How to Make Paleo Pumpkin Bars

Preheat your oven to 350° F and line an 8 x 8” square baking pan with parchment paper on the bottom and up the sides.

In a mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and salt.

In a separate mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer or whisk, cream together the ghee and sugar until smooth, then whisk in the pumpkin puree, egg, and vanilla. Mix until very smooth.

Stir or beat in the flour mixture until well combined, the batter should be thick. Using a rubber spatula, transfer the batter to the prepared pan, scraping the bowl and smoothing the batter evenly in the pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until just set in the center. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 3 hours or more, until completely cooled. After about an hour, you can chill in the refrigerator if you want to speed up the cooling.

Once the bars are completely cooled, spread the chilled frosting in the thick layer over the top.  You can cut into squares to serve right away, or return to the refrigerator to chill. 

How to Store Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

Similarly to my carrot cake and spice cake, these bars are wonderful frosted and chilled overnight (covered) as well as served right away.  Simply cut into squares before serving.

You can also freeze the bars, frosted and covered, and thaw in the refrigerator before cutting and serving.  Although you might even want to enjoy them partially frozen as my kids love!

You can store the leftover bars covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 weeks.  

I hope you’re ready for a delicious, good for you pumpkin treat!  Grab your ingredients because it’s time to bake – let’s go!

Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting {Paleo, Gluten Free, Dairy Free}

Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting {Paleo, Gluten Free, Dairy Free}

These Paleo Pumpkin Bars are a fun and healthy way to enjoy fall baking season! Soft fudgy pumpkin blondies flavored with lots of pumpkin pie spices are topped with a honey cream cheese frosting for the ultimate fall themed pumpkin bars! 

Author: Michele

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Course: Baking/Dessert

Cuisine: dairy-free, Gluten-free, Paleo

Keyword: dessert, fall baking, gluten free, paleo, pumpkin

Servings: 16 bars

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4.64 from 91 votes

Ingredients

Pumpkin Bar Batter:

• 1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/2 cup ghee softened
• 3/4 cup pure maple sugar or coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Frosting:

• 1 1/2 cups raw cashews soaked in warm water for at least 2 hours drained, rinsed, and gently dried
• 1/2 cup coconut cream chilled
• 1 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp coconut oil solid
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 6 Tbsp raw honey or pure maple syrup
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt

Instructions

Cream Cheese Frosting:

1. Prepare the frosting first and chill for at least 2 hours before frosting the bars. You can also make the frosting a day in advance and chill overnight.
2. Place all ingredients in a high speed blender (I used a Vitamix) and blend until smooth. This will take anywhere from 1-5 minutes depending on your blender. Be patient and scrape down the sides as needed, and continue to blend until creamy. Once done, chill in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Pumpkin Bar Batter

1. Preheat your oven to 350° F and line an 8 x 8” square baking pan with parchment paper on the bottom and up the sides.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and salt.
3. In a separate mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer or whisk, cream together the ghee and sugar until smooth, then whisk in the pumpkin puree, egg, and vanilla. Mix until very smooth.
4. Stir or beat in the flour mixture until well combined, the batter should be thick. Using a rubber spatula, transfer the batter to the prepared pan, scraping the bowl and smoothing the batter evenly in the pan.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until just set in the center. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 3 hours or more, until completely cooled. After about an hour, you can chill in the refrigerator if you want to speed up the cooling.
6. Once the bars are completely cooled, spread the chilled frosting in the thick layer over the top. You can cut into squares to serve right away, or return to the refrigerator to chill. Similarly to my carrot cake and spice cake, these bars are wonderful frosted and chilled overnight (covered) as well as served right away. Simply cut into squares before serving. You can also freeze the bars, frosted and covered, and thaw in the refrigerator before cutting and serving.
7. Store leftover bars covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or the freezer for up to 2 weeks. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 289kcal

Carbohydrates: 24g

Protein: 5g

Fat: 21g

Saturated Fat: 9g

Cholesterol: 25mg

Sodium: 120mg

Potassium: 161mg

Fiber: 2g

Sugar: 17g

Vitamin A: 1206IU

Vitamin C: 1mg

Calcium: 47mg

Iron: 2mg

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Want More Paleo Pumpkin Dessert Recipes?  Try One of These!

Pumpkin Spice Latte Bars

Paleo Pumpkin Coffee Cake

Pumpkin Streusel Muffins

Paleo Pumpkin Cupcakes 

Vegan Pumpkin Crumble 

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Blondies 

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