These gluten-free pumpkin bars (or pumpkin squares) are moist and tender. They have the perfect mouthfeel too. Top them with a sweet cream cheese frosting for a festive fall treat!
2cups1-to-1 gluten-free flour blend The flour must contain xanthan gum - see notes. I used Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour
2tspbaking powder
1tspbaking soda
2tspcinnamon
1/2tspKosher salt
Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
8ozcream cheesesoftened at room temperature
1/2cupbuttersoftened at room temperature
1tspvanilla
2cupspowdered sugar
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350° F and grease TWO 9x13" baking pans with Pam cooking spray.
Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Whisk with a fork and set aside.
In a second bowl, combine the eggs, sugar, oil and pumpkin puree. Whisk the ingredients together until well combined.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until well combined. The batter will be liquidy.
Pour the batter (divided evenly) into the two prepared baking pans and bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool completely before adding the frosting.
To make the cream cheese frosting, beat the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and sugar together until smooth. Spread the frosting evenly atop the pumpkin cakes before cutting them into 12 squares per pan.
Notes
Can I use a different gluten-free flour blend? As mentioned previously, you can use most store-bought gluten-free flour blends. Look for ones that say measure-for-measure, cup-for-cup, or 1-to-1. Ensure your mix also contains xanthan gum; add 1 tbsp if not. Without xanthan gum, the pumpkin squares will crumble.How do I make this dairy-free? The spongy pumpkin cake itself is already dairy-free. But the cream cheese topping is not. If you can find dairy-free cream cheese, go ahead and use that. If not, I recommend making a buttercream using dairy-free butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and dairy-free milk.Be sure to use pumpkin puree. Make sure you use canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie mix. They are very different ingredients.What kind of pan should I use? I mainly use 9x13" metal pans, but I used a ceramic pan for this recipe because it looked pretty. A metal pan is always preferable. You could also use a large, wide-rimmed baking sheet. Be sure to grease any pan well. Pam cooking spray is my preferred greasing agent.How do I make this egg-free? I get this question a lot; unfortunately, I haven't tested this recipe without eggs. Eggs help give these pumpkin bars rise and moisture. You could always try using an egg replacer or flax egg. (One flax egg is one tablespoon of flaxseed meal + three tablespoons of warm water. Mix the flax and water. Leave the mixture for five minutes to gel before adding it to your recipe.)Allow the cakes to cool fully. If you find the cream cheese frosting is a hot mess, it might be because you frosted it too soon. The cakes should be thoroughly cool before frosting. Placing the cakes in the fridge will help them cool faster.How do I store leftover pumpkin bars? Store leftovers in a sealed container in your fridge.