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Easy to throw together, these vegan pumpkin pie bars are perfect for when you don’t want to make an actual pumpkin pie but still want to have the same flavor. The homemade almond flour crust holds together well and is the perfect base for the dairy-free pumpkin pie filling. Serve as is or topped with coconut cream! Jump to Recipe
If you’re looking for a convenient fall dessert recipe, I’ve got you covered. These pumpkin pie bars are like pumpkin pie but so much easier to make! The homemade pumpkin pie filling is smooth, creamy, and seasoned with plenty of pumpkin spice and rests on a simple almond flour crust. They had topped with cinnamon sugar for some extra. Utterly irresistible!
Subtly spiced and perfectly sweet, these easy vegan pumpkin pie bars are perfect for all gatherings and parties around Thanksgiving. You have all the flavor of pumpkin pie without the fuss of traditional pie crust. What’s not to love?
Vegan Pumpkin Pie Bars
Ingredients
For the crust
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 2.5 tbsp brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 2.5-3 tbsp oil, or melted vegan butter
For the Pumpkin Layer:
- 1 cup pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie mix
- 1/3 cup cashews , , soaked in hot water for at least 20 minutes.
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 tsp cornstarch, or tapioca starch
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
Instructions
- Make the crust: In a bowl, mix the almond flour, flour, salt, cinnamon and sugar unil well combined.
- Add the oil/butter and mix in until the mixture resenbles crumbs, and is slightly sticky. If it’s too crumbly, add a few drops of milk to help. It wont be very sticky, but it will stick really well when it bakes.
- Transfer this mixture to a parchment lined 9x5 inch loaf pan, and press evenly using a spatula.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, make the pumpkin pie layer.
- Filling: Blend all of the ingredients untl the cashews are broken down and already creamy.
- You may need to add 1-2 tbsp of non-dairy milk, depending on your blender, and the moisture content in the pumpkin puree for the mixture to blend into a smooth state.
- Take the loaf pan out of the oven, transfer the blended pumpkin mixture into the pan and even it out. You can also top this with 2 tsp of sugar, and 1/2 tsp of cinnamon for a cinnamon sugar topping.
- Put the loaf pan back in the oven and bake for 35-45 minutes, or until the top layer is set. Check in the center, the pumpkin layer should not be jiggly.
- Remove the loaf pan from the oven and let it cool completely before removing from the pan.
- Chill the bars for at least an hour and then slice and serve.The bars can be stored in the refrigerator for 5 days
Video
Notes
- For Glutenfree, use oat flour or a gf blend instead of all purpose flour
- For Nutfree, use coconut cream instead of cashews in the pumpkin filling and add 2 tsp more cornstarch. For the crust, use a regular pie crust of choice (flour, oil/vegan butter)
- for Oilfree, use 2 tbsp smooth almond butter and a few tsp maple syrup
- If you do not have pumpkin pie spice you can make your own by blending 1/2 tsp cinnamon with 1/8 tsp each of ground ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and cardamom
These bars can be stored in the refrigerator for 5 days
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Ingredients for Vegan Pumpkin Pie Bars:
- the crust for these pie bars is made using a blend of almond flour and regular flour.
- coconut sugar adds a tad of sweetness but you can use brown sugar instead.
- some oil helps the crust hold together.
- for the pumpkin layer, we use pumpkin puree. You can use storebought or homemade puree.
- cashews add some more creaminess to these bars – make sure to soak them.
- maple syrup adds the perfect round sweetness to complement the pumpkin’s natural sweetness in the filling.
- cornstarch helps firm the pumpkin filling up as the bars bake.
- It would not be pumpkin pie without pumpkin pie spice and lots of vanilla
- For glutenfree : use oat flour or a gf blend instead of all purpose
Tips & Variations:
- Serve these vegan bars as they are or top them with coconut cream!
- blend the pumpkin filling until the cashews are completely blended tor the best texture. I do this in warm water but you can soak them in cold water in the fridge overnight.
- If you do not have pumpkin pie spice you can make your own by blending 1/2 tsp cinnamon with 1/8 tsp each of ground ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and cardamom.
- Make sure to make this recipe ahead of time to allow for some time for chilling.
- This recipe is for 1 standard loaf pan but can easily be doubled to feed a bigger crowd.
How to make Vegan Pumpkin Pie Bars
In a bowl, mix the almond flour, flour, salt, cinnamon, and sugar until well combined. Add the oil and mix in until the mixture resembles crumbs, and is slightly sticky. It won’t be very sticky, but it will stick really well when it bakes. Transfer this mixture to a parchment-lined 9×5 inch loaf pan, and press evenly using a spatula.
