My favorite recipe for classic pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting. Coming up on our second anniversary of living abroad next month, I’ve decided it’s simply a fact — moving away from home is pretty much guaranteed to make you ridiculously nostalgic for all of your favorite comfort foods. Especially when it comes to fall […]
My favorite recipe for classic pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting.

Coming up on our second anniversary of living abroad next month, I’ve decided it’s simply a fact — moving away from home is pretty much guaranteed to make you ridiculously nostalgic for all of your favorite comfort foods. Especially when it comes to fall baking, if you’re an American. ♡
Hence, the nonstop pumpkin-spice-a-thon taking place in our little Barcelona kitchen this fall. So far this month, we’ve already made pumpkin muffins, pumpkin spice granola, pumpkin bread (recipe coming soon), and lots and lots of pumpkin cream cold brew coffees (inspired by the one and only Starbucks) — all of which have been delicious. But I think it’s safe to say that our favorite dessert so far has been this classic that I dig up from the blog archives every autumn. It’s a recipe from my friend, Emily, that I first shared on the blog eight years ago. And it’s one that always, always, always hits the spot.
Meet my favorite pumpkin bars recipe! ♡
I’m just going to say it — these pumpkin bars are quite simply the best. The pumpkin bar batter itself is easy to whip up in just a few minutes (no mixer required), and then the bars bake up to be soft and moist and perfectly pumpkin-y, with just the right amount of pumpkin spice. Then once the bars are topped with a generous spread of cream cheese frosting, look out, because that magical combination makes them downright irresistible. They are pretty much guaranteed to be a hit for dessert. And then, let’s be real, you should definitely serve them for breakfast the next day too. (Yum.)
We made one batch of these pumpkin bars last week to share with a bunch of our friends and neighbors here, who always get very excited whenever they hear that we’ve been doing some American-style baking. But afterwards, Barclay and I missed the sweet leftovers that we have usually with this recipe so much that we actually ended up baking a second batch the next day just to keep the pumpkin bar goodness going. As always, they were just as nostalgic and delicious as ever, and I’m certain you will love them too.
Let’s make some pumpkin bars!
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