Gluten-Free Vegan Pumpkin Bars

These Gluten-Free Vegan Pumpkin Bars are moist, fluffy and covered in a tangy "cream cheese" frosting. They're warmly spiced and slightly denser than pumpkin cake. They come together in one bowl and are refined sugar free too. They make a great shareable dessert for Thanksgiving!

How to make this recipe

Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe.

• Mix together all the ingredients in a glass mixing bowl.

Tip: Make sure to use a measuring jug to measure out the exact amount of plant-based milk!

• Transfer the batter into a square baking tin.

Tip: Make sure to line the loaf tin with greased baking paper - this will make removing the bars from the tin so much easier!

• Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.

• Leave to cool before applying the frosting.
• Use a knife (or palette knife for frosting) to spread the frosting over the top.

• Slice into bars.

Substitutions you can make

• You can use any type of oil: coconut oil, olive oil or vegetable oil.
• You can use any type of plant-based milk: almond milk, rice milk, soy milk, cashew milk, oat milk etc.
• You can use any type of liquid sweetener: maple syrup, agave syrup, brown rice syrup, date syrup etc.
• You can replace the ground almonds with ground walnuts.
• For a nut-free version: replace the ground almonds with ground sunflower seeds, use a nut-free plant-based milk and use a coconut cream-based cream cheese frosting instead.
• You can use plain flour, wholemeal (whole wheat) flour or spelt flour instead of the gluten-free flour if you’re not gluten-free.
• You can use either shop-bought pumpkin purée or make our own.
• The pumpkin purée can be replaced with sweet potato or butternut squash purée.
• The mixed spice (pumpkin pie spice) and ginger can be omitted.

Ingredients you can decorate them with

• Chopped dried cranberries.
• Chopped pecans.

How long do these Pumpkin Bars keep for?

These Pumpkin Bars do taste best when fresh, but keep covered in the fridge for up to a few days.

More vegan desserts

• Coconut Macaroons
• Lemon Bars
• Strawberry Trifle
• Strawberry Shortcake
• Lemon Pudding
• Pumpkin Loaf Cake
• Coffee Cake

If you try out this recipe or anything else from my blog, I’d really love to hear any feedback! Please give it a rating, leave a comment, or tag a photo @rhiansrecipes #rhiansrecipes on Instagram! Thank you.

Watch how to make this recipe

Gluten-Free Vegan Pumpkin Bars

These Gluten-Free Vegan Pumpkin Bars are moist, fluffy and covered in a tangy "cream cheese" frosting. They're warmly spiced and slightly denser than pumpkin cake.

4.75 from 4 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: gluten-free pumpkin bars, vegan pumpkin bars, vegan thanksgiving dessert

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Servings: 16 bars

Calories: 204kcal

Author: Rhian Williams

Ingredients

For the bars:

• ▢ 60 g (¼ cup) coconut oil (or sub olive or vegetable oil)
• ▢ 150 ml (⅔ cup) unsweetened almond milk (or any other plant-based milk)
• ▢ 225 g (1 cup) pumpkin purée
• ▢ 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar * (ensure gluten-free if necessary)
• ▢ 8 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ Pinch salt
• ▢ 150 g (1 ¼ cup) ground almonds (almond meal) **
• ▢ 150 g (1 ¼ cup) gluten-free flour blend (or sub plain flour if not gluten-free)
• ▢ 4 teaspoons baking powder (ensure gluten-free if necessary)
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
• ▢ 2 teaspoons mixed spice to taste (pumpkin pie spice, or a mixture of nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon)
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground ginger

For the frosting***:

• ▢ 100 g (⅔ cup) raw cashew nuts soaked in cold water overnight or in hot water for 15 minutes
• ▢ 6 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
• ▢ 3 tablespoons lemon juice

Instructions

For the bars:

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit).
• Place the coconut oil in a large bowl and melt over a saucepan of boiling water or in the microwave (skip this step if not using any other oil).
• Once melted, add the milk to the same bowl along with the pumpkin purée, vinegar, maple syrup, vanilla, salt and ground almonds.
• Sift in the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, mixed spice and ground ginger.
• Mix well, adding a splash more milk if looking too dry
.
• Transfer the mixture into a square baking tin lined with baking paper (I used a 23cm/9inch square baking tin).
• Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until risen and an inserted skewer comes out clean.
• Leave to cool before applying the frosting.

For the frosting:

• Drain the soaked cashews and add to a food processor or blender with the maple syrup and lemon juice.
• Whizz until completely smooth, adding some plant-based milk or water to thin out if necessary.
• Spread frosting over the top of the cake.
• Slice into 16 squares.
• Tastes best when fresh, but keeps covered in the fridge for up to a few days.

Video

Notes

*The acidity of the vinegar reacts with the alkali bicarbonate of soda to make the bread fluffy. If you can’t get hold of vinegar, substitute it with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice.

**You can alternatively use almond flour.

***You can alternatively use this coconut cream-based cream cheese frosting.

Nutrition Facts

Gluten-Free Vegan Pumpkin Bars

Amount Per Serving

Calories 204 Calories from Fat 108

% Daily Value*

Fat 12g18%

Saturated Fat 4g20%

Sodium 33mg1%

Potassium 213mg6%

Carbohydrates 24g8%

Fiber 3g12%

Sugar 12g13%

Protein 4g8%

Vitamin A 2189IU44%

Vitamin C 2mg2%

Calcium 107mg11%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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