Bake at crust at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, make the pumpkin pie layer.
Blend all of the ingredients until the cashews are broken down and already creamy. You may need to add 1-2 tbsp of non-dairy milk, depending on your blender and the moisture content in the pumpkin puree for the mixture to blend into a smooth texture.
Take the loaf pan out of the oven, transfer the blended pumpkin mixture into the pan, and even it out. You can also top this with 2 tsp of sugar, and 1/2 tsp of cinnamon for a cinnamon sugar topping.
Put the loaf pan back in the oven and bake for 35-45 minutes, or until the top layer is set. Check in the center, the pumpkin layer should not be jiggly. Remove the loaf pan from the oven and let it cool completely before removing from the pan.
HOW TO STORE PUMPKIN PIE BARS?
Store these bars in the refrigerator for 5 days or freeze them.
MORE PUMPKIN RECIPES:
- Pumpkin Carrot Bread
- Gluten-free Pumpkin Bread
- Pumpkin Cinnamon rolls
- Gluten-free Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with pumpkin caramel.
- 1 Bowl Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
- Pumpkin Cinnamon Swirl Sandwich Bread
- Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal
This recipe is THE BEST.
I love how easy and delicious it is. Especially the crust, way better than cookie crust in my opinion. Thank you Richa!!!
Do you think it’s possible to adjust this recipe to make a rounded pumpkin pie?
Yes! Double it. You’ll have to adjust the crust amount as you need more for the side of the pan.
Thank you! I’ll give it a try
yay! thank you!
Any truly nutfree (as in no coconut) adaptations?
A mix of silken tofu and hemp seeds
Hi, I’ve just started using your recipes and so far they’re great!
I have a couple of questions about this recipe. I made it and it was delicious (maybe a bit too sweet for me), but my crust didn’t hold together well, even after baking it. I used oat flour + almond flour, with 3 TB oil, a little almond milk because it wasn’t sticking together at all, plus the other specified ingredients. After it was all done, the crust wasn’t simply crumbly, but more like wet sand, which was tasty but a bit too weird of a texture. What do you think went wrong?
Also, when making this recipe the next time, what adjustments should I make if I reduce the sweeteners?
While oat flour is a great GF alternative to all-purpose flour, it does change the texture of the crust. I would suggest next time adding a bit more oil rather than milk, as it is the “fat” from the oil that binds everything together and not necessarily the moistness. I find coconut sugar to be less sweet than brown sugar and recommend you try as an alternative.
Made these for thanksgiving — and loved them! Thank you for a great recipe.
Wonderful!
Thank you so much for this amazing recipe! Our 2 year old son is anaphylactic to dairy, eggs and peanuts, so I made this instead of a pumpkin pie tonight. My husband and I both agree that we love these far more than any pumpkin pie we’ve ever had.
These were just as good if not better than conventional pumpkin pie. I just have one question, should the filling be more liquid like a regular pumpkin pie filling or thick like mine was? I was unsure what the consistency should have been like and I struggled a little getting all of it out of my blender. I will however be happily serving these at Thanksgiving dinner this year.
Moisture content in pumpkin purée varies significantly. So you can add a few tbsp water to help the blending. Just don’t make it too liquidy. It should be closer to a thick cream at the minimum.
What size pan should I use if I double the recipe? Does to cook time change?
8 by 8 inch or 9 by 9
The bake time will increase by 10 mins or so
The first time I made these I put them in a 9×13 pan instead of a loaf pan (by accident 😳). Made them thin. They turned out SO delicious. My husband preferred them that way. I cut them into small 3/4” squares. I just cannot thank you enough for this wonderful recipe, Richa. 🙏🏼❤️💚🌱👍🏼😊
Thanks for popping in.
I want to love this, but the texture was crunch for me. Whenever I try to make cashews creamy in the Vitamix they still end up lumpy and crunchy. Am I supposed to use a food processor instead? I soaked them in boiling water for 2 hours!
I use a regular blender and they always come out creamy. I blend for a minute then let sit for 5 and blend again for a full minute. If the vitamix isn’t blending it the amount might be too small for the blender or there’s something wrong with it. Mine are always creamy in my regular nutribullet. Have you tried making a large batch cashew cream in the blender with enough volume in the blender?
Wonderful recipe! Thank you so much for sharing it! 🙏🏼😊❤️
Thanks for sharing your nice feedback.
just made these for a spooky party im going to tonight where the hosts are vegan. they smell DELIGHTFUL and i can’t wait for them to cool so i can pack them up!
Hope you had fun 🎉