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Frosted Pumpkin Bars

Deb Groesbeck
Senior HR Manager

Description

Our holiday season kicks off with a rich pan of these pumpkin bars. They are perfect to take to a gathering as they will feed a crowd. Extra bonus is they can be baked & frozen ahead of time. Happy Baking!

Ingredients

For the batter:

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1 cup canola oil

1 can pumpkin purée (15 oz.)

4 eggs, room temperature

1 tbsp. pure vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. table salt

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. ground ginger

½ tsp. ground cloves

½ tsp. ground nutmeg


For the frosting:

4 oz. white chocolate bar, chopped

1 ½ pkg. cream cheese, softened (12 oz.) *use full fat cream cheese as it sets better.

1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

1 ½ Tbsp. vanilla bean paste

3 cups sifted powdered sugar

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 11½×16½-inch baking sheet or coat with nonstick spray.

2. Whisk together granulated sugar, brown sugar, oil, pumpkin purée, eggs, and vanilla.

3. Sift flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, ground ginger, cloves, and nutmeg into pumpkin mixture; whisk until combined. Spread batter onto prepared baking sheet.

4. Bake bars for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Transfer pan to a rack and cool completely before frosting.

5. Melt white chocolate in a microwave on high for 1–2 minutes; stir until smooth.

6. Beat cream cheese and butter with a mixer on high speed until smooth. Add melted chocolate and beat to combine. Add powdered sugar and beat on low speed until smooth.

7. Spread frosting over cooled bars. Cut into bars and enjoy